ISTD

Rationale for Project 

Italo Calvino’s Invisible Cities covers 55 fantasy cities that Marco Polo travels. As he travels through these 55 magical cities, the reader is provided with complex imagery throughout the book. Calvino was able to connect the 55 stories seamlessly throughout the book which is where my inspiration for The Subway Experience blossomed. Possibly the largest innovation for connecting cities like never before was the invention of the underground railway system. After extensive research I was able to redesign the classic novel with this inspiration in mind.

Through subway inspired typography and graphic elements, I was able to transform the characteristics of each of the cities into their own modern retelling. Each city utilizes different graphic shapes but all of them repeat treatments for headings and body copy which helped unify the piece. The minimalistic modern take on the typography helped portray the characteristics of each city. This design prompt was extremely challenging and caused me to think in ways that I never had before. After many iterations and concepts, The Subway Experience was finally complete with its subway elements, cohesive typographic system, and abstract city depictions. These modern typographic and design elements will greatly appeal to the target audience of readers who enjoy fictional novels and abstract retelling of classic stories.