#WeAreSwitzerland
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This poem by Kayona Daley, designed by Lana Soufeh, can be found at Forest Gate Library, Woodgrange Road, Forest Gate, London E7 0QH and at Our Newham Work, 112-118 The Grove, Stratford, London E15 1NS
Somewhere, or out of nowhere in particular
you came, and forged foundations,
became sand and restrictions like clay,
shaped by hand until they formed bricks.
Here - and there, you built houses.
We watched on from the sidelines,
helplessly, as your house infected our homes.
The public’s patience went on vacation,
As our minds marched on streets
Holding signs stamped with familiar tweets
Toward the house that built itself.
One brick at a time, we tore it down,
and designed a bridge instead.
By Kayona Daley
Forest Gate Library, Woodgrange Road, Forest Gate, London E7 0QH (picture)
There are ten libraries across Newham, each offering a range of services and community activities, as well as a fantastic selection of books and other reading material. Monday–Saturday, 9am to 8pm. Learn more.
Our Newham Work, 112-118 The Grove, Stratford, London E15 1NS
Our Newham Work has been designed to help Newham residents into work. Our Newham Work offers a range of advice and guidance including various support services to help Newham residents secure employment. Learn more.
Photogaphy by Calum Douglas.
Designer's insights
Swiss Embassy: What in the poem inspired your design? How do the design and the poem interact? What were the first ideas youhad when you saw the poem?
Lana Soufeh: The meaning is what always inspires the design. If there is no meaning or story behind it, if it is just aesthetics, then there will be no real connection between the design work and the viewer.
In Kayona Daley’s poem for example, it focuses around the words and meanings of building a home, a house, and a foundation. She ends the poem with “One brick at a time, we tore it down, and designed a bridge instead”, and through that I was able to slowly visualize, and not just in a literal sense, how to use typography to create these building blocks and from there create my whole image. The letters were designed out of a limited number of shapes to build a modular alphabet as my ‘bricks’.
From there I started using words of the poem to ‘build’ the design onwards. Similar to Pierrine Poget’s Poem, using the same type which could expand into two opposite directions that represent the past ‘before us’ and future ‘precede us’ as the directionality highlighted in her short poem. The words of the poem and the design should represent one another through meaning and visually to have a balanced outcome.
What is the role of the poem’s location in your design?
The poem’s design took shape according to the location it was in. I think the size plays a role in the design while having it stand out from a distance. The intention was to be bold and loud, to be able to spot not just glimpses of the poem as you’re walking or driving around, but almost view and feel the whole composition between the buildings at any moment.
Could you tell us about your creative process?
I begin every project with a pencil and paper of course. It doesn’t necessarily have to be for sketching, but mostly writing. I try to always be as systematic as possible during the process and have a reasoning to every approach. I do that normally by always formulating a question and trying to answer it accordingly. I strongly believe in functionality and simplicity, so holding just even one piece of paper and writing my thoughts on it is my way of approaching any project.
Poem by Kayona Daley (UK).
Design by Lana Soufeh, Master Type Design, ECAL/Universityof Art and Design of Lausanne. Learn more: ECAL MATD | ECAL MATD Instagram | Lana Soufeh Instagram
Typoetry is a showcase of poetry and Swiss graphic design. Around 30 works by poets from Switzerland, the UK are forming artistic trails in the London Borough of Newham from 20 May to 17 July 2022. Learn more.
