Dannie Zhao
Coastal Frequency is an interactive, location‑based experience campaign that uses NFC tag posters at railway stations and four Dublin beaches to give you a unique sound‑spectrum visual and audio of each beach – starting with a black‑and‑white version when you tap, revealing full colour only when you visit the beach, and rewarding you with a free poster and archive once you’ve collected all four.
The aim of this project is to encourage people living in Dublin to visit the city's coastline by creating posters for railway stations. The posters will show sound spectrums and typography, giving people a visual taste of what the coast sounds like. When commuters tap their phone to the poster, they will hear real recordings of the sea, waves, and shoreline.
The objective is to make people curious, help them escape the city noise for a moment, and inspire them to take a short trip to experience the real thing.
Coastal Frequency blends interactive posters and billboards with a microsite that connects to sound and visual discovery. The campaign is rounded out by promotional banners and a video piece.
This thesis examines how visual culture, specifically graphic design and photography, helps shape new cultural identities during times of major social change. It focuses on Dublin after the 2008 financial crash, a period that saw a clear visual shift away from the ornate, excessive style of the earlier “Celtic Tiger” boom years toward a more sophisticated simplicity. Using the Pichet restaurant as a central case study, the research analyses its complete visual ecosystem.
Hello! I'm Dannie Zhao, a multidisciplinary designer with a passion for typography, art direction, and branding. I enjoy working across both print and screen to craft visual identities and experiences that feel intentional, memorable, and human. My design process is rooted in curiosity and attention to detail – understanding people and their context to create work that isn't just beautiful, but truly connects. I'm excited to take everything I've learned at IADT out into the real world and keep growing as a designer after graduation.
