Alexis Grant is currently working on her MFA in Communication Design here at Kutztown University. Her work included illustration, motion graphics and researching the connection between food and love. We sat down and asked Alexis a couple questions to get to know her better.
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In college, design students constantly make things that are the product of their own creative vision. Once they enter the field, their focus becomes completely client driven and far less imaginative. I worked with a small group of graphic design students to start a pop-up market called “The Rais.” In Pennsylvania Dutch, this means “the journey.” The idea is to teach young designers at the start of their journey that they should be making things that will satisfy their own creative aspirations and allow them to develop techniques and skills. They learn that there is an appreciation for highly original and creative work, and there are people who will pay for the beautiful things they make.
Most of the work in The Rais is hand made by students: screen printed t-shirts, tote bags, hand made buttons, letter-pressed sketchbooks, coasters and one-off objects. Posters, postcards, and greeting cards are printed in our service bureau. Not only do the students design and produce the beautiful work that we sell, they also source the materials, create a budget for the finished pieces, price the work and man the shop. The shop itself was designed and branded by students. It pops up at important department events, preview days, and before holidays in several locations across campus. We hope to start an online store. The students have learned surprising lessons about marketing, branding, pricing and managing money that they would not have learned in the classroom. The pride and satisfaction that they take away from the experience makes The Rais the beginning of a life-long journey of making, learning and creative fulfillment.
Last year, Kutztown University’s Communication Design Department’s (KUCD) modified the MFA program to a low residency program. KUCD low-residency MFA in Communication Design holds two distinctions—we are the only MFA in Communication Design in PA State System of education and we are NASAD accredited. Professor Denise Bosler wrote this article in How Magazine that explains the reasons this degree can excel your career.
This one day hands-on design camp at Kutztown University introduced sophomore, junior and senior high school students to design as a career and raise awareness of design’s possibilities. The students explored their creativity and critical thinking abilities, as well as learned how they can impact society through design. Students learned the creative design process through hands-on graphic design and interactive design challenges. These assignments allowed students to truly experience the role of a designer, work collaboratively with their peers and generate assignments they could add to their portfolio. The morning session will introduce the students to Interactive Design working on a creative project that explores the digital design world. The afternoon session will introduce students to Graphic Design exploring a creative project that investigates print based media.
We have exciting news! 37 entries from our Graphic Design 1 course have been named finalists in the MUMEDI (the Mexican Museum of Design) International Poster Competition with the theme “To Death With A Smile”.
The competition was open to designers, students, teachers, and professionals.
There were 20,000 participants from 152 countries, 561 finalists were named.
From the finalists 50 were from the United States, 37 were from Kutztown University!
15200 Kutztown Rd.
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