TYPOGRAPHY / EBOOK DESIGN
This project explores an eBook design for Franz Kafka’s short story The Hunger Artist, created specifically for an infinite-scrolling digital format. The design uses expressive typography as a narrative device, allowing form and layout to reinforce the story’s central themes of captivity, transformation, and despair.
The hunger Artist
The Concept
Expressive typographic elements are contained within visual frame that echo the protagonist’s confinement within a cage. As the reader progresses through the story, these frames gradually shift from open to closed, while the expressive typography expands to occupy increasingly more space — mirroring the hunger artist’s prolonged isolation and loss of agency. Key words connected to the story’s themes are selectively highlighted in red and black, subtly guiding emphasis and emotional tone.
The body text is set in Quadraat, chosen for its sharp, angular qualities that complement the story’s darker atmosphere. It is paired with United as a display typeface, whose rigid forms (combined with the restrained red-and-black colour palette) reinforce a sense of tension, oppression, and control throughout the reading experience.
