NO–LIMITS by Chen Sihang

NOLIMITS

Selected Works [ 2018-2021 ]

無極限 SIH A N G C H E ｜研究生作品集

Course.

MA Portfolio Seminar

Instructor. Mary Scott

Year. 2021 Spring

Deliverables. Website, Book

Category. Editorial & Web Design

SELEC TED WORKS [2018-2021]

CHAP TER 00. NO -L IMI T S

NOLIMITS

無極限 SIH A N G C H E ｜研究生作品集

Course.

MA Portfolio Seminar

Instructor. Mary Scott

Year. 2021 Spring

Deliverables. Website, Book

Category. Editorial & Web Design

Copyrighte 2020 Sihang Chen All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distribu ted, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or storedin a database or retrieval system, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the copyright holder stated above. This book was produced aspart of a student portfolio and other projects developed through the program.

“Never stop exploring.” Design has no-limits. It is full of connections and combinations to everything. It can be a rule, a pipe dream or just about money, but whatever it is, I’m fascinated by it. I hope to never stop exploring with my infinite curiosity and passion. The sense of accomplishment in design lies in the moment a work is done and new things are discovered in the process constantly. “Absurd” is one of the most interesting words in the inspiration phase. Sometimes an idea doesn’t make sense, but design is rational, and the bricks of detail build its rationality.

Info

An environmental design and art platform.

008 / 031

LIGHTWEIGHT

CONTENTS

032 / 051

A series of books about living in the world.

THE WORLD

A music typography experiment poster.

052 / 061

CHINESE WEDDING

An aesthetic design book about Asian style.

062 / 079

ASIAN STYLE

080 / 087

An environmental typography poster.

I'M POISON

2019 MUJI annual report redesign.

NO-BRAND

088 / 107

108 / 119

A type classifications poster series.

TYPES OF TYPE

A Identity rebrand for Inclusive Design Toronto.

120 / 143

HUMAN DIVERSITY

A series of type experiment poster about encroachment.

144 / 171

ENCROACHMENT

172 / 211

Kodak re-branding.

PRESERVE MOMENTS

A series of motion posters for the typeface Dumbar.

TALL & LOW

212 / 225

LIGHTWEIGHT

An environmental design and art platform.

輕量化可持續性發展 / 設計與藝術平台

Course. Digital Design Studio

Instructor. Phil Hamlett

Year. 2020 Fall

Deliverables. App, Website, Social media

Category. Web & UI Design

SIHANG CHEN / M. A .

NO -LIMITIS.

01/11

Objective. Within the digital sphere designers can work beyond the reach of words, images and form—employing sound, motion, video and interactions to communi-cate ideas. It has deepened their ability to tell a story, create connections and elicit action. Choose a voice or a matter of phenomenon that needs to be elevated, exploring a real web design or redesign the project from start to finish.

Lightweight is an action method that addresses the issue of responsible consumption and production, through reducing people’s excessive consumption desire, thus maintaining a rational and lightweight way of life and consumption. So as to This establishes a more efficient and environmentally friendly production mode, and avoids more waste of resources and environmental pollution. As an environmental design and art platform, Lightweight visualize global sustainable development issues in the form of design and art, with feasible solutions and concepts.

Approach. SELEC TED WORKS [2018-2021]

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THE WORLD

A series of books about living in the world.

人間人間百態 / 系列封面設計

Course. Type Composition

Instructor. John Nettleton

Year. 2019 Spring

Deliverable. Book Cover

Category. Typrography & Book Cover Design

SIHANG CHEN / M. A .

NO -LIMITIS.

02/11

Objective. Design a series of three book covers—which include front, spine and back—to represent a reissue from a publisher. The books do not have to be from the same author, nor from the same genre. The only thing that needs to tie them together is the publisher and the design firm selected to redesign the reissued books.

The World is a series of novels by three Asian writers. The novels are all based on the depiction of life, with a strong sense of sadness. The cover design of the three books respectively uses three different calligraphy styles to write the titles, which also reflects the different writing styles of the three writers. The black geometric shapes replace the strokes of some Chinese characters, creating a contrast between modern and traditional, and the mixture of the two styles also represents the absurdity and twists of the novels’ plot.

