Print Design:
First Place, Most Creative

Hugo Werner Freitas
Art Center College of Design

Memory Identity

Artist's Statement: This self-promotional piece is an exploration on the underlying relation of memory and the Self — and the consequent construction of our own identity.

Initial material was a box filled with old photographs that had survived a flood in Brazil (my homeland). The pictures alone were interesting, but I wanted to explore a way to go beyond a mere scrapbook. The objective was to raise the reader's own memories and personal experiences, which was achieved through the development of the two themes (memory and identity) over several spreads, exploring them cinematically.

The photographs of my family were dynamically explored (scale changes, color, composition), spread after spread, unveiling hidden narratives and introducing different characters — like the archetypal grandmother or the Boy Scout's group. On the surface, floating over the images and giving them a context — sometimes expanding, other by counter-pointing — are several fragments of poems and prose that came to me over time.

Crucial to the entire work flow of Memory Identity, was Adobe® InDesign's precise typographical capabilities and the seamless integration of images and type. With InDesign®, I was able to easily integrate two other important elements: the textural explorations (made with Xerox copies of some personal documents) alternating with images (rhythm) and the typography (FF DIN by Albert Jan Pool) working most of the time in a very strong and poetic way.