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Faculty of Design

Graphic Design

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Laura

De Micheli

Graphic Design

“This thesis presents The Brazilian Woman Encyclopedia, an incomplete archive developed as a response to the objectification of Brazilian women and the lack of knowledge that exists beyond the body. The project questions how Brazilian womanhood has been reduced to a limited and consumable image, often shaped through global media and beauty culture.Grounded in the concept of ethnopornography, as discussed by Anne McClintock, the work examines how colonized bodies are sexualized and transformed into objects of visual consumption. In response, the project turns to typology and classification, not to reinforce these systems, but to rework them. By using an encyclopedia format, a traditionally Eurocentric structure, the project proposes a re-categorization that centers complexity, multiplicity, and lived experience.Rather than offering a fixed definition, this archive remains intentionally incomplete, opening space for a broader understanding of what it means to be a Brazilian woman.”

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LauraDe Micheli
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I am a graphic designer majoring in Graphic Design with a minor in Art and Social Change. Originally from São Paulo, Brazil, I speak both Portuguese and English and work as a multidisciplinary artist and designer. My practice moves across print, installation, and photography, often grounded in questions of identity, representation, and the ways visual culture shapes how we understand bodies and narratives.I am deeply interested in the intersection of feminism and culture, especially in how systems of media, beauty, and design construct and limit the perception of women. Most of my work carries a strong conceptual and social message, focusing on raising awareness and inviting audiences to question what is often taken for granted. I am driven by the desire to create work that not only communicates, but also opens space for reflection, discomfort, and change.Recent projects include a data visualization on femicide in Canada, where material and form were used to translate statistics into a visceral, physical experience. I have also explored Brazilian identity through a publication centered on national football jerseys, examining how culture, pride, and symbolism are embedded in everyday objects. In digital work, I developed Gringo Explore, a website that reflects on the way Brazil is presented and consumed by foreign audiences.Alongside these projects, I have produced multiple photographic works in studio settings, often with an editorial approach, exploring the body as a site of construction, narrative, and visual language. Across all mediums, my work consistently returns to the idea of looking beyond the surface, questioning dominant perspectives, and building more layered and human representations.
OCAD U - Faculty of Design
Graphic Design
Major Completed, 2026
OCAD U - Faculty of Art
Art & Social Change
Minor Completed, 2026

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