Approach. SELEC TED WORKS [2018-2021]

CHAP TER 02. THE WORLD

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CHINESE WEDDING

A music typography experiment poster.

囍

冥婚 / 音樂字體海報設計

Course. Type Experiments

Instructor. Christopher Morlan

Year. 2020 Fall

Deliverable. Poster

Category. Typrography & Poster Design

SIHANG CHEN / M. A .

NO -LIMITIS.

03/11

Objective. The goal for this project is to develop a rationale for interpreting a piece of music through typography, imagery and layout. You will choose a piece of music that you feel would be good for this project. Once the piece of music is chosen you need to write down, gather and or research every idea, emotion, metaphor and visual that you associate with the song.

Chinese Wedding is a song describing the wedding ceremony of ghost weddings, a traditional feudal custom in ancient China. It satirizes the absurdity and ruthlessness of the feudal class system in the old society and finally leads to a love tragedy. The typeface changes in light and shadow, which is hallucinatory but unreal, and also expresses the strong contrast bewteen the tragic and happy in the lyrics and the background story.

Approach.

SELEC TED WORKS [2018-2021]

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ASIAN STYLE

An aesthetic design book about asian style.

亞洲風亞洲美學 / 書籍版式設計

Course. Type Composition

Instructor. John Nettleton

Year. 2020 Fall

Deliverable. Book

Category. Editorial & Cover Design

SIHANG CHEN / M. A .

NO -LIMITIS.

04/11

Objective. Redesign a book that you choose. It should include all the necessary components, such as text, captions, titles, subtitles, etc. Also think about a specific target audience for your project. In addition to finding a book to redesign, you should also gather inspiration for look and feel of your redesign. You will only be doing sample spreads, not the entire book.

The Asian Style was written by Gilles De Bure in 1998. It presents an extraordinary vision of the world based on clarity and simplicity, on emotion and reason, on a sensitive yet lofty appreciation of things. Everyday objects such as bowls, baskets and paper display an extreme degree of refinement, shaping a lifestyle in which materials, colors and patterns are interwoven in a wonderfully light and evocative way. This Asian approach to design is so subtle and universal that it will lend harmony and balance to every interior.

Approach.

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I'M POISON

An environmental typography poster.

毒

人類惡行 / 環保字體海報設計

Course. Typographic Voice & Visual Narrative

Instructor. Sohee Kwon

Year. 2019 Spring

Deliverable. Poster

Category. Typrography & Psoter Design

SIHANG CHEN / M. A .

NO -LIMITIS.

05/11

Objective. Through a synthesis of typographic knowledge, students employ advanced methodologies in the development of transmedia visual experiences. Students will chose a shapeless object as project topic to explore alternative methods and execution strategies to develop form and define a unique aesthetic. Letterform anatomy and design, proportion systems and layout are employed to deliver contextually appropriate visual narratives.

I’m Poison, which is a kind of concrete expression of human behavior, expresses its silent spread in a way of self-statement. At first it was born in hidden corners, and gradually grew into a bloody and shocking scar, everywhere, such as corruption, mildew, virus, pollution and war. People just hate and dislike scars that posion left existence, but do not realize the reason for its appearance. Finally, it can only use its most grotesque face to leave a warning for people.

Approach.

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IN THIS WORLD,

EVERYWHERE

SCARS ON

I'M THE

LIKE ON HUMAN'S BODY.

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CHAP TER 05. I'M P OISON

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NOBRAND

2019 MUJI annual report redesign.

無品牌無印良品 / 年報重塑設計

Course. Type Systems

Instructor. John Nettleton

Year. 2020 Summer

Deliverable. Book

Category. Editorial & Infographic Design

SIHANG CHEN / M. A .

NO -LIMITIS.

06/11

Objective. Redesign a company in a field you are interested in. Make sure the company organization you select has an annual report or a csr report online that you can harvest text from.

“Simplicity and emptiness yield the ultimate universality, embracing the feelings and thoughts of all people.”—MUJI MUJI focus on extremely rational manufacturing process of products, succinct, but not in the minimalist style. The redesign of Annual Report emphasizes practicality and simplicity to achieve consistency with the MUJI brand philosophy. Through information hierarchy and highlighting, thick infographics and tables are made easy to read and breathe, creating a relaxed reading experience for the audience.

