“Linking Park”: Graphic designer uses hypertext to refresh expectations

Andrew Ringle, Spectrum Editor

The smell of fresh paint fills the air on the second floor of The Anderson, where the walls have recently been adorned with hand-painted web addresses. A monotonous voice attempts to read the computerized language aloud, but the series of zeros and dashes in each address spawn echos of foreign, robotic tones.

In “Linking Park,” graphic designer Bráulio Amado explores elements of his minimalist aesthetic within the boundaries of contemporary hypertext. The installment opened Jan. 18, following a lecture from the artist at the Grace Street Theater the day prior.

The gallery is composed of hanging vinyl billboards, televisions scattered on the floor and writing on the walls. Each piece presents long-form URLs, which Amado painted on-site before the opening. When followed, the web addresses lead to visual art from the designer’s online archives, but the work is also printed on the back of each billboard.

“All the links build up the exhibition,” Amado said. “I designed the exhibition in the way it would look if there weren’t any links. It’s all nature and flowers and plants, so the idea was to call it ‘Linking Park.’ Instead of showing all the plants and flowers, I just show the links.”

At the farthest end of the room, a screen hides behind a small billboard. It projects the series of visuals represented by the hypertext without immediately revealing the alternative gallery to visitors. By obscuring that work, Amado analyzes the purpose of web addresses and their connotation of accessibility.

“We’re so used to consuming art through the Internet nowadays,” Amado said. “Clicking links is supposed to be an easy way of navigating the world, so I wanted to make it very complicated in a space that people come to look at art. You actually have to type up the URL to see it.”

Since moving to New York nine years ago from Almada, Portugal, Amado has worked as a designer for Pentagram and art director for Bloomberg Businessweek. He has designed covers for Frank Ocean, Róisín Murphy, Beck and Washed Out, and his illustrations have been published by The New York Times, Wired and The New Yorker. Today, he runs the Bráulio Amado Design Studio, teaching classes and doing commissioned work for local venues.

Amado says he gets bored easily, so he is always looking for new inspiration in his designs. “Linking Park” serves as an experimental divergence from his traditional media. He wanted to try something with as simple a design process as possible, he said, thus painting each billboard on-site before the show.

“I was trying to make the URLs as sloppy as possible,” Amado said. “But because I’m a graphic designer who does a lot of hand typography, it was kind of hard to not use the style I normally use. I’m not super happy because I wish it was even less designed, but the handwritten URLs add to the deeper concept of the show.”

Amado’s painted texts dismantle the ease of access typically associated with hypertext and the Internet. From the abrasive lettering to the unemphatic pronunciation of each web address, “Linking Park” challenges traditional art in a humorous, yet thought-provoking fashion.

Amado’s gallery will be on display at The Anderson until March 1.