Curating the Photobook: The Year Time Stopped
A coffee table book that showcases a visual history capturing the world’s response to major events that defined 2020: the COVID pandemic and the sweeping movements for racial and social justice.
The Concept
The Year Time Stopped is an award winning photo book that I co-curated with my cofounder at Scopio. It was published by HarperCollins, and features 200 photos and stories that capture the world’s response to major events that defined 2020, like the COVID pandemic and the sweeping movements for racial and social justice.
My intention for this book was to illuminate this these transformational events from the unique perspectives of photographers from underrepresented countries and regions around the world. These lesser known stories of people’s lived experiences during COVID and the global uprisings were what was missing from mainstream news and coverage.
The book is split into 2 parts. “Alone” tells the story of how the pandemic began with a collective sense of isolation and fear. “Together” reveals the second half of the year, where people all over the world came together and protested the social injustices that were uncovered during the pandemic.
The Design
I spent a few months, aside from my work on Scopio core business, selecting the photos for the book and co-writing the storyline and themes that defined 2020. I also co-designed the cover and interior layout of the book with the help of Morcos Key design studio. The concept of the visual identity was to create a modern design that appeals to a young audience and echos the suspense and unpredictability of 2020. I also wanted to make the book accessible to read for people with dyslexia and color blindness, so the type design and color choices were a reflection of that. The chapter title designs are a representation of the empty space of the cover and the uneasiness the pandemic created. In addition, the variable type tracking of the titles is one of the defining features of the book's identity because it adds weight to the titles. This is prevelant especially in words like "Alone", where the distance between the characters amplifies the word itself.
Photographer Interviews & Audiobook
We wanted to make the book accessible to a wider audience, so we added an audiovisual storytelling experience that would accompany it. We conducted interviews with almost all of the 117 photographers from the book, who told us the backstory of the photo they took and the circumstances behind it. You can watch the photographer interviews on Youtube and listen to the Audiobook on Spotify.
Collaborations & Achievements
The book was included in the Grammy’s gift bag in 2023, that was gifted to 179 presenters and awardees.
It received the Judges’ Choice Award of the “Living Now Book Awards 2022”.
I gave an interview about my work in the book at WAMC Northeast Public Radio.
Other features include Business Wire and Arianna Huffington’s Thrive Global.