Approach. SELEC TED WORKS [2018-2021]

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TYPES OF TYPE

A Type classifications poster series.

類別 VO X/ 字體類別海報設計

Course. Type Forms

Instructor. John Nettleton

Year. 2019 Fall

Deliverable. Poster Series

Category. Poster Design

SIHANG CHEN / M. A .

NO -LIMITIS.

07/11

Objective. Design three informational posters about type classifications. The posters should work together as a set but each one will present and promote only one type category. Choosing any three of the first six Vox type classifications. Consider how to employ contrast in scale to create visual interest for the poster.

Types of type is a poster series composed of three very representative typeface, Gill Sans, Fenice and Helvetica Now. The differently-weighted letters are placed in stacked spaces, sometimes obscuring some parts of the letters, but the beauty of details of the letters of each typeface can be felt more directly. The weight variations of the typeface are subtly displayed at the edges of the space, which will provide an efficient and interesting learning experience for the designers who are learning typography.

Approach. SELEC TED WORKS [2018-2021]

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HUMAN DIVERSITY

A Identity rebrand for Inclusive Design Toronto Conference.

多樣性

擁抱人類的多樣性 / 包容性設計論壇會設計

Course. Type Systems

Instructor. John Nettleton

Year. 2020 Summer

Deliverables. Poster Series Website, App Brochure, Banner Zoom Background ID Card & Stickers

Category. Poster, Web Design Identity Rebrand

SIHANG CHEN / M. A .

NO -LIMITIS.

08/11

Objective. Create promotional materials for an existing design conference. Designa visual concept that demonstrates a conceptual and typographic system.

IDTO—Inclusive Design Toronto looks at the impact of design on inclusivity and explores how people can make decisions form live, work, and design for inclusion to more fully embrace human diversity. All kinds of people are unique and gorgeous, like those gradient of color shapes, shining against a gray background. At the same time, they collaborate with each other to a new design form. Braille and icons of work, live and design represent people’s thinking of design and observation from different angles.

Approach. SELEC TED WORKS [2018-2021]

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ENCROACHMENT

A series of type experiment poster about encroachment.

侵蝕

擁抱人類的多樣性 / 包容性設計論壇會設計

Course. Type Experiments

Instructor. Christopher Morlan

Year. 2020 Fall

Deliverable. Poster

Category. Typrography & Psoter Design

SIHANG CHEN / M. A .

NO -LIMITIS.

09/11

Objective. Students will pick one word from a series of words to base their experiment on. They will then consider what meaning that word has in the literal sense as well as the abstract or “slang” context and design a poster to portray that meaning. Students will use the letters of the chosen word in the composition, but also can use the definition,thoughts, literal references, etc.

Encroachment—is an experiment of typography and context. In the experiment, each poster is like a section. The content changes formats to the pull the audience into appropriate context, telling the story of their role and definition. Each variation of letterform is a tone, while the strong contrast between black and white is like the plot of story. Some are ups and downs, and some are quiet and peaceful.

Approach.

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PRESERVE MOMENTS

Kodak re-branding.

瞬間

紀錄瞬間 / K o d a k 品牌重塑設計

Course. The Nature Identity

Instructor. Hunter Wimmer

Year. 2020 Fall

Deliverables. Book, Website Stationary System

Category. Typrography & Psoter Design

SIHANG CHEN / M. A .

NO -LIMITIS.

10/11

Objective. Conduct research to chart the history and mission of a brand which is outdated or under-influential—and to discover audienceappropriate opportunities. Identify an audience that will be receptive to both the core attributes and new expressions of the brand, and establish a strategy that allows the brand to be extended past its existing offerings. The project should includ developing brand guidelines, appropriate visual solutions and new branding opportunities and it should shows how the branding solution fits into a modern cultural and commercial context.

The human body is like a roll of film. The body’s organs are like a camera's sensor, collecting information and preserving it as wonderful moments and surprises. Kodak’s rebranding will retain the brand’s core attributes and also bring new technology products and sensory experiences to the audience. All memories and moments are no longer limited to vision but will involve all of the other human senses. “Innovation”, “Connection” and “Moment” are the keywords of the new Kodak.

Approach.

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