wats:ON? 2017 Shift

Pittsburgh, PA

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Spike Wolff,
Eddy Man Kim

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Fall 2017
             
The 2017 wats:ON? Festival Across the Arts featured two keystone pieces: one by Hadi Tabatabai, an Iranian-born artist now based in San Francisco, and the other by the team of musician Chris Carlson and local artist Jake Marsico. Both works use the viewer and their perception as part of the piece, an element the poster design reflects as well.

“SHIFT challenges realms of phenomenal perception, dislocating conditioned ways of seeing to affect a sense of indeterminacy between physical and perceptual space. The experience of these works allows for a transience of fixed perception and the fluid interplay between the rational and the visceral, revealing the exquisite ambiguity of the sublime.”

This excerpt from the festival reader gives an overview of the theme. The design for this year’s identity uses this as its main inspiration, and opts for a logo that functions differently based on one’s proximity and angle of view. The subtle shifts in size and color are imperceptible in places, obvious in others.

The series posters were mailed to art museums and schools nationwide. More info online on the festival website