Physical publication
Overview
This project responds to my dissertation question — how the computation of Islamic geometry alters its contemplative and metaphysical qualities — through a box, publication and construction manual designed to be accessible to non-Muslim audiences without requiring theological depth, centred on the argument that intentionality behind creation matters more than the tool used to make it. Alongside the physical publication, I built a digital generative tool that enacts this same argument by contrast, setting the slow, unpredictable, skill-dependent nature of hand construction against the instant, exact output of computation.
Interaction · Publishing · UI/UX · Print · Product design
Physical publication
Digital tool
Publication spread
Mobile UI
Desktop UI
Process & experimentation
For the manual, I worked through a consistent page grid that could hold both dense geometric diagrams and short instructional text without feeling cluttered, mirroring the patterns themselves in their symmetry. I then tested various formats alongside the publication, such as a zine on red paper as displayed on the right.
For the digital tool, I experimented with translating those same hand-drawn construction rules (symmetry groups, star points, interlace depth) into code, then iterated on the interface until adjusting a single parameter could visibly show how computation strips away the slowness and unpredictability of hand construction.
Layout tests
Zine experiment
Laser cutting