Description:

The professional culture of art and design can be elitist and uphold exclusionary practices. The idea of appearing amateur is vilified and avoided. However, the amateur is integral to the creation of the professional, as it is how all artists and designers begin.
Inspired by the approaching end of a Bachelor’s Degree and the looming acquisition of the title ‘Professional Graphic Designer’, “Lover Of” is a reflection and personal exploration of what it means to transition from amateur to professional and the dichotomy between them. The resulting publication is a curated, lovingly crafted 5-part zine series, printed in vibrant Risograph fluorescent pink and black. Using the original meaning of amateur - ‘to love’ - as a starting point "Lover Of" is a foray into the act of creation for love again.
Through an eclectic collection of personal experiments, articles, interviews, guides, illustrations and more, “Lover Of” chronicles a personal journey to understanding and finding peace in an ever-changing art and design landscape. The project blurs the lines between the amateur and the professional, revealing the distinctions perhaps as arbitrary all along. The tiered design of the final zines bound forms a natural progression as the ideas increase in complexity and scope. Simplistic, graphic illustration has been used throughout as a nod to the origin of the personal journey from amateur to professional explored within.
“Lover Of” is a non-linear, sentimental, critical, conflicting and, ultimately, hopeful series about the place a lover has in the professional art and design sphere.