Vivid Verse uses visual language and structures to translate Chinese into pattern, enabling audiences from all cultural backgrounds to feel and reveal the emotional essence of the original poem.
Vivid Verse System Intro
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Negative Emotion Colors
17 Structures for Chinese Characters Chinese characters are composed within the defined structures below:
Fear
Melancholy
林
思
国
斗
庙
句
建
楼
数
森
想
谢
凶
Courage
Ecstasy
医 Contempt
意
Positive Emotion Colors
Worry
Apathy
Contentment
Happiness
Joy
Sadness
Optimism
Anxiety
Anticipation
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人
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Vivid Verse System Intro
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Emotion Transition Color Swatches The system applies color gradients to the grid of Chinese characters to convey the change in meaning and emotion that occurs in each poem.
Positives + Negatives
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Negatives
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Positives
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宿建德江 孟浩然
Passing the Night on Jiande River By Meng Haoran
Passing the Night on Jiande River By Meng Haoran
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I guide my boat to mooring by a misty islet,
移舟泊烟渚，
With the setting sun, a traveler's sorrows revive.
日暮客愁新。
Wilds so vast, the sky stoops to the trees,
野旷天低树,
The river is so clear, the moon closes to man.
江清月近人。
宿建德江 孟浩然
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将赴吴兴登乐游原 杜牧
I Climb to the Leyou Tombs Before Leaving for Wuxing By Du Mu
I Climb to the Leyou Tombs Before Leaving for Wuxing By Du Mu
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Demoted, I have time on my hands but no work to do;
清时有味是无能， Could I ever be quiet as a monk and free as a cloud?
闲爱孤云静爱僧。
I’ll bear a flag to where the sea will loom;
欲把一麾江海去，
From Leyou Land, I see clear to King’s tomb.
乐游原上望昭陵。
将赴吴兴登乐游原 杜牧
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春晓 孟浩然
A Spring Morning By Meng Haoran
A Spring Morning By Meng Haoran
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Sunlight lifts me from bed to the dawn of spring.
春眠不觉晓，
The melody of singing birds permeate the air.
处处闻啼鸟。
A storm last night swept down and shook the trees.
夜来风雨声，
How many blossoms died in that dark, too soon for this sun?
花落知多少。
春晓 孟浩然
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望岳 杜甫
A View of Taishan By Du Fu
A View of Taishan By Du Fu
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Peak of peaks, I wonder how high Taishan stands,
岱宗夫如何？
A boundless green mountain that spans two States.
齐鲁青未了。 A marvel done by Nature’s hands,
造化钟神秀，
So tall light cannot touch its eastern face.
阴阳割昏晓。
望岳 杜甫
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A View of Taishan By Du Fu
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Clouds rise from the summit as my heart pounds in my chest;
荡胸生层云，
My eyes strain to see birds fleet.
会当凌绝顶。
I begin to ascend to the mountain’s crest,
决眦入归鸟，
And realize Taishan dwarfs all peaks under our feet.
一览众山小。
望岳 杜甫
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登黄鹤楼 王之涣
At Heron Lodge By Wang Zhihuan
At Heron Lodge By Wang Zhihuan
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The setting sun behind the mountains glows,
白日依山尽， The Yellow River seawards flows.
黄河入海流。
You can enjoy a grander sight,
欲穷千里目，
By climbing to a greater height.
更上一层楼。
登黄鹤楼 王之涣
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凉州词 王之涣
Song of Liangzhou By Wang Zhihuan
Song of Guangzhou By Wang Zhihuan
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The Yellow River flows to the clouds lying low on the horizon.
黄河远上白云间,
Yumen Pass stands cold among frontier mountains.
一片孤城万仞山。
A late spring does not deserve a sad song.
羌笛何须怨杨柳，
Not even a warm breeze can blow beyond the Pass of the Jade Gate.
春风不度玉门关。 凉州词 王之涣
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赤壁 杜牧
By the Purple Cliff By Du Fu
By the Purple Cliff By Du Fu
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Old swords lie broken and buried in the sandy banks of the river.
折戟沈沙铁未销， I pry out and polish these relics of the Battle of Purple Cliffs.
自将磨洗认前朝。
What if the wind had not blown for Commander Zhou Yu to set Cao’s ships on fire?
东风不与周郎便， Cao might have locked the Qiao Sisters in the CopperBird Palace.
铜雀春深锁二乔。
赤壁 杜牧
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登乐游原 李商隐
The Leyou Tombs By Li Shangyin
The Leyou Tombs By Li Shangyin
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With twilight shadows in my heart,
向晚意不适， I have driven up among the Leyou Tombs.
驱车登古原。
To see the sun, for all his glory,
夕阳无限好，
Buried by the coming night.
只是近黄昏。
登乐游原 李商隐
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登幽州台歌 陈子昂
On A Gate at Youzhou By Chen Ziang
On A Gate at Suzhou By Chen Ziang
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I cannot see a respectable king from the past,
前不见古人，
And I worry that I cannot see a worthy king for our future;
后不见来者；
When I think of the infinity of land and sky,
念天地之悠悠，
Sorrow overcomes me and I cannot help but burst into tears.
独怆然而涕下。
登幽州台歌 陈子昂
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Graphic Design
Maryland Institute College of Art
2016