Invisible People

Some stories exist around us every day, yet remain largely unseen. Invisible People is a social documentary book supported by PNPM Mandiri and the World Bank Indonesia, written by Irfan Kortschak with photography by Poriaman Sitanggang. Through personal stories and documentary photography, the book looks at the lives of people living on the margins of Indonesian society.

JED Creative designed the book to create a space where these stories could be experienced with dignity, clarity and humanity. Rather than allowing the design to compete with the photography, we developed a restrained editorial system that gives the images and personal narratives room to speak. Typography, pacing and generous use of white space create moments of pause, allowing readers to move through the stories at a human scale.

The book's visual structure brings together photography and text without making the people featured feel like objects of observation. The design aims instead to create a sense of presence and connection—encouraging readers to look more closely and consider the lives behind the images.

An Indonesian edition, Mereka Yang Tak Terlihat, was also produced, extending the project's reach to a local audience. The book was launched at the National Museum in Jakarta in October 2010.

The result is an editorial publication that uses design not to make difficult stories louder, but to give them the attention they deserve.

Cover of a book titled 'Invisible People' featuring a black and white photo of a child looking out of a car window.

Open magazine spread with text and images, showing four black-and-white photos of a woman in traditional attire on the left page and a larger black-and-white portrait of the same woman wearing a headscarf on the right page.

A book open to pages with text on the left and a black-and-white portrait of a man with curly hair on the right.