A closer look

CITTÀ: Unmapping Mexico

Mexico City across three eras, told through a connected poster series.

Client

Client

CITTÀ Magazine

CITTÀ Magazine

Role

Role

Art Director & Illustrator

Art Director & Illustrator

Year

Year

2014

2014

Tenochtitlán, NovaMexico, the colonial city, and Mexico City, the modern metropolis.

THREE ERAS, ONE CITY

CITTÀ is an independent magazine that pairs Montréal with cities around the world and invites Montréal artists, writers and photographers to interpret the relationship.

The work started with research: early maps and visual references of Tenochtitlán, how the city was redrawn under colonial rule, and the dense form of present-day Mexico City.

The posters needed to work as individual illustrations and as a connected series. Each illustration became a time-travel map.

Tenochtitlán, la Gran: water, causeways and the symbols of the pre-Hispanic city.
NovaMexico, the colonial city, and Mexico City, the modern metropolis.
Ciudad de México, Distrito Federal: the modern metropolis.

ONE VISUAL FAMILY

A shared approach to composition, line work and colour holds the posters together.

I carried the work from concept through illustration to print, developing a visual language that connected the series while giving each era its own expression.

The posters at the launch

Thank you

Mohamed Thiam

Creative Direction & Illustration

Léa Jeanmougin

Founder & Editor-in-Chief, CITTÀ Magazine

Good work doesn’t always begin with a perfect brief.

Good work doesn’t always begin with a perfect brief.

Good work doesn’t always begin with a perfect brief.