Obscure
BFA Visual Communication Design Thesis
Focus: Book Design, Motion Design
Year: 2025
Obscure, my BFA senior thesis, brings up the topic of glass child syndrome, which is a sibling of someone who is disabled. At times, they can feel invisible and unrepresented. By sharing my personal experience as a glass child, I ask: in what ways can I use multi-sensory design to validate and reveal the invisible thoughts of a glass child, educating families and mental health professionals?
The purpose of this project was simple—by sharing my story, I hope the audience can take the time to visualize what glass children go through and to empathize with their lifelong struggle—feeling obscured.
To view my research and process work, please click here to view my process blog.
01 Book Spreads
Within the book, I wanted the layouts be intentionally restrained in order for the viewers experience to be reflective and emotional. I relied on using positive and negative space with my layouts and to find a balance between imagery and typography to prevent visual noise.
02 Vellum Treatment
At the end of each chapter, vellum overlays and fold-outs reveal new information and content. This reflects feeling invisible and not understood, with hidden thoughts slowly being revealed.
Book Walkthrough
03 Motion Design
Obscure in Motion offers a vivid adaption of the printed book in a time-based experience. Using the imagery and writing from Chapter 1, I maintained a slow and subtle pacing to evoke a similar reflective experience of the book.
