LOSS
Book Design
March 2022 to June 2022
Advisor: Rebeca Méndez
LOSS is a 24” by 36” book about enduring grief, using the ocean as a metaphor for commemorating the passing of loved ones. LOSS was the recipient of the Highest Distinction Award in the 2023 Design Media Arts (DMA) Undergraduate Exhibition, presented in recognition of exemplary achievement.
I made this project for the Ecological Art and Justice Fieldwork Practice course at UCLA taught by Professor Rebeca Méndez. The assignment was to engage with natural environments and develop a project that focuses on bodies of water in the Southern California region.
In January 2023, LOSS was exhibited in the New Wight Gallery at the Broad Art Center at UCLA as part of DMA’s first in-person undergraduate exhibit post-COVID. The piece featured a sand-colored rug for the book to lie on, and two blue cushions for visitors to kneel on as they flip through the book.
LOSS includes written pieces, anecdotes, gesture paintings, illustrations, calligraphy, and drawings inspired by the ocean and grief. The edges of each page were ripped and sewn back together to represent mending what was once broken.
The ocean holds a special place in my heart, something I didn’t realize until starting this project. I made this book to honor my father, who passed away from the ocean several years prior. Making this book gave me the opportunity to uncover my process of enduring grief.
I drove to the beach where my father passed and reconciled my feelings of sadness and anger toward the ocean. I used to love spending time in the ocean with him, but after his death, I couldn’t bring myself to confront the ocean again. After years of mourning, I knew it was time to overcome that fear and rekindle my relationship with the ocean.
forever under construction