Seungyeon Lee

"Listening" City Pop

How can communication design methods be used to help audiences understand and explore city pop?


Project Abstract

Despite City Pop music's growing popularity and the rich emotional experiences it offers, its visual art has been on the surface level to communicate its essence in music. Current city pop visuals are taken as merely expressive and aesthetic elements, lacking reflections of considering a relationship between music and the artworks. I developed new systematic design patterns of music, exceeding the aesthetic facade that current and past City pop designs used to have. This new type of systematic visual pattern, effectively explains and encompasses the various musical features and structures of city pop. Passing the surface of the genre, making design work more than just a visual aid with the music.

Fig. 1 – Album design that contains playlists of 10 City Pop songs with a systematic visual pattern based on the song's musical feature

Fig. 2 – A visual guide of systematic pattern with an 8*8 grid that is implemented by the song's structure, rhythm, and level of the soundwave