The photography exhibition SoundOFF showcased photographs taken by Salem Hilal and Ryc Oca between 2018 and 2023. The artists’ photographic project began with images of the  nightlife community from cities around the world—images full of the motion, rhythm, color, and light of the dance floor. Midway through the project, the COVID-19 pandemic led to the abrupt closure of clubs and similar venues. This sudden shift prompted the artists to consider the opposite of the movement they had been documenting; they pivoted to photographing moments of stillness, both physical and auditory. As a cohesive body of work, SoundOFF juxtaposes two opposite ways of being as a means of illuminating the fundamental qualities of each.

Studio Loutsis designed the exhibition and the accompanying book. Our visual identity system  extended to print, web, merch, and the gallery exhibition. We opted for a minimalist design, placing the two words in the wordmark on separate lines and giving them different graphic treatment to hint at the notion of contrast. The book ISBN was incorporated into the visual identity to symbolize the parallel between an author’s ownership of their work and a dancer’s agency over their body. Our approach was to create a backdrop for the photographs that let the images shine within an ordered system that conveyed a sense of movement. This is perhaps most visible in the book’s appendix  and paper handouts  that show all the images in context. While the exhibition lasted only a short time, the companion book and website extends its life beyond the event. Both help to archive the COVID-19 pandemic as an important moment in history.