Georgia Witten Sage

My major project is a response to a personal experience of gun violence in Brazil. The research undertaken for the project has explored the process of firing a gun, its physical and emotional impacts, symbols, imagery and objects associated with gunfire and the meaning of the experience.

To communicate the unsettling emotions associated with gun violence in a visually significant way I designed a display typeface using cross hair symbols. I named the typeface ‘I Said No’ as words of protest against violence. Typeface is an important form of visual communication, it influences the way a message is read.

The typeface was modelled from Grotesque MT Bold. To illustrate a use of the typeface I designed a poster using the powerful statement made in an essay about Brazil by Alba Zaluar ‘when civil rights arrive we are already dead’.

I designed bullet case necklaces by having words associated with gun violence such as ‘pain’ and ‘bleed’ engraved on the polished cases. They bring together both aspects of the aftermath of gun violence – the empty physical shell of the bullet and the emotional effects of the experience.

At first glance the images and objects are appealing and enticing and the deeper meaning isn’t immediately obvious. The initial appeal of the work comes through the unfamiliar beauty of polished bullet cases and star like crosshairs. It is only when engaging with the work more closely that its meaning is revealed through the combined impact of the statement and the crosshair symbol.

Contact: georgiawittensage [at] hotmail.com