Typography assignments in two of Jayna Conkeys graphic design classes at Western Nevada College morphed into her students posters becoming an art exhibit presented by the Capital City Arts Initiative.
The posters created by eight students will be on display in the Graphics Extraordinaire 2021 exhibit from Sept. 27 through Dec. 3 at the Community Development Building (more commonly known as the Brick). Students who designed the posters are Ayla Charles, Diana Estey, Jacob Flynt, Kelly Kiesow, Jennifer McKenzie, Angel Natividad, Isela Rodriguez and Dylan Sliger.
The work in this exhibit was created by WNC students enrolled in online graphic design courses during COVID, Conkey said. They should be complimented for their creativity while working under those conditions. The high quality of their work speaks to their dedication and reflects the solid foundation they learned from their previous course work in the Graphic Design program.
Conkeys students in the intermediate graphic design course were tasked with creating posters in Helvetica, Bodoni, Alphapipe, Futura and Caslon fonts.
The purpose of this project was to expand creative typography and design approaches while showcasing the history of a typeface, she said. Every font (typeface) on any given computer was designed by someone probably hundreds of years ago. For this assignment, students were required to choose a typeface, then research its history. Next, they created a poster that had to include a biography and image of the type designer, as well as a dynamic display of the typefaces elements (uppercase, lowercase, numerals, glyphs and punctuation).
Conkeys advanced graphic design class created the Milton Glaser and Jan Tschichold posters as tribute to some of the most noted designers in the graphic design profession.
They were required to research designers and, after choosing one, create a poster reflecting the designers style without simply copying their work, Conkey said. While researching, they had to ask themselves what characteristics made that designers work so unique what was their claim to fame? An understanding of these ideas helped them create visually interesting designs, echoing the work of Milton Glaser and Jan Tschichold.
The quality and creativity of the posters has impressed CCAI Executive Director Sharon Rosse.
The Initiative is delighted to present this excellent work these werent easy assignments, Rosse said. Professor Conkeys lessons challenged the students and they definitely rose to the occasion.
The Brick is located at 108 E. Proctor St. It is open to the public from 8 a.m. to noon and 1 to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday.