49485 by Mia Murone

49485 explores how publication design can be used to preserve, spotlight and unearth counter-histories. Using my family archive as a case study, I investigated the archival process through gathering, deciphering and collating official documents, letters, photographs and family stories.

The publication traces my grandfather’s migration from Italy to Australia and his 45-year career as a taxi driver, identified by the number 49485. It considers the relationship between official documentation and the unofficial materials through which personal histories are preserved.

The resulting publication positions design as an extension of the archive and publishing as a way to share histories that might otherwise remain overlooked.