When did you first become interested in graphic design?
Essentially I became interested in design before graphic design. I went into design because I'm a sneakerhead and I love sneakers, and as a kid, I used to draw a lot of shoes. In my senior year of high school, I had a teacher named Mrs. Ellen Musselman. She taught a class called Intro into Graphic Design, where we got to play with different design tools and start doing simple graphic design things such as Adobe Suite and stock images. She sort of pushed me because she saw that I was interested in marketing and pushed me to try out branding and either minor or major in graphic design.
I wasn't initially interested in graphic design because I am interested in many other things. I love shoes, I like working out, and I like fashion. As a kid, I always thought about becoming a fashion designer because there are so many men who are. I always wanted to be an artist of some sort, but I learned as I got older that being a graphic designer and being an artist are two different things. It's very comforting being a graphic designer because almost anyone can do it if you put your mind to it. It also meshes well with my major, so I saw it as an opportunity coming to Andrews. I saw it as something that can be potentially beneficial, as another lane of work that I can do if marketing doesn't.
Where does your inspiration come from? Are there specific individuals or brands that have significantly influenced your work?
My inspiration comes from a lot of places. I sometimes look at similarities of whatever I need to design for. Different projects require different types of inspiration for me.
A lot of my work is inspired by graphic designer Saul Bass. I also look at a lot of black art and companies. I also love the way that Nike does a lot of their branding, along with Apple. Surprisingly, I’ll look at a lot of companies' really great design portfolios when it comes to branding, identity systems, or any type of branding projects.
What do you think is the most rewarding aspect of graphic design?
I think for any creative, it would be seeing people use the design you've created, or someone looking at your billboard or using the packaged bottle that you've designed. When your design is received positively, and it's better than the person thought it would be, it’s very rewarding because when you put a lot of time into a design and people take to it in a positive way, it’s an awesome feeling.
What project are you the proudest of, and why?
This [the project featured above] titled “Redesign of a Classic,” is definitely one of the projects I am most proud of because even though this isn't my most recent work, this was one of the first projects that ensured me that I have arrived in some way as a designer. This project was to redesign a classic piece of literature in different ways. One was typography-focused, one was typography mixed with imagery, and another was fully typographic along with another that was image-focused.
Originally published on October 13, 2021
The Student Movement is the official student newspaper of Andrews University. Opinions expressed in the Student Movement are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editors, Andrews University or the Seventh-day Adventist church.