Asemic - between drawing and writing

Abstract

Asemic writing comprises a vast variety of artistic practices in the fields of visual poetry, fine arts and calligraphy. It deploys letter-like structures without conventionally fixed semantic meaning and can be found in many different variation, ranging from the expressive gestural to the systematic typographical.

Even though asemic writing has gained popularity as a medium of artistic expression in recent years, it is very much absent in the current discourses in graphic design. In this project, it is investigated in regard to its historical, conceptual, practice-based and pedagogical implication within the field of graphic design.

This research unifies the often conceptually distinct disciplines of drawing and writing and highlights the artistic potential and relevance of asemic writing as an accessible form of mark-making beyond conventional restrains. Furthermore, this project introduces asemic writing as a tool in understanding, questioning, extending and teaching fundamental aspects of visual design.