Hi, I’m Roshni!


I'm a graphic designer from Chennai, India, currently based in New York. I hold an MFA in Communications Design from Pratt Institute, where I also worked with the Office of International Affairs. Prior to that, I contributed to Ashvita’s, a cultural space in Chennai.

My work is grounded in an interest in the tactility of handmade objects and analog processes. My visual language and design approach is shaped by experiments in materials and textures.

Email me at roshni.kumaravel@gmail.com or find me on Instagram at stuffysinuses.

Project Index


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Is a Swedish Fish a Real Fish?
Kitchen Garden Zine
Bates Roman
OIA Flyers
Natural Diamond Council
Misc. sketches and animations
In this park we are Free.
The Sustainability Network
TEDxNapierBridge
Pudiyador
Reality/Hyperreality
Excerpt:
The Society of the Spectacle
British Council: Festival Connections
01.

Is a Swedish Fish a Real Fish?

Publication Design
  99 x 152 mm, 112 pages
Inkjet print on Strathmore 300 Series Sketch

Every time we use symbols like words or images to represent objects or ideas, we lose some amount of information in that process. But what do we gain in this process? We constantly learn about the world we live in through representations of it. What information are we losing and what else are we gaining when we learn about real events through representations of them on social media and the internet?

Is a Swedish Fish a Real Fish?
is a thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Fine Arts (Communications Design) at Pratt Institute. Read the full thesis here. 


02.

A Non-Comprehensive Guide to Growing Your Own Food

Publication Design
4 page zine
11.25ʺ x 16.5ʺ, folded down to 5.625ʺ x 8.25ʺ
Offset lithographic print on 30lb newsprint, edition of 100
Printed at Linco Printing

Tending to a kitchen garden is an act of care towards the self, towards the community, and towards the spaces we occupy. It’s a labour of quiet resistance against food that is packaged, purchased and reduced to a commodity. This zine is an introduction to growing your own fruits, vegetables and herbs anywhere you can find space.

03.Bates Roman
Typeface Design

‘Bates Roman’ is a display font inspired by the numbers stamped by an old Bates Machine (No. 49). The numbers on the machine—in a scotch roman font—had a softness when printed out owing to the filled-in inktraps. These filled-in inktraps become a key characteristic of the typeface, giving it a gentle fluidity.

04.

OIA Flyers

Advertising Material

Select flyers, posters and social media posts designed as part of the Office of International Affairs at Pratt Institute.


05.

Natural Diamond Council

Editorial Images

Editorial images created to accompany an article published by the Natural Diamond Council. (Work commissioned by Border&Fall.)

06.

Miscellaneous sketches and animations

Illustration and animation



07.

In this park we are Free.

Publication Design 4.5ʺ x 6.5ʺ, 44 pages
Laser print on 30lb newsprint

Digital spaces are saturated with people expressing their thoughts and opinions, and still we struggle to form authentic relationships over the internet through self-expression alone. Filmmaker Adam Curtis suggests that we are yearning for ‘enchanting’ mythologies that make us feel included in something larger than ourselves, while still honouring our individuality.

This zine explores the relationship between the individual and the community, observed through interactions with a shared physical space. The images used in this project were shot in Prospect Park, Brooklyn over the summer of 2024.


08.

The Sustainability Network

Identity Design
Goli Soda is a store in Chennai that focuses on sustainable living, and frequently hosts events and workshops to encourage more people to adopt simple but effective lifestyle changes that have a meaningful, positive impact on the environment. The Sustainability Network is a podcast hosted by the founder of the store, in which she meets other small businesses from India that share the same goal.

I developed the visual identity for the podcast keeping the colour palette consistent with the store’s branding. The logo is a very literal interpretation of the podcast, where the words are linked by vines growing into each other. The vines creeping along the edges of the posters are meant to be a literal ‘network’ linking different compositions placed next to each other. 

09.

TEDxNapierBridge

Posters and Marketing Material
Various event posters created for programs organised by the team at TEDxNapierBridge.  

The visual language for the events are largely guided by the brand guidelines provided by TED. The challenge with these layouts was in making the events feel uniquely TEDxNapierBridge, and differentiating the event from other local TEDx event organisers.

10.

Pudiyador

Visual Identity
Pudiyador (“anew” in Tamil) is a community-based educational organisation that works with marginalised communities in Chennai, India. Pudiyador’s goal is to enable all children, women and communities to act as engines of their own empowerment through access to relevant education, quality healthcare and meaningful employment.

Pudiyador’s requirements mainly included a design refresh that reflected the goals of the organisation, while retaining the existing logo and brand colours. Keeping this in mind, the following design language was developed, with the aim of conveying a sense of optimism, positivity and joy.