Photos by Ralph Freso
Stickers, fridge magnets, cup sleeves, tote bags and custom-made candy all stamped with students’ digital design branding could be found at Grand Canyon University's Senior Design Showcase on Tuesday afternoon.
The Quad was busy with families, friends, faculty and staff as they stopped by the long lines of tables to interact with design, animation and social media seniors showing off their final portfolios from their time at the university.
“This is a class people should look out for in the industry,” Chair of Digital Design Sheila Schumacher said. “These students are wanting to make a difference in the world, not just looking for a paycheck, but a good culture fit, and that is a sense of maturity in our program that we are really happy about.”
The College of Arts and Media marks the end of every semester with a showcase for its design students in which they have an opportunity to put their finest work on display, gift various keepsakes as a representation of their brands, and use the moment as a doorway into networking.
Fun objects and flashy trinkets in students’ favorite colors surrounded printed portfolio books and visual presentations that played on laptop screens at every table.
Senior graphic designer Ethan Sanderson knew water bottles would be an easy attention-grabber for guests in the Arizona heat. Tucked in a black cup sleeve sporting a “Sandman’s Designs” title and an hourglass logo, Sanderson handed out water at his station and used the opportunity to show off his portfolio. He also chatted about his creative efforts, encouraged by his love for architecture and involvement with esports.
“This showcase is an amazing opportunity and a one-of-a-kind experience to show off our work,” Sanderson said. “The main thing about advertising is that everything is open to interpretation, which was the goal behind my portfolio and logo.”
At first glance, Sanderson’s logo of white curvy lines appears as an hourglass, but it also can be interpreted as a can opener, the letter s or the number eight. It took multiple iterations for Sanderson to produce a design that encourages people to think creatively and discover various images that reflect their thought process.
A combination of passion, skill and talent, Sanderson drew inspiration from his time as a high school baseball player and honored those personally pivotal years by naming his design work the same as his former baseball team, Sandman.
“My world experience gives me an edge, and it’s what I incorporate into my design,” Sanderson said. “It was so awesome when my portfolio book was sent to me and I finally saw all my work put together in one.”
Graphic design senior Keegan Burris took the attention-grabbing strategy to an even higher level.
A huge, pink, custom-made Noggin Boss hat sitting atop her table was hard to miss.
“I really like the visual storytelling, capturing people’s attention and getting a message to them,” Burris said. “Billboards are especially my favorite because they are big designs, and when people are driving by, they are easily going to look at them.”
As a student-worker for Noggin Boss customizing customers’ special request logos, and as a graphic design intern for Canyon Creative, Burris showed off various T-shirt, billboard and logo designs produced in her time with the program and the small glimpse of the professional design industry she has experienced thus far.
“I am thankful for all the opportunities I have had at GCU,” Burris said. “Getting to be in an entry-level design job with Noggin Boss and a design internship all before graduating, GCU has so much that other schools don’t.”
Over 100 students showed off creative projects that were first initiated in their classes and continued in their own time. Between assignments and personal projects, the event was a celebration of the effort and growth students achieved in their time as Lopes.
Two American Advertising Federation awards and a certificate of excellence from the College of Arts and Media made Hannah Warren especially proud to participate in the showcase. It was a moment she wanted to use to proudly display her achievements, but she also wanted to share her passion for cooking, the color red and, of course, graphic design.
A red tablecloth and magnets, pink thank you cards, stickers and coasters around Warren’s awards complemented her pink, yellow and red portfolio. A favorite family recipe for brown sugar cookies attached to small bags filled with the baked goods gave an extra sweet touch to Warren’s display.
“I love to bake, so I started a club on campus called Spoon GCU, all about food and young adults hanging,” Warren said. “It is intimidating coming to college and being away from parents, but food can be comforting.
“In a lot of my designs, I use really bright colors. One of my greatest strengths is my excitement about stuff, so I wanted to have a station that embodies all of those aspects.”
With just a day left before their commencement, the event marked students’ final GCU event, and the big crowd of excited and proud visiting family and friends made the celebration all the more special.
GCU staff writer Izabela Fogarasi can be reached at Izabela.Fogarasi@gcu.edu
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