Featured Alum! Mary Kate Henry

Where are you currently working? (location & company)
Pentagram, NY

What are you currently working on?
With my team, I just finished branding a theatre in Omaha, a non-profit helping create more equitable workplaces called Coqual, and a soap company called Dally. I get to work on everything from logos, packaging, print, web, and sometimes signage. I also do a personal project where I redesign the covers of books I read.

What’s your favorite recent project?
coqual.org (identity / web) – I always love doing work for clients that work to make a difference.

How has your job changed with COVID?
I work from home full time until at least summer 2021.

What was your favorite KUCD project? What class did you make it in?
I loved The Magazine Feature project in Graphics with Prof. Cunfer. This class was when design really started to click for me.

How did your decision to attend KUCD affect the trajectory of your career?
KUCD gave me the opportunity to attend an incredible design program while going to a liberal arts school where I could meet people with all interests/backgrounds. The professors gave me the all the tools I needed to enter the field, and they supported me in finding internships exactly where I wanted. Kutztown is between New York City, Philadelphia and the Lehigh Valley, all areas with great design opportunities (and where we often went on trips). And of course, I have significantly less student loans from going to Kutztown than I would if I had decided to go to a private art school in a big city.

What advice would you give your high school self about choosing a college?
Choose a college that feels exciting and that just feels right when you visit.

What is the best part of KUCD?
KUCD is one big family. You know everyone by the time you leave, and your classmates and professors will be in your life long after you graduate. I’m forever grateful for them!

Any advice for current KUCD students?
Don’t be too hard on yourself in COVD times. Otherwise, make work you love, and always try to make connections in the field. If there’s a studio or designer you really love, ask them to get coffee instead of just asking for a job. Build relationships and learn from people. They will remember you, and they might help you out down the line.

Featured Alum! Connor Green

Where are you currently working? (location & company)
R/GA Los Angeles

What are you currently working on?

The latest project I worked on was for Verizon’s Super Bowl collaboration with the NFL and battle royale video game Fortnite. With work environments becoming remote over the last year due to COVID-19, Verizon teamed up with Fortnite builder influencers to show off the powers of Verizon 5G. These Fortnite builders worked together online via video chat to build an in-game replica of Raymond James Stadium, the location for this year’s Super Bowl in Tampa Bay, FL. During the week leading up to the Super Bowl, Verizon livestreamed gaming influencers and various NFL superstars who battling it out in Fortnite, taking part in the various different game modes within the stadium. The public could even get involved by joining the same games as the NFL players, searching for easter eggs around the stadium to win a handful of prizes, including meet and greets with these same NFL players.

What’s your favorite recent project?
The current Verizon Super Bowl project is definitely my favorite as well. Below I added a few links to tweets showing off the work.

https://twitter.com/Verizon/status/1356301433335918595?s=20

https://twitter.com/FNBRInGame/status/1356330313488756739?s=20

https://twitter.com/saquon/status/1356678836696547328?s=20

https://twitter.com/TeamJuJu/status/1357358314800242688?s=20

How has your job changed with COVID?
Since going fully remote back in March, collaboration amongst your team has definitely been different. I’m sure like many others, Zoom calls is how all work is crafted and reviewed, whether its internally or with client. But allowing yourself to be nimble and open to new ways of working in this even faster changing work environment, is super important.

Any advice for current KUCD students?
Two pieces of advice to current KUCD students about to enter the field:

1) If your goal is to work at a big-name agency or big-name design studio, don’t be bummed to take an internship (paid of course. no free work) there after graduation to get your foot in the door, if you can’t get a full-time gig. I took an internship at R/GA and was lucky enough to get hired at the end of the summer. And even the friends I interned with who weren’t able to get hired at R/GA that summer, made incredible connections that lead them to other awesome opportunities at other agencies.

2) If possible, be open to the idea of moving for a job. I had never been to Los Angeles before accepting my internship at R/GA but knew this job opportunity had huge potential. It was a giant proponent in my career growth as well as my personal growth. It helped me put my career on a different trajectory and I’m forever grateful I was able to make it happen. That being said, when it comes to location, cast a wide net when looking for jobs. You won’t regret it.

Griffin Macaulay. Designer. Illustrator. Level 5 Half-Elf Cleric. KUCD Grad.

Griffin majored in Communication Design at KU with concentrations in Illustration, Graphic Design and Interactive Design. His first year out of school Griffin began working with the Neo-Pangea Society and began working on designs for the web and games, most recently jumping into UX design.

Some of Griffin’s works can be found in games like Dungeons and Dragons, Pokémon Go, and Dr. Pol: Vet Rescue, to name just a few.

Watch the recording:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XcSJ7kzM8QA&feature=youtu.be

!!VIRTUAL!! DESIGN DAY CAMP

KUCD held a VIRTUAL hands-on design camp that introduced sophomore, junior and senior high school students to design as a career and raise awareness of design’s possibilities. We had 38 participants attend our Saturday morning camp. We discussed job possibilities with a BFA in Communication Design, campus life, and the amenities in the KUCD department. In the morning we gave the students a hands-on graphic design challenge! They were tasked with creating a collaged Album/Spotify cover! There were a set of parameters to follow and supplies (mailed home to them).

The second half of the day walked attendees through what work to include in their portfolio and how to present it.
KU Visual Arts Programs require a portfolio for first year students. These students received the ‘inside scoop’ from the Portfolio Committee.

Joey Strain, Illustrator, still in College.

An Illustration Blog by Kevin McCloskey

I bought a copy a new kid’s book illustrated by Kutztown University student Joey Strain. The Little Wolf Who Howled at the Moon is written by Dr. Curtis Herr of the KU English Dept. Not every college student can illustrate a high-quality hardcover children’s book, but Joey pulled it off with distinction.

I wrote to Joey to ask about the project. Below is our lightly edited Q and A.

read more…