Welsh Mythology
Jan. 2023 - May 2023
For the Visual Text module of my MA, I created a book based on Welsh mythology. After struggling with the visual language, I landed on abstracted ink drawings and a focus on names to highlight the timeless element of mythology. The importance of language is also shown through the inclusion of Welsh and English.
Outcome
I bound a book of the story I completed: King March. The binding is in black and white, like the content of the pages. The digital mock-ups show the pages more clearly.
Process
My aim for the self-directed project was to explore typography and combining illustration with type. I knew little about typography and fonts and wanted to explore this area through experimentation. However, I soon discovered that my usual style of illustration and the selected fonts all placed the images in certain time periods. Mythology is timeless and I felt this should be reflected in my work.
Therefore, inspired by Louis le Brocque's illustrations in 'The Táin', I decided to experiment with ink drawing and writing to achieve a more abstracted and timeless look. Playing with typography had allowed me to discover the importance of the names of the characters and how they become archetypes within the stories. They do not need to be represented as distinctive characters, but more as vessels for the story, figures that are not bound to a particular time or appearance.
For this project, I focused on the story of King March, creating a prototype and establishing a style that could be carried across multiple myths to create a boxset of Welsh stories. I wrote the story out in English and had to use an online translator for the Welsh. If I were to expand upon this project, I would like to collaborate with a Welsh author to have fluent versions in both languages.
