“Sexuality and gender of
a person is skin deep”
- Zanele Muholi
approach
After extensive research into Zanele Muholi’s life, their work, the south African culture, and the LGBTQ community, I knew it was critical to create something that not only reflects the style of their work, but that also subtly alludes to the greater message that Muholi hints to through their photographs.
I was inspired by a quote that Muholi said which struck me instantly, “sexuality and gender of a person is skin deep.” This simple yet powerful phrase embodies the whole of their message. It represents a powerful statement in showing how a person’s true self, their identity, and their orientation is rooted deep in their core and how nothing that the world says can change that. It elicits pride, to be content with one-self instead of hiding in fear, shame, and guilt. More importantly, it encourages empowerment and gives people a voice to stand up and fight back. Hearing this quote struck a design nerve in me and I immediately began the process of executing my vision and turning it into a reality.
The image is only revealed through the heat that is emitted from the touch of one’s skin in order to allude to the notion of allowing oneself to be fully in-tuned with their identity and being comfortable enough in their own skin.
solution
To keep a consistent design throughout this whole project and to reflect Muholi’s style of work, I heavily developed and amplified the concept of the contrasting duality and the presence of black and white, while simultaneously incorporating subtle design choices that emulate Muholi’s stance regarding members of the LGBTQ community.
The concept behind the title, “Not Everything is Black and White” is meant to be a play on words, with a hint of irony. While referring to the complexity of the issue at hand surrounding south African women in the LGBTQ community and the challenges they continuously face, that not everything is as simple as it seems, it also plays on the fact that the entire book, as well as Muholi’s photographs, are solely black and white.
For the book cover, I used a thermochromatic, heat-sensitive colour-changing ink (painstakingly acquired) to visually bring life to Muholi’s standpoint on the whole situation, although it involved many steps and much preparation. I began by screen-printing two layers of black thermochromic ink over one of Muholi’s high-contrasting black and white photographs. Then, on top of that, I screen printed the letters of the book title, “Not everything is Black and White”, using regular black screen-printing ink.
What emerged from this process was a personal, hands-on, multi-layered interactive experience. The image is only revealed through the heat that is emitted from the touch of one’s skin. This effect alludes to the notion of allowing oneself to be fully in-tuned with their identity and being comfortable enough in their own skin. It empowers them to let their true self shine through and proudly and unapologetically reveal themselves to the world, giving them the opportunity to retell their story. The multitude of layers of inks shows the complexity of the reality that south African women in the LGBTQ community face on the daily.
For the slip case, I wanted it to be simple, yet effective. I designed a straightforward screen printed white on white case to contrast against the complex black book and to further emphasize the idea of duality.
For the tablet adaptation, the subtlety of duality remains while the viewer is immersed into the beautiful life and work of Zanele Muholi.
