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Students in the Solving Communication Problems course taught by Lew Minter, media lab director at the Williams Visual Arts Building, gained first-hand experience as design consultants for the Lehigh Valley Center for Modern Art, a new facility established in Easton by developer Theodore Kheel.
Each student was asked to develop a logo design, with one logo ultimately selected for the new facility.
“Each student approached the logo design with their unique concept,” says Minter. “However, the overall objective was that it should reflect aspects of the building as well as a general sense of modern art without referencing specific pieces of the Kheel collection.”
Designed by Elizabeth Robb ’05 (LaVale, Md.), a double major in art and anthropology & sociology, the center’s new logo incorporates a bold use of color, strong lines, and dots indicative of Roy Lichtenstein’s many modern art works.
In addition, the class developed letterhead, envelopes, and business cards for the center. The students also completed a poster that was recently presented to Bob and Peter Koehler, partners in the center.
The students say they value the opportunity to work for a client and design something for real applications.
“I feel that experiences like this prepare art students for the career world. We created something that will have to be judged and then hopefully will affect the community. It forces us to mature as individuals and as designers,” says Erika Pepe ’05 (East Northport, N.Y.), a double major in art and American studies.
“You either have it or you don’t. Design is always challenging. You are constantly being critiqued and under pressure, but it’s worth it!”
“I hope the students have come away with a sense of pride in a job well done, even those whose logos were not chosen,” says Minter. “Bob said that the choice was very difficult because they were all so well done. In addition, the very real interaction with a client in terms of asking the right questions even before beginning the design process and dealing with real deadlines are valuable lessons that can only be learned from a real, rather than hypothetical, project.”