Morphology: An Alternative Taxonomy

Morphology: An Alternative Taxonomy is a 160 page fictional field guide about a collection of imaginary organisms. The project started from my interest in morphology and Goethe’s theory of form. I wanted to see how far I could develop a fictional ecosystem by starting from different types of forms and structures.

The book is divided into five chapters: Mimicry, Spiral, Atmosphere, Dual Form and Solar Afterimage. Each chapter contains several species based on its own morphological idea. For example, the Mimicry chapter includes organisms that imitate everyday objects, human body parts and natural surfaces. The Spiral chapter focuses on organisms with spiral structures, while the Atmosphere chapter includes species that live in or interact with the air and weather.

I designed each organism from its form first, then developed its behaviour, habitat, growth and relationship with humans around it. I also created different types of information for the book, including species profiles, morphological details, discovery stories, observation methods, interviews, news reports and folklore. This allowed me to present the same fictional world in different ways, similar to how information is collected and presented in a real field guide.

Visually, I looked at natural history books, scientific illustrations and editorial design. I used a simple and consistent visual style for the organisms and developed a set of repeatable layouts for the publication. The book uses these familiar conventions to make the fictional species feel as if they belong to an existing system of knowledge, while the content itself is deliberately pseudoscientific.

Through the project, I combined illustration, graphic design, typography and editorial design to build a fictional world around the study of form.