Personal Project

A Country Doctor by Franz Kafka

Role
Illustration, hand lettering, typesetting. This is a personal project.
Goal
Typeset and illustrate the short story A Country Doctor by Franz Kafka in a meaningful way.
Approach
After exploring a range of visual approaches, I realized that manipulating the typography and structure of the text conveyed the disorientation and emotional tension of the story more effectively than illustration—particularly given the fragmented, first-person perspective of the doctor.
In case you were wondering...
I wanted to focus on the shift from rational to irrational (and non-rational) parts of the story as we read it occurring the Doctor's mind. The handwriting underscores frantic, hopeless, nagging thoughts, while the loose rose illustrations reference simultaneously the sick boy's growing wound and young Rosa's loss of innocence. It was important to me to maintain legibility for the reader, as Kafka's original text (the Doctor's story) is the foundation for the piece.
Work ©Johanna Abzug, and I've tried to be transparent throughout re: my role in each project. Please contact me for more information if you need. Don't steal stuff.