Non-Papers of Constructed Absence

Samuel Salminen (1996, FI) is an Amsterdam based graphic and information designer and researcher.

In his practice he investigates the relationship between language, power, and spatial representation — using typography and design as tools to expose and intervene in systems of control, erasure and territorial inscription. His work spans editorial design, type design and web development, and is often situated at the intersection of the political and the typographic.

Education

MA Information Design — Design Academy Eindhoven

BA Graphic Design — Royal Academy of Art The Hague

Visual Communication — Beckmans College of Design

Non-Papers of Constructed Absence

2023 — other

Graduation Project — Graphic Design

Royal Academy of Art, The Hague

Cartography is intrinsically a form of political discourse — whether intentional or unintentional, maps produce and, above all, suppress knowledge and perpetuate systems of power and oppression. Non-papers of Constructed Absence investigates the ways in which maps and other forms of spatial representation — reinforced by the languages and writing-systems they employ to create meaning — are used as instruments for shaping socio-political narratives while erasing indigenous voices, spaces, and histories.

Drawing upon comparative analysis of maps created between 1946 and 1951—before and after the Nakba and the establishment of the State of Israel — Samuel utilises layered spatial data, overprinting, and multi-script typesetting to intervene with 'official' documents and shed light on the silencing and desired non-existence of Palestinians that lies at the heart of Zionist cartographic narratives; investigating what has been erased, added, and altered in order to deconstruct the politico-territorial narratives the maps reproduce.

Tutors:
Ruben Pater & Silvio Lorusso

Transliteration consultant:
Diya Ghantus

Typeface:
Greta Text by Typotheque

→ GRADUATION CATALOGUE