Embodied Experience: Design as Practice for Unveiling the Sensible by Soraia Gomes Teixeira
Book design project developed for Soraia Gomes Teixeira’s doctoral thesis in Contemporary Aesthetics, presented at the Centro Universitario de Diseño y Arte de Barcelona (EINA). From design studio Common Forms (translated from the Portuguese):
The project started from a set of formal academic constraints that were assumed as formal and conceptual restrictions. The requirement of a standard A4 format determined the scale of the object and its proportion from the beginning, influencing decisions regarding composition, rhythm, and organization of the graphic layout.
The publication includes a significant number of images intended to document the research process, which required the definition of multiple compositional solutions capable of accommodating different scales and relationships between text and image. In parallel, the textual hierarchy proved particularly demanding, with various types of entries and reading levels that implied an unconventional organization and a clear system of typographical differentiation.
Later, regarding the choice of materials, there was greater freedom. Nevertheless, a solid and contained volume was chosen, using white paper for both the text block and the cover, differentiated only by the finish. This choice reinforces the unity of the object, while simultaneously introducing a subtle distinction in terms of materials.
The binding process was simplified, using only the folding of the signatures and the binding of the pages with an elastic band. This solution, in addition to addressing the limitations of graphic production, suggests a slower and more deliberate way of browsing, emphasizing the act of browsing through the book.
