A brightly coloured picture book with a human figure on the front.

If My Body Could Speak by Yao Lu, BA (Hons) Illustration and Visual Media, London College of Communication, UAL

University of the Arts London

UAL Showcase Collections

Long Live Print!

When closed, this book appears as a scroll.

A collection of poems relating to the 24 terms of the solar cycle, this book is a scroll made using dragon-scale binding, a traditional Chinese bookbinding technique. “We assume a book is a rectangular thing, with either a soft or a hard cover. What we&#39;re looking at here is a scroll. The first books were all scrolls. Moving from that transitional form to what we know as a book today would have been a real feat of engineering. Here, the content follows the yearly cycle, which works well with the format because you can dip into the middle of a scroll, you don&#39;t have to start at page one like you do with a traditional book.  This looks like it would be a lovely object to handle.” – Johanna Neurath, Director of Thames &amp; Hudson

Ode to the 24 Solar Terms 

A bright red book inspired by ancient bibles, with ornate gold-foiling and gold fore-edges.

Handbound using traditional bookbinding methods and techniques, inspired by regal bibles from the 1500s to 1800s, this book brings together selected speeches, poetry, prose, and journal articles, as well as historical images and artwork, all relating to the topic of feminism.“The Feminist Bible displays an incredibly high-level craftsmanship. The radical content subverts the design language, which is quite traditional and classical, making it an interestingly disruptive object. I particularly love the marble endpapers and excellent typesetting.” – Johanna Neurath, Director of Thames &amp; Hudson

The Feminist Bible

A photograph of a white vest hanging on a washing line in a yard with the words "tyke. Made in Yorkshire" overlaid in red font.

Biannual print and online publication celebrating Yorkshire, aimed at 18-25-year-olds. “Tyke feels fun, fresh and authentic. The publication has a strong sense of identity but it’s unpretentious, it doesn’t ram that viewpoint down your throat. The fashion spreads offer an interesting curatorial take. Using a very specific voice, I think the artist has really been able to communicate what they want to great effect.” – Johanna Neurath, Director of Thames &amp; Hudson

Tyke.

A set of publications with trees in parks on the covers, laid out on a cloth with images of trees printed on it.

An autoethnographic research project that explores individuals&#39; connections with urban parks through the format of four books, wrapped in fabric.“Going through the research and process, it looks like the artist went through a complicated journey to get to the final output. What we ended up with is something simple and effective. I thought the mat was a lovely idea that made the project stick in my mind. I was impressed by the layout, sequencing and image selection. Many of the photographs are composed so there&#39;s a strong vertical right in the middle of the shot, which normally makes things feel quite static but the fact that the artist used that as the gutter of the book was brilliant, well-executed choice.” – Johanna Neurath, Director of Thames &amp; Hudson

Park Perspectives

This part contains a riso printed pocket book.

A series of publications showcasing body positive illustrations promoting self-acceptance. “I loved the style of the illustration and colour palette here. If My Body Could Speak is a beautiful, joyful, upbeat project, spreading a positive message. The riso printing process marries particularly well with this illustration style – the reader will surely appreciate the added warmth and tactility of this printing technique on an unocated paper, which somehow adds to the ‘approachability’ of the project.” – Johanna Neurath, Director of Thames &amp; Hudson

If My Body Could Speak

A paper construction of a theatre with streamers and star-shaped sequins around it. 

A toy theatre in the form of a book to cut out and build, which imagines an alternative reality where the monotonous London commute becomes a fun and upbeat carnival party.“I love the colour palette here and I thought her sketches were good. They reminded me of Bauhaus theatre costumes. Lively and fun. I admired the impressive paper engineering, too, using 2 dimensional pages to create something in 3D.” – Johanna Neurath, Director of Thames &amp; Hudson

Carnival in London

An illustration of a blue book with the words "new agency cookbook" and an illustration of a hand holding a spoon.

A publication and Instagram conference created by graduates of UAL’s London College of Communication to inspire students entering the design industry. “I was really intrigued by this project, which seemed like a real team effort. The social media aspect was interesting. While some people, sadly, don&#39;t want to read books, they will look at Instagram. The design language and branding are very good. I hope they keep doing it, passing the project from student to student.” – Johanna Neurath, Director of Thames &amp; Hudson

New Agency Cookbook

An open book featuring annotated photographs alongside notebook pages filled with handwriting. 

A photographic and writing based documentation of an American road trip that never happened. Created using elements of fiction and AI generated material. “There&#39;s so much nervousness and horror about AI and the idea that it&#39;s going to be the death of creativity. And here&#39;s an example of somebody using it to create. The graduate hasn’t stopped with what the AI has generated, but instead has used this as raw material to produce something new. With the mix of AI imagery and the artist’s own photoshoots, it felt like the AI was another member of the team.” – Johanna Neurath, Director of Thames &amp; Hudson

I Met Them Mid-journey

A book open to a double page spread, landscape, with an image on the right hand side that has been cut into leaving a white blank space behind

An archive of communist imagery dating from 1918 to present day. “The Missing Star is a powerful graphic intervention. It’s clear that the graduate must have done an amazing piece of visual and picture research to pull this together. It really makes you think about the politics behind the Communist era imagery presented.” – Johanna Neurath, Director of Thames &amp; Hudson

The Missing Star

An exposed spine, coptic-bound book in a hardcover slipcase placed on a table in a bookbinders' workshop

This book is a reaction, documentation and an homage to the Book Arts workshop space at London College of Communication. “This choice is incredibly personal. I&#39;m a total stationery freak. I can&#39;t walk past a stationery shop without going in! There is something about tools and the physicality of the equipment I love. Most people wouldn’t look at these slightly mundane objects in an appreciative way. I like the way the user must cut the pages to see what&#39;s happening inside. That element of interactivity makes the reader think about how a book is produced and manufactured.” – Johanna Neurath, Director of Thames &amp; Hudson

(HALF OF) BOOK ARTS

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