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Oswin Tickler's typographic journal explores shifting thoughts, feelings and responses to Covid-19

We're all finding different ways to cope with the ongoing crisis, many of us are doing so creatively. For art director and designer Oswin Tickler, he's found comfort in the discipline of a daily graphic journal, exploring the shifting thoughts, feelings and responses to Covid-19 and social distancing in 2020.

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Two pages from Oswin Tickler's Covid-19 journal: left page shows outlined text "Altered Future in Ways as Yet Unseen" with scattered black dots; right page features blue and purple horizontal strips with pixelated figures and text "Struggling to Envisage

Not just from social or personal perspectives, the 'Sketchbox: Covid-19' is somewhat political, too, with words and messages in beautiful typography using an approach that Oswin originally explored in 2019 when travelling across France by train. "The paper and materials had to fit into two small C5 boxes due to travel needs," Oswin tells Creative Boom. "While obviously no travelling is happening at the moment, the limitations imposed on the format helps to make it manageable as a daily discipline, alongside my teaching and design practice."

Oswin, who is also an associate lecturer at the University of the Arts London, uses offcuts of paper samples and makes good use of his collection of stencils along with any other materials he has to hand. The artwork is produced daily and published on Instagram. You can also enjoy watching a process video below, showing Oswin making one of his 'Sketchbox' pieces.

Two pages from Oswin Tickler's Covid-19 journal: pink page reading "Social Solitude" and gridded page reading "Rapid Changes in Slow Motion
Two typographic journal pages: yellow page with "KEEP ON" surrounded by directional arrows, and red page with "HERE A WHILE" in outlined lettering by Oswin Tickler
Two pages from Oswin Tickler's Covid-19 journal: left page with scattered letters and geometric lines on cream paper; right page with outlined text and a bold red diagonal stripe on white dotted paper
Two pages from Oswin Tickler's Covid-19 journal: left page with "Slow is Progress OK" in bold typography on dotted paper; right page with colourful pixelated squares forming text reading "Semi Productive Love Ish
Two pages from Oswin Tickler's Covid-19 journal: left page with outlined text reading "It's not if but when betray unease", right page with bold text reading "Over and over" on yellow background
Two pages from Oswin Tickler's typographic journal: left shows overlapping circles and text reading "Approximation of Rain Bows Ness" on white; right displays blue background with outlined text "Overwhelming Urge to Paddle Across
Two pages from Oswin Tickler's Covid-19 journal: a yellow page with a large black X and red bar with partial text, and a pink page with tangled line illustrations and overlaid typography about overwhelm
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