Liv Ajse, Graphic Editor at Weekendavisen, shares insights on how she designed the visuals for the article Shouldn’t We Go Offline?
Liv Ajse
Lasse Winther Jensen writes about replacing a smartphone with a so-called “kosher phone” – a phone that can only be used for calls and text messages and has no internet access.
Many years ago I came up with a format that makes use of the physical newspaper – and this technique was perfect for this article. The idea is to hold the paper up to a light source, allowing you to see both the front and back prints at the same time. This way, a point on the front page is complemented by a point on the back.
I wanted to draw a hand holding a phone – while on the back, the phone would be replaced by another hand. Digital contact would transform into human contact. Another key point is that this concept only works with physical paper and therefore does not apply to our e-newspaper readers.
Fortunately, the Culture editor, Kathrine Tschemerinsky, supported the idea.
I sketched the pages in InDesign and exported a PDF to Adobe Fresco, where I drew both illustrations before bringing them back into the layout.
Next, I cut parts of the hand holding the phone so it could be moved. In After Effects, I worked on a animation for the website. The idea was that the hand holding the phone would appear restless and flickering but become calm upon physical contact.
It was a pleasure to work on, and just the thought that a reader out there might have lifted the paper up to the light makes me smile
