Historical context
1850 was dominated by the Civil War, Northern victory, and the subsequent end of slavery.
The period of industrialisation and the transport revolution, increased immigration from Europe. Walter Whitman lived between 1819 and 1892, an American poet, essayist, and journalist, one of the most influential writers in American literature. His works contain realism and transcendentalism, leading him to be called the father of free verse.
Walt Whitman, in this poem, describes a journey he must undertake.
He describes himself as a free man, the one and only man who has the power of choice over his own life, his destiny.
He admits that he is his luck, without having to hope for good fortune or that anyone else will stand in his way, so he will be able to reach his destination alone, and the earth will provide for his journey.
Although this does not mean that it is a peaceful journey, he is aware that there are imperfections and burdens, but he decides to take them with him and deal with them on the journey.
In a poem from 1856, Walt Whitman takes this trip to the USA and is thus inspired by the American landscapes of the time.
My idea for the printing of this poem
After my research, I decided to go ahead with a new project. I want to make the “accordion” book in the shape shown in the image below
Only on the front il the text of the poem, the poem starts on the page of the cover while the last page is attached to the back cover. In the image below is a drawing of what the cover should look like.
On the front of the cover, there is a cutout that forms a hole, and inside there are 2 layers, a sheet of transparent paper where there is a printed drawing, and underneath another sheet where there is a printed drawing (picture)
This is my new idea that came to me after researching, which I then delved into and decided to modify to create a different design that would go outside the box, in part, and even a little unusual in that it is thought of as a poem.
This came about thanks to lessons in the classroom and the discovery of new things and new designs, and also with the knowledge that I had to convey something more than usual.
In order to pursue this idea and achieve the final design, I made use of different tools. I decided to use a grid in InDesign, to be more linear, and this was before I got to know the Swiss grids system.
The latter was useful for further modifying my design and achieving my goal.
I made use of Procreate. I have never been good at drawing, but I wanted to get out of my comfort zone by exploring and learning new techniques; however, I am not a great draughtsman, but I was able to take further steps.
I used InDesign for the layout, learning in this way further all its potential and many aspects that were unknown to me.
Developing
Research and Realisation
