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This Master’s research project dives into the concept of “(un)finishedness" of graphic design practice. The research question is: How do we decide when a work is "done"— by meeting requirements, by a decision, or by what emerges intuitively?. The method for visual research is structured into three distinct stages: digital poster design, manual printmaking (Screen/Risograph), and a visualisation of the revision process itself.
In this project, I position myself as a graphic designer and visual researcher, to reveal the often-hidden aspects of this industry: the messy process, indecision, overthinking, and the tension between perfectionism and deadlines. Inspired by one of my case studies, BankerWessel’s Visual Journeys in Graphic Design, this books documents the drafts and process that usually remain unseen, validating the iterative journey as a critical part of the final outcome.
Phase 1 of the visual research focused on the previous research question: “How can imperfect print outcomes be documented and presented as part of the final production, rather than being discarded?”. To explore this, I made a few poster assignments based on the project theme, then utilising Screen printing and Risograph printing to generate imperfect variations as outcomes.This archive creates value from the "waste" of the production process. I kept every outcome from the print studio, including test prints and misprints. The collection documents both coincidental glitches and intentional imperfections—such as random ink applications—treating the trial process as a valid aesthetic result rather than a failure.
To further explore the idea of imperfection, I used waste paper scavenged from the studio environment. Printing on these discarded substrates introduces an inherent layer of "impurity" and unpredictability to the design before the ink is even applied.
To start next experiment, I worked on a manual reconstruction to disrupt the composition. Unsatisfied with the initial level of "imperfection," I physically tore and re-assembled the prints, forcing a new visual narrative to emerge from the deconstructed fragments.
The resulting collages incorporated the decision from the outside, with the administrative status of a design poster. By layering torn paper with phrases such as "Case Closed," "Dismissed," and "In Progress".
This phase represents a critical pivot (turning point) in the research. Faced with the risk of imperfection becoming just a style, I was questioned with the "deeper meaning" of the work to locate my authentic voice within the project, moving from aesthetic form to psychological inquiry.
Inspired by the free writing exercise in masterclass Why Do We Make Photographs, where we wrote about our projections onto photography. I analysed the psychological drivers behind the obsessive need to revise. The project now categorises the internal and external pressures that control completion, ranging from "Maladaptive Perfectionism" and a "Fear of Ending" to professional constraints like shifting standards and endless feedback loops.
This slide visualises the "digital debris" of the creative workflow. The screenshot of my files directory reveals the common struggle of nomenclature, where files named "Final," "Final Version-2," and "Really Final" accumulate, exposing the fallacy of a definitive endpoint in digital design.
Returning to the initial "Bare Minimum" poster, Phase 2 asks: What happens if the editing process never ceases?. This experiment tests the boundaries of the "finished" state by subjecting a single design to a continuous, potentially infinite loop of revision.
This slide demonstrates the beginning of "Iterative Visualisation". Minor hesitations regarding typography clarity or layout "messiness" trigger a chain reaction of edits, documenting the micro-decisions that usually remain invisible in a final display.
The iteration continues by examining legibility and contrast. The decision-making process oscillates between maintaining the "messy" aesthetic or reverting to standard conventions, such as black text on a white background, to improve readability.
Indecision leads to drastic compositional changes. Experiments with crossing out titles, repositioning headers, or inverting colour schemes reflect the internal dialogue of a designer who is unsure of the final outcome and experimenting with denial.
External influences enter the feedback loop. External suggestions to drastically enlarge the title contradicts to personal intuition, resulting in an unbalanced composition that triggers a desire to revert to previous, "safer" versions.
This revision combines previous edits into a chaotic whole. The accumulation of changes raises the question of whether the earlier, simpler version was actually the successful one, highlighting the diminishing returns of over-editing.
This slide represents the project workflow. It visualises the dilemma of hesitation, documenting the repetitive cycle of adding, removing, and altering elements that characterises the struggle between intuitive creation and strict requirements. (In the “Bare Minimum” series, the approach of adding revision patches is just one demonstration. Not every process follows the same approach.)
The upcoming plan is to develop a series of posters. Each poster from the series will be documented, showing the trajectory of the edit until the deadline forces a conclusion, essentially freezing the "progress" in time.
The research will also be supplemented through a remote internship with Hao Wei Tu Design Studio (Melbourne). Under the mentorship of an industry expert, I will document the process of competition projects (D&AD New Blood) to bridge the gap between academic theory and professional practice.
The timeline outlines the trajectory from the current plenum to the final exhibition in June 2026. Key milestones include the completion of the Master's Thesis, the applied internship phase, and the final production of the process-based portfolio.
Master in Visual Arts
Applied Context
@Sint Lucas Antwerpen, School of Arts