The History of Grapus [Book Design + Layout] / 2019
Grapus was a collective of graphic artists, working together from 1970-1991, seeking to create designs with a social conscious. The Grapus studio was able to scrap the necessity to be a commercially successful design studio and focus solely on the social, political, and cultural implications of their graphic design. This was extremely uncommon and during a time in which design studios were not popular in France.
"Radical politics and an ambition to create expressive design during the height of French left-wing radicalism gave way to the formation of the design studio Grapus. As a combination of the words “graphic” and “crapules staliniennes,” or “Stalinist scum,” came the play on words and the name of the Grapus studio. The studio was created by three French design school students and gave way to the creation of many politically motivated posters, through collaboration with organizations aligned with Communist party causes."
For this design process, I researched graphic design history movements. I wrote a research paper on the subject of Grapus, which became the contents of the book. I conceptualized a theme and layout for the book. I scanned scribbly cursive handwriting for titles, choosing a simplistic layout design with a focus on both the Grapus posters and the handwritten page titles. [Tools: pen and paper, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Capture, Adobe InDesign]
