Lights Out - Book Design by Shengjie Wu

Lights Out

Book Design, Storytelling, Research, Environment

Lights Out is a book that explores the impact of light pollution on human life through history, daily experience, and behavior.

It reflects on the contrast between a star-filled night sky and the reality of urban life, where light pollution obscures the stars with a constant glow of gray sky and streetlights. Even rest is affected, as artificial light entering the bedroom can disrupt sleep and overall well-being. Lights Out emerges from this shared experience, aiming to raise awareness of a frequently overlooked issue: light pollution.

" The cover aims to create a chaotic visual experience that reflects the effects of light pollution. Sources of light pollution are layered and overlapped, with a dark purple gradient applied over the imagery to evoke the visual disruption of artificial light at night. "

" The intro page guides readers into the book through a spatial journey, moving from the starry sky to the city, and from the city to streetlights. "

" Throughout the book, the concept of light is explored by using typography as texture to create the effect of twinkling stars in the night sky. Light appears to spill from the edges of the book, with a yellow glow shining through to form the background for citations and titles. "

" Like the intro page, the book ends with the concept of space. It takes readers out of the book in the form of space, from the street lights to the starry sky, and from the starry sky to outer space.