Designing a lively report from start to finish
graphic design
collage art
Illustration
Client: Arising Quo
Collaborators: Research and sensemaking by Milly Shotter & Cassie Robinson
Written by Milly Shotter
Design & collage art by Niels Devisscher
Project: Right now, we are in the in-between. That moment when the lights go out and there is a pause of darkness while our eyes adjust. Before outlines appear, then shapes, then detail. In this uncertain moment of darkness, instead of turning away or reaching to switch the light back on, what if we trusted that there are other ways of seeing?
To do so, how do we seek out, sense and recognise the outlines of these alternative futures? How do we feel our way into that space differently? And how might those with wealth, who have disproportionately benefited from this old thing, find the courage, inspiration and compulsion to move resources to nurture a better next?
In the summer of 2025, Arising Quo commissioned this exploration as an extension to a previous piece of work, aiming to take a further step in answering some of those questions. A shared thread between these pieces of work was an interest in how frameworks shape people’s perception and sense of possibility. This latest evolution, explored in this report, was interested in how frameworks help (or hinder) people’s ability to discern and decide what to fund for transformative futures.
Brief:
Create visual assets that use collage art to illustrate the different frameworks used, building on the existing Arising Quo brand, but open to interpretation
Design a formatted report in InDesign
Design choices:
I decided to allocate most of the budgeted time to two concepts with the greatest storytelling potential. The collage on the cover shows a landscape, which embeds and depicts the three horizons. The third horizon, seeds of change, shows more-than-human beings leading us beyond the world as it is towards a new world full of potential —still being born and yet to reveal itself. Most elements are cut by hand and digitally composed in Photoshop. The second works with the concept of sense-making the metacrisis, contrasting a mechanical, reductionistic worldview with a worldview that is holistic and receptive to more-than-human intelligences.
I drew the graphics by hand in Illustrator to amplify the hand-made look and feel, using a texture brush. I designed the keys or elements using bright colors and riso texture to create a coherent analog style.
The color palette uses primary colors from the brand, but incorporates different shades of blue, lilac, and spring greens to create an optimistic, playful look. The layout is serious and minimalist, which balances the report’s aesthetic.