The brief:
Typographically re-interpret Canto 33 of Paradiso, using the Longfellow translation, to introduce The Divine Comedy to a new audience. In Canto 33 Dante describes his journey towards ‘The Highest Light’ and his transformation throughout the journey.
Design outcome:
I have started unpacking and deconstructing this poem to understand it before I started the project. After I have immersed myself into it, I decided to re-interpret Paradiso 33 for readers who don’t necessarily believe in the existence of God and show that it’s a good piece of literature for everyone. I have included annotations for each part of the Canto and used abstract shapes to show my perception of the topic. The choice of paper in this project is very important. I have used scritta paper (40 gsm) and bib tengujo paper (12 gsm). Using this paper and visually quiet typography communicates the ethereal, untouchable and light theme of the poem.
Instead of page numbers I have used a zigzag line that progresses page by page. The line is one of the elements of the illustration (see below) to connect the two books together.