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Jo Zixuan (

周子璇

) is a Chinese-American graphic designer and illustrator, currently based in New York City. Having graduated from SVA with a BFA in illustration and RISD with an MFA in Graphic Design, Jo specializes in visual storytelling, bi-scriptual typography, and expressive systems. Her concept- and research-driven process takes form in visual identities, books, spaces, and websites. She maintains a teaching practice through adjunct teaching, mentorship and

Illustration Roundtable.
‍
CLIENTS
The New Yorker, The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg Businessweek, NPR, Columbia Global Report, Medium, NBC, PLANSPONSOR, NYT for KIDS China, The Atlantic, Narratively, Toggl, Intel, FCB Inferno, Dotdash, The Balance, Thought Co., Lifewire, TripSavvy, The Spruce,

三联《少年》

新世相

FEATURES
It's Nice That, Groundooh Art, Hiiibrand

AWARDS
2022 - Society of Illustrators 65 Annual
2021 - Communication Arts 63 Winner
2020 - Hiiibrand Jury Award
2020 - American Illustration 39 Winner
2020 - Society of Illustrators Annual
2019 - Society of Illustrators Student Scholarship Competition Finalist
2019 - 3 x 3 International Illustration Award Merit Winner
2019 - The Batsford Prize International Category Shortlisted
2018 - Speedball New Impressions winner, Intaglio/Etching Second Place

EXHIBITIONS
2023 - eMotion, Ely Center of Contemporary Art, New Haven
2023 - Sino-German Illustration Exhibition, HISMOON gallery, Suzhou
2021 - NO SAMPLE Risograph Exhibition, Fujian
2021 - NO SAMPLE Risograph Exhibition, Xi'an
2019 - Society of Illustrators Student Scholarship, New York
2019 - Speedball National Printmaking Showcase, Davis Gallery, Sawtooth, NC
2018 - The Haves and Have-Nots, SVA Chelsea Gallery, New York 2018 - Constellations, SVA Chelsea Gallery, New York
2018 - HOPE Competition, SVA Westside Project Space, New York

COLOPHON
Web design
Jo Zixuan

Typeface
Authentic Sans by Christina Janus and Desmond Wong
‍Situated Sans by Thea Kim
‍

The Bible-Leaved Sperm Whale

A research project into the history of the whaling industry

Print, Spatial

Year

2024

Spec

Installtion:
34'9" x 7'9"
10.6 x 2.36 m
Book:
5.5" x 8.5"
140 x 216 mm
1368 pages

This project started from my encounter with a 1854 whaling logbook in Brown University’s John Hay Library. The beautiful calligraphy documented details of a voyage, including whale sightings, catches, locations, weather, and daily activities at sea. A stamp showing a half-whale with its tail up signified a whale that was struck but escaped, distinguishing it from a fully filled-in whale stamp that marked a successful catch. Personally, I've always had a fascination with whales and the way they communicate through whale songs and clicks. I used to listen to recordings of their songs on repeat as a calming backdrop. This personal interest motivated my research on the whaling industry. Before the advent of the petroleum and plastic industry, whale oil (used for lighting and lubrication), baleen (used in products like corsets and brushes), whale meat, and whale bones were all desirable for their irreplaceable qualities.

Sperm whales are one of the most targeted whale species for their spermaceti and ambergris. The blubber of sperm whales yielded a fine, straw-colored oil that proved to have exceptional qualities, which made it ideal for illuminating lighthouses. Whales were struck and then secured to one side of the ship. Sailors used blades on long poles to cut their blubber into small pieces, so they could fit into huge copper cauldrons, then be rendered into barrels of oil onboard. They were first cut into “blanket pieces,” then separated into “horse pieces.” The smallest cut size was called “bible leaves,” because it resembles the size of the common bible, which was some of the only books they kept on a ship. This greasy and laborious process dissected these giant animals into book-sized fat chunks. At this point, I knew I had to make a bible-sized book to serve as a scale unit. And it would not be complete unless I have a whale-scaled installation for comparison.

The bible-sized book was printed in white to contrast with the whale-size installation printed in black. Every image was inverted so the negative is printed, leaving the blue paper to be the dark tone. The white side of the book is an image archive of historical documentation collected from various museums. They are categorically divided into three chapters: Whaling Logs, On The Whaling Ships, and Whaling Products. The black side of the book is fragments of the whale-sized installation.

The installation and book share the same number of printed pages. If the 1,368 pages in the book were pulled apart and collaged together, the result would be the same as the installation. It displays the super-sized word “sperm whale” in 33.5 feet length, the same size as a female sperm whale. The black letters on blue paper allow the viewers an immersive experience of a whale at the deep sea. The installation is a reversal of the cutting process, leaving the printing margin a symbol of the violent cutting of the whale body. When I used my arms to smooth out the wrinkles of the collaged installation, it was as if I was caressing the whale herself.

The book as an object resembles a chunk of whale blubber with its volume, giving the graphic installation thickness and weight. The installation was too large for our available space, it can only be put together on the floor one letter at a time. The strenuous process is not unlike the back-breaking labor sailers went through dissecting these animals.