Created for the “The City and the Writer” symposium held at New York University Abu Dhabi, this poster is part of a series that explores the intersection of urban identity and the written word. Tasked with visualizing a short text by author and filmmaker Rana Kazkaz regarding Damascus, the design uses the letters of the quote itself to evoke the cityscape it describes. The dense repetition of characters forms the heavy foundations and arches of the ancient city, while stray letters drift through the sky like birds, or like the dust of passing empires.
About the Artist
Erin Collins is a graphic designer, artist, and educator. She holds a Master of Fine Arts in Graphic Design from Maryland Institute College of Art and a Bachelor of Arts in Visual Art and in Biology (Cognitive Science) from New York University Abu Dhabi. Erin currently works as an Instructor of the Arts in Design in New York University Abu Dhabi’s Arts & Humanities division. Her research interests are at the intersection of design, cognition, sustainability, and culture — how design can transform human behavior. Though trained as a graphic designer with expertise in publication design and branding, she is dedicated to interdisciplinary work and employing design research methodologies to address many kinds of challenges. She currently manages the Visual Design Lab at NYUAD and supports the university’s Art & Art History BA and Design minor program through teaching and design activities.
