About the Project
I was commissioned by University of St. Thomas professor Dr. Bernard Armada to create graphics to promote the Communication Studies department.
The idea was to various skills and attributes that work together as part of an education in Communication Studies. He had an idea to represent the Communications Studies major like a Swiss Army Knife.
In the beginning phase, I asked to have him pull together some reference that would help us to find an understanding of what we were creating.
I began by doing rough sketches. The sketches would be reviewed and iterated on. The concept was pretty close to what the client wanted from the beginning because of using the pulled reference as a jumping off point. Also, since he is a professor of communications, he was able to communicate well what his vision was.
A project like this needs to go through several channels to be approved. The mascot was represented in a variety of styles online. When provided with a style guide I was able to use an approved version of the Tommie mascot. I also could get the other important details as color and font usage.
The Communication Studies department also needed a logo to represent them. I came up with a few options that felt like they worked with their existing branding.
The final artwork came together in a way that clearly represents what individuals who make Communication Studies their major can expect. The challenge was to pack a lot of information into the design and for it not to become too cluttered.
Final artwork was made in Adobe Illustrator. Colors were made into spot colors with separations for possible screen printing applications.
The design will be on merchandise and promotional materials later in 2024. I mocked up what some product might look like with it on it.
I think that it turned out well and I look forward to drinking a cup of coffee out of my Tommies Communication Studies mug!
