Pisey Roeum interviewed a group of students that turned Khmer literature into a digital art platform. Read about the project as they describe it.
We are a group of graphic design (Professional Design) students from Limkokwing University of Creative Technology. As part of our final project, we are supposed to select one topic for a public exhibition about arts and design.
Pteah Akarak is a project that includes informational advice to help designers. This project was also organised with the passion of us, being design students. Our team’s name is Pteah Akarak.
Our main objective is to connect the world about Khmer culture, digital art, and Khmer typefaces. We strive to provide as much assistance as possible when it comes to using Khmer fonts. Basically, how to apply Khmer typography properly in design for successful communication. This involves both effectiveness and aesthetics.
At the same time, in order to contribute to the community that we respect and love, we aspire to build an educational and informational project about Khmer typography for the general public including Khmers and foreigners.
The exhibition’s purpose is to promote Khmer typography while also providing a small glimpse of our book. As designers and students, we’ve realised that, as a result of the introduction of worldwide media, our own cultural arts are often ignored, or at the very least undervalued, by younger generations. It is crucial to enjoy both, but it is also necessary to reconnect with our roots and appreciate the value they provide.
In addition, Khmer typography had not been fully understood by designers. We want to help raise awareness as well as offer some solutions we have found through research and thorough formulations. The exhibition supports the beauty of Khmer typography as well as helps to understand its structures.
Even though this project was intended to be the culmination of our studies, the inspiration for this topic choice was our passion for design, particularly typography.
During our studies and design work, we noticed that the usage of Khmer typography or Khmer typefaces in design was not as widespread as in other international languages. Before organizing this exhibition and compiling this book, we did some research on the history of Khmer typography to find out the main reasons why Khmer fonts are still unpopular in digital design. Through that research, we found that Khmer fonts do not yet have a specific, concrete set of basic guidelines in comparison to English typography.
Most designers, including us, are cautious to use Khmer fonts at this moment. This is one of the main factors that motivated us to create ‘Pteah Akarak’, in order to reflect the aesthetics and usage of Khmer typography to designers and those who love the art of fonts.
We had no intention of publishing this book at first. Our prime objective was to organise the exhibition. But, with the help of our teachers, who began the initiative, we decided to publish our book, “Pteah Akarak: Khmer Typography Tribute,” which includes artwork from our exhibition as well as much more (in-depth tips and tricks, as well as even more digital paintings).
This book, “Pteah Akarak: Khmer Typography Tribute,” focuses on Khmer typography and how to use Khmer fonts in design, specifically digital design. This book is divided into three major sections, including: The Anatomy of Khmer Typography, Khmer Typography Guidelines, and Khmer Typeface Classifications.
In addition, this book also includes a brief summary of the history of the Khmer alphabet, as well as digital illustrations designed by members of Pteah Akarak over the past four months. The main purpose of this book is to be a friend and helper to all designers in their career as designers.
FaceBook page of : Pteah Akarak
