Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night,
Dylan Thomas (1951)
Deliverables
word and image booklet
design report
Client
University project
date
2025
One of my favourite projects I have completed, this had a much more open brief. This project simply required choosing a short text and taking a creative approach in displaying it, formatted as a 123mm x 210mm booklet.
My chosen text was Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night (1951), a poem by Dylan Thomas which is recited in the 2014 film Interstellar. The film, primarily set in space, provides a solid visual theme with outer space imagery and deep backdrops. The text itself touches on themes of aging, and how people should fight bravely against death. The message behind the poem can match the imagery of space with symbolism linked to 'dying light' and 'night'.
See the full project report here.
Process
Research
Picking a text was a difficult task given such an open brief, however I was able to find a successful one that has links to some exciting imagery options. Creating a link between word and image was crucial for a consistent style or theme for the booklet. All integrations of text and images had to be carefully considered to allow for a full reading experience whilst giving attention to both typographic choices and image solutions.
Pacing
A carefully considered aspect of this project was the pacing of the poem. Whilst the imagery behind each line/page tends to reflect the content of the text in some way, the text itself was a challenge to set in a way that portrayed the poem's pace, without disrupting the legibility of it or distracting from the imagery all together. I was able to successfully break certain lines to disrupt the reading pace to aid the full booklet experience. The entire booklet holds some symmetry with its content, including a strong pause point in the centre spread.
Outcome
Image treatment
With the outer space theme behind the imagery, I was able to lean into the strong contrasts between light and dark. These ideas of light and night mentioned in the poem inspired the colour palette of dark purples and brighter oranges and yellows with pink working well as an accenting colour on both ends. I was able to create an exciting, noisy image effect to carry throughout the booklet. This added depth allowed the simple typography to pop too.
Typographic treatment
For the typographic elements of the booklet, I used a carefully selected serif typeface with large counters and noticeable serifs that wouldn't get lost in the noise of the imagery. When the poem title appears in the booklet, it is white rather than the pale yellow used for the rest of the text. It also has the same hanging line to create continuity and dictate the reading flow, whilst drawing attention to its importance as a recurring line.
Southport
Merseyside
United Kingdom
2026
Instagram: @jackswaindesign