Page title

A perspective view of the book titled 'Alchemy of the Word' by Arthur Rimbaud, featuring an abstract cover with colorful geometric patterns on a red background.
Interior page of the book 'Alchemy of the Word' with a black background and text arranged in a circular and spiral manner, highlighting a poetic excerpt by Rimbaud.
Double page of the book displaying an artistic layout with large geometric patterns in the background and white poetic text creatively aligned on a red background.
Interior double page of the book with a black background and white poetic text, symmetrically arranged and aligned with petal-shaped graphic elements in the background.
Samples of the typography used in the project, displaying a repeated phrase in various sizes and styles, along with accented letters and symbols.
Typography design showing the creation process, with sketched and finalized letters, accompanied by construction grids and geometric elements.
Typographic variations showing the same text in different fonts and sizes, with sketched drawings and construction grids in the background.
Samples of letters and words in various typefaces, combining handwritten and printed letters with sketches and construction grids.

Book

Font

Prose layout

Verse layout

Alchemy of words

2021 • Editiorial & layout design

This project is based on Arthur Rimbaud's poem "Alchemy of the Word." It highlights the poet's mechanisms through typography. Poetry is often perceived as opaque, and this project aims to make poetry more accessible by visually translating poetic writing techniques. Intended for a non-initiated audience, this edition can also serve as an educational tool.

Typographic Concepts

Two typographic concepts were developed to illustrate key aspects of the collection:

• Temporal Shift: Inspired by the contrast between Rimbaud's past and present "self," this first concept uses geometric linear shapes with slanted stems and blackened serifs. The refusal to correct optical distortions creates a visual shift, reflecting Rimbaud's desire to "adjust the form and movement of each consonant."

• The Ideal of the Seer-Poet: This second concept reflects Rimbaud's evolution throughout this narrative. The eye of the letters gradually opens with poetic revelations, then closes in the face of his work's failure. As the eye opens more, the weight of the letters decreases.

After an in-depth analysis, these concepts were merged to create a coherent typography capable of transcribing all the poem's characteristics.

Layout

The layout adopts a square format to reflect the poem's cyclicity and enforces symmetry, allowing the words to create the lines of force. Margins separate the poem from reality, following the tradition of Baudelairean poetry.

The text is arranged according to the principles of Mallarmé's visual poetry, with adjustments to suit Rimbaud's specificities.

Colors play a crucial role in highlighting the sound repetitions (assonances and alliterations) characteristic of Rimbaud's poetry. The letter patterns use warm colors for assonances and cool colors for alliterations. This visually dominant mechanism is essential to do justice to the poem's sound richness.

Japanese binding was chosen to make the book's structure visible, echoing the work done for the poem's structure. The weaves on the spine recall the use of weaves in the text.












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