The Chicago Graphic Design Club invited Span to participate in the genesis-themed inaugural issue of their publication Faculty. Partners John Pobojewski and Nick Adam curated and co-designed an 8-page visual essay entited ”Reconversation.” Span began by inviting a collection of designers connected to Chicago to respond to a series of questions focused on ”beginnings.” A cohesive conversation then emerged by carefully weaving the responses together into a sequence.

The design of the essay draws inspiration from Emigre and John Cage, employing typographic and compositional experimentation to emulate a lively exchange, complete with varying volume, excited interruptions, and at times disagreements. Emphasized punctuation, iconographic glyphs, and emoticons bridge the gap between this printed dialogue and its digital origins. The concept of publishing a conversation between Chicago designers echoes the April 1970 issue of Communication Arts, where founder and editor Dick Coyne gathered six designers to discuss design in the city. Reconversation also finds inspiration in Gavin Wade’s Upcycle This Book, published in 2015, where the deceased R. Buckminster Fuller, El Lissitzky, Abbie Hoffman, and the very much alive author engage in constructed dialogue.

Reconversation is typeset in The Future, designed by Kris Sowersby of Klim, and a raw cut of Steak (the beta release of Euchre), designed by Jackson Showalter-Cavanaugh of Okay Type.