Eaux Claires III
In it’s third year, Eaux Claires Festival was downsized, with nearly half the acts performing than the previous year. A more intensive focus on the artists and collaborations were the result of this shift in perspective, and we took the opportunity to create a visual narrative about the process of creativity as it relates to the extreme seasons found in the midwest. Narrowing our vision as the festival narrows.
We created a series of three zines leading up to the festival, starting with winter. The first zine served as a lineup release, mailed out to pre-sale ticket holders, and shared through social media and creating a buzz of curiosity online.
This stripped-down yet unconventional layout served as the bare bones for the future zines; using text and photo frames to create a stiff and cold grid.
Photos of each act were printed off, placed on a winter pond’s surface, and then re-photographed after a day exposed to the harsh elements of a Wisconsin winter. Some were torn, covered in a new layer of ice, or sprinkled with snow.
Layout Design Ann Kennedy
B/W Photos Christopher Bartlett
Color Photos Cameron Wittig
The second zine wasn’t a physical zine at all, but a micro-site we designed and developed for eauxclaires.com. This ‘zine’ represents the spring, when the buds begin to blossom and the release of warmth pulls us out of our dens to create. We designed the site to visually mimick a book. Scrolling on the right would guide you through the content, while the left provided main information. It acted as a release for the physical artists that would be present at the festival, designing sculptures and interactive installations throughout the grounds.
The third zine was released at the festival — to encapsulate summer — and acted as a guide through the festival for attendees. A list of the bands, beautifully color-coded, gave basic information in a clean layout.
What started as a cold skeletal grid became a layered, vibrant system by the time the third zine was release. Familiar layouts from the first zine were submerged color and foliage. ︎
