MSU Denver's 2019 Professional Development Conference committee wanted guests to be inspired to help shape the university’s system or culture. The selected keynote speaker, Ruha Benjamin, urged conference attendees to identify situations of systematic barriers being presented at our university. Benjamin spoke to the importance of recognizing racial biases inherent in our society. My designs needed to reflect the impact of shifting to systems thinking. Abstract illustrations were the foundation for the identity and event materials created for the event.
As the event neared, illustrated graphics embedded within promotional materials morphed from smaller molecular inspired systems to complex systems as large as our solar system. The sculptural flyer pictured to the right, was presented to the MSU Denver President’s cabinet early on in the project to motivate senior executives to become invested in the conference. The icosahedron flyer was used as a game to inspire dialogue about systems thinking. Presenters tossed the sculpture to attendees, similar to rolling dice, then were prompted to share an example of systems thinking based on the illustration they landed on.
MSU Denver students, faculty and staff were invited, via promotional emails designed by Kiran Majid, to speak at the Professional Development Conference. Each selected speaker was then gifted a goodie bag in thanks for their participation. Speakers were given MSU Denver branded playdough designed by Hans Wendlandt, Ruha Benjamin’s People’s Science with an event branded sleeve, a bag of tangrams with prompts centered around systems thinking, and lastly a maze pen printed with the event’s signature mark and wrapped in a branded flag describing the event theme, “Shaping our Systems for Collective Success.”
The scope of this project was immense and luckily I had the help of my collaborative team at Met Media. The entire Creative Crew worked on some aspect of the Professional Development Conference however, I designed the original identity word mark as well as abstract mark. Then I oversaw the design of other smaller elements while working on the eight-page program and goodie bag elements. This project taught me how to oversee the creative work of others while they work within a system I designed.
The scope of this project was immense and luckily I had the help of my collaborative team at Met Media. The entire Creative Crew worked on some aspect of the Professional Development Conference however, I designed the original identity word mark as well as abstract mark. Then I oversaw the design of other smaller elements while working on the eight-page program and goodie bag elements. This project taught me how to oversee the creative work of others while they work within a system I designed.
