CHUWY | Portfolio by Isaac Chu
When I found out that my last assignment was gonna be the making of a zine, I was so thrilled! I had wanted to learn InDesign and make a book but somehow I never got round to doing so. This opportunity was definitely one that I had to make the most experience out of.
And indeed, it was.
But of course, things weren’t going smoothly. Initially, the process was real tough. I had very little inspirations for each of my pages and more importantly, my cover page. I wanted to make a portfolio and one that will represent who I am and of standard. The look that I was going for was of a scrapbook and indie feel. However, I just couldn’t come up with anything…
COVER PAGE
So I decided to start with the design of the cover page and came up with this:
I wanted to convey to my readers that most of my ideas come from the consumption of coffee. However, this was the look that I wanted to have for my portfolio. So I tried adding my logo instead.
However, this too, wasn’t good enough. There had to be more texture and Shirley did mention this during the consultation. So I experimented with them. I didn’t want to come off as a person who is very rigid and dead. I want viewers to know that I am very easygoing and adapt well to any environment and someone who challenges the boundaries of creativity. The result was that of my final cover page.
DESIGN
The initial layout was horrendous as shown below. I really had no clue as to how to come up with a layout that works despite having seen many references online.
Thankfully, with the guidance of Shirley, she got me going on a layout that works! I wanted experiment further and I played with different colours and textures for the rest of the book. I kept to a minimal use of colours. I used very neutral colours to bring out the very easygoing and welcoming vibe. The textures used such as grunge and wood were related to nature as I wanted to show that I am a designer and artist who is authentic and believes in the work I create. Compositionally, I made use of the rule of thirds to create separation for the different works I had of the same category. This will direct the reader and give them a clearer viewing experience. While I know that the content as well as the layout was important, I do recognise that the user experience had to be as real as possible, at least for me, and so I took special care to make sure the choice of materials used and the overall mood established was “user-friendly”.
The use of the dark blue and hint of denim texture was used to show that I am a person with imagination, freedom, intuition, imagination, expansiveness, inspiration, and sensitivity. Blue also represents meanings of depth, trust, loyalty, sincerity, wisdom, confidence, stability, faith, heaven, and intelligence. Combined with a wooden texture and the tint of wooden colour that is complementary to the shade of dark blue I used, I managed to get a look that I was trying to achieve.
This was the result:
This also featured some of my best design works with great meaning behind it. I have always believed in making and designing things with meaning, because that give the thing that you made a reason to exist.
PHOTOGRAPHY:
This a great year for me. There were many firsts and I am glad for the opportunities that I’ve been given. One of my favorite works was on fashion photography.
I used simple photo frames and a textile textured background for the category of photography. This becomes like a modernised house wall that makes it very homely. It’s very similar to how modern day houses have a collage of works and photos by a huge wall in their house. Photography, to me is like a part of my soul. I can’t foresee myself not pursuing it until I leave this wonderful world. I decided to go for a simple layout to keep with the idea of simplicity. This was far from what I originally had on my InDesign page, with just a huge canvass of images. I learnt that less is more. And less can still used to show or convey a message.
PROJECTS:
This was a page I really wanted to include because I have been dying to get my work published in one way or another. On these two pages are that of the short film that I have worked on together with a group of friends, whom are now very treasured friends in ADM and the 2-year long film based photo project that I had been working on.
Keeping close to the established layout and colour scheme, I opted for a very neutral colours so that viewers will not be biased in any way when they view my works. At the same time, I want to evoke a unique sense of tranquility and certain “lost in the space of time” emotion.
DRAWING:
This was the best, by far, drawing I had ever done in my entire life and it would have been a waste not to let anyone appreciate it. This was a charcoal drawing that I made of a person who was lost in this realm of time when he is all alone and with no one (left) until he met his other half (right). At the same time, this image is completely reversible such that the person could have been experiencing a breakup from a relationship. And is left to face the cruelty of the world. Alone. This was a work that was totally left open for various interpretation. This drawing is both symmetrical as well as it contains the triangle composition encompassing the respective subjects, showing a frozen moment in time of the same time passage, where many possibilities of an outcome may be interpreted.
I arranged for this to cover a spread of two images to give my work a proper credit and respect instead of how it originally was. Similarly, a neutral background was included.
PRODUCT DESIGN:
One of my proudest product I have made with ready mades to challenge the notion of environmental sustainability. This was a sheep sculpted with a huge bunch of springs from many other ready mades inspired by the industrialisation period and the style that it came with: Steampunk. Hence, its name. 
Back Cover:
At first I had no idea on what to do with my back cover but then I realised that whatever I did for my cover page initially can be used to summarise everything about me and what I do, with the coffee bean light bulb I made. I added in my vision statement in life as well as ways that people can get to find out more of what I do. Again, ending with a very strong and balanced yet neutral feel leaving a lasting impression of the book.
In all, I thoroughly enjoyed the process of making this zine, from the conceptualisation to the actual printing and selection of the paper type. This was my favourite assignment this semester. Thank you, Shirley!
