An editorial-style title card introduces the project READING, with the word itself set in a large, serif typeface. Beneath it, smaller text reads “Books & Bookstores in the Digital Age.” Hand-drawn illustrations of books appear scattered around the edges, as if floating or drifting through space, suggesting both the abundance and fragmentation of reading today. At the center stands a self-portrait character rendered in a soft blue and black ink style, holding a flag with a simple book icon. A thin horizontal divider separates the subtitle from the phrase “A Documentary and Magazine Series,” clarifying the multi-format nature of the work.

READING

How have books maintained relevancy in an increasingly digital age?

READING is a multi-format series comprising an interview-driven magazine and a short documentary film covering the changes in reading habits and the growth of bookstores in the contemporary era. With perspectives from industry leaders and small-scale vendors based in New York City, this collection of raw interviews offers a unique outlook on how reading habits have changed, and where literature is headed today. The magazine’s art direction integrates a self-reflective narrative, expressed through a character and combined with field photography, to explore the author’s journey, while the subsequent video adopts a talking-head documentary style.

READING is an experiment in design research, publishing, filmmaking, and conversation.

A preview of READING Issue #2, emphasizing the project’s editorial and documentary components. On the left, the magazine cover is shown in full view, with the same character featured front and center. Below the title, the issue highlights a conversation with Printed Matter, Inc., situating the project within real-world publishing networks. On the right, two spreads of the magazine issue are featured: the top features an example of the photography featured in the magazine. The bottom image shows another interior spread, pairing a short written foreword with another illustration of the character speaking into a microphone, suggesting interviews and storytelling.In this image, READING Issue #1 is in focus, placing the magazine cover against a backdrop composed of blurred film stills from the accompanying documentary. The background reveals glimpses of bookstore interiors, shelves, and interviewees to be featured in each conversation. The magazine acts as a curated version, or a “best-of” of each interview, distilling ideas and points made into a structured editorial form, while the film stills suggest a more immediate, observational approach to the same subject matter. The contrast between the foreground and background highlights this relationship: one medium frames and interprets, the other records and immerses.