Because We Love

Publication Design
Autumn 2020

Because We Love is an 82 page book that is made up of 46 people's answers (ranging from ages 3 to 85) to the question, "What does love mean to you?" supplemented with a short article about how love (oxytocin) impacts the human brain. I gathered the responses featured in this book via a Google Survey that I posted on my social media accounts. I was overwhelmed with responses from my online network and was interested to see how differently people in my life defined love. The inspiration for this publication came from a longing inside me to create something that would unite people during the chaotic and divisive year of 2020. Why create a publication like this? Because we [all] love.

Individual Project

Because We Love has a laser cut acrylic cover and is hand bound using coptic stitching. After completing two copies of this publication, I have a new appreciation for the craft of hand bound books! The hardest part of hand binding for me was mastering the tension + tightness of each stitch. Too loose and the book didn't stay together, but too tight and the pages would rip.

To illustrate how love changes with time, the book starts out with a bold red color palette, and slowly transitions throughout the publication to a sky blue. This gradation is a metaphor for how romantic love often starts out fire-y and spunky but over time it changes to something else — something more stable, loyal and comforting.

A shoutout belongs to my classmates and professor, who all did this publication class online due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Design school isn't easy online, but everyone pushed through and came out with incredible books!