BEYOND THE SURFACE

Senior Capstone Project

Logo, Poster Series, Video, and Booklet

PROJECT DESCRIPTION

"Beyond the Surface: Exploring Emotions Through Design" is my senior capstone project, culminating in a full exhibition at the Southern Utah Museum of Art in March 2025. This project dives into complex human emotions, focusing on those feelings that are difficult to articulate or fully comprehend until exploring their formal definitions. The project consists of a logo and a series of six distinct posters, each dedicated to visually representing a unique and often under-discussed emotion. The posters will be accompanied by an animated video that brings the chosen emotions to life. Furthermore, a comprehensive booklet will contextualize the entire project, providing deeper insights into the research and design process behind each emotion's poster.

LOGO DESIGN

The logo for "Beyond the Surface" is designed to visually embody the project's core concept of hidden meanings and deeper understandings. Rendered in a classic black and white, the logo's design cleverly incorporates subtle, almost hidden letterforms within the background. While maintaining overall legibility, the logo requires a closer look, inviting the viewer to look "beyond the surface" to decipher the underlying text. This design choice mirrors the project's exploration of complex emotions, where the true meaning and depth of each feeling are not immediately apparent but require further investigation and reflection. The logo serves as a visual metaphor for the entire project, suggesting that there is always more to discover and understand when we delve deeper into the complexities of human experience.

POSTER DESIGNS

The poster series within "Beyond the Surface" visually articulates each of the six selected emotions: xeno, zenosyne, kairosclerosis, basorexia, monachopsis, and kenopsia through a carefully curated combination of color, texture, typography, and shape. Each design element plays a crucial role in capturing the essence of the specific emotion it represents. A consistent color palette provides a unifying thread throughout the series, while subtle variations within this palette allow each poster to individually express the unique nuances of its designated emotion. The textures, typefaces, and shapes were chosen with deliberate consideration, each contributing to the overall visual language and emotional resonance of the poster.

VIDEO

The video was made to add movement to the posters and a new motion element to the project. It connects emotionally with viewers in a different way, and the addition of music allows viewers to connect to the video further. I chose to use the names of the emotions, rather than the phrase of the poster, to make a further connection to what the emotion is being portrayed.

BROCHURE

The brochure was made to add a "behind the scenes" aspect to this project. It explains why emotions were represented the way they were, how each part of the design adds to the theme of the project, and what textures and phrases were used. A QR code was provided that links to a full view of this project, since the full project will not be shown in the art museum.