Lydia Chodosh probes design rules through archiving and cataloguing

"For me, design is about interrogating the process by which knowledge is acquired and transmitted across time. My practice is buoyed by an archive of encounters - with people, strange and familiar to me, with objects and ephemera, old and new, with words, accumulated and catalogued."

"This printed catalogue is visually industrial, showcasing the importance of clarity to archiving; Lydia's work is a demonstration of way-finding through knowledge systems informed by her literary background. The web version, notations.xyz, goes further. Lydia's growing obsession with the colour blue is catalogued in an archive of cyanotype images."

"We like the squishy stuff, the relics of the past prone to degradation, the hidden layers of pixelation that make up a screen. From pure literature to collaborative design, the work celebrates impermanence and the materiality of both physical and digital communication systems."

Lydia Chodosh is a designer whose practice centers on understanding how knowledge is acquired and transmitted across time through language and design systems. Her interdisciplinary background spans English literature, creative writing, publishing, and graphic design from RISD. Her 480-page MFA thesis, On the Impulse to Notate, presents notes, art historical research, and conversations through asymmetrical grids, subdued color palettes, and scientific typography, emphasizing clarity in archival systems. The accompanying web version, notations.xyz, features an archive of cyanotype images exploring her interest in the color blue with interactive citations. Her collaborative work on RISD's Biennial identity celebrates ephemeral and degradable materials, reflecting her fascination with impermanence and hidden layers of visual communication.

Read at Itsnicethat