it’s been a while.

and that is enitrely my fault.

but we’ve got a solid lineup.

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rter My first quarter of the 2011 school

year started out on a different path than I expected. I was taking Digital Page and Web (an introductory web design class), Studio 1 and my one “break from the storm” class: English 123. The quarter was confusing education wise-I was extremely frustrated with my learning curve and struggled to understand the role of a teacher in the classroom; are they there to help lead you to the answer or support you in whatever answers you find? And furthermore what answer is right, and at what point does teacher become the pupil and the pupil the teacher. It also led me to begin thinking about our education systems and the routine of a student and teacher: students being the ones who absorb and eventually pick up on what answers they need to regurgitate in order to pass, and teachers giving the answers. SCAD has given me a lot of freedom, and I began wondering at what point does freedom become a restriction, because I’ll be honest, sometimes I just want someone to tell me, “Do X, Y and Z, but you can have free reign on A, B and C.” Alas, my web design class was one of the most frustrating classes of the winter quarter. I learned that I am a print girl at heart, and love what the web can offer but I want

no part in it (especially the coding aspect). Looking toward the future, am I stabbing myself in the foot? I don’t think so. Everything comes in waves and I greatly feel like society is under a digital wave for a period of time. But there will be a day when man longs for the tangibility of a piece of printed paper, a book and a simple handwritten letter! So until, and even after then, I will continue to explore new mediums while knowing where my strength lies. I also learned that I think I am getting better at organization and effectiveness, not just in my design work but life. A hobby for now, which could develop into something more-I’ll keep you posted.

In other news I was asked to be part of a 5-person panel to represent the undergraduate students during the department’s 5 year review. I was fortunate enough to meet with Ann Willoughby of Willoughby Design (Kansas City, Missouri) and Steff Geissbuhler of C& G Partners (New York City, New York) and introduce myself, tell them where I was from, what classes I was in, why I chose to come to SCAD and what your area of special interest is or what you may want to do when you graduate. The idea was to have an informal and engaging discussion between the five

of us and the two reviewers. We ended up having an intriguing discussion about the impact of the internet on our generation and those after us, and how the internet subconsciously or overtly prevents innate creativity and limited distinction between designers work. The winter quarter was also my first official quarter of being an Ambassador and it was more than awesome! I truly loved spending time with new and prospective students and their parents, answering questions all about SCAD and advocating for the Bees! I participated in events like student panels for the Educators Conference at Paula Deens (and got a free meal), SCAD Day, the Toy Challenge, had a prospective student from Denver, Colorado shadow me (and now she’s attending SCAD in the Fall) and other grand Ambassador events. It truly is an opportunity that I’m grateful to be a part of. So for the winter quarter I would say that I thought a lot, experienced a lot and was able to share a lot.

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design worknew

CONCEPT The selected object for my book was a BAND-AID®. After my research, I identified a key phrase which clarified the purpose of the BAND-AID® which is to protect, heal and comfort; in that order, similar to layers of defense. Another significant aspect of a BAND-AID® is it’s strong correlation to the tactile sense. In order to directly represent these layers of healing and defense, as well as the textural variety in a BAND-AID® (from fabric to clear plastic) the paper I printed on was all textured similar to a BAND-AID® and evoked viewers tactile senses.

The packaging for the book is a piece of heavy gauged acetate that was sealed on all four sides, reiterating the idea of protection, as well as, the “one time” experience a user has when opening a BAND-AID®. In addition, the packaging remains consistent with the sterile theme of a BAND-AID® and keeping one’s wound covered.

digital page & webASSIGNMENT To design a 32-page book that detailed the purpose of a found object.

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digital page & web

CONCEPT N’Dambi is soulful, voluptuous and not afraid of her curves or unique voice. So as a result, I wanted a website that was clean, but classy and featured clean pictures to emphasize her natural beauty and music.

STRUGGLES This was such a challenging project! It was a basic website, but I figured, if I’m going to make a website I need to do it! So it included music upon entrance to the home page and a flipping image gallery.

ASSIGNMENT To design a 7-page website that highlighted a musician.

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digital page & webASSIGNMENT To design a 4-page website that was a basic introduction to myself and the web. I went a little over board and ended up making a 15-page site which showcased my portfolio work, and it doubled not only as a project but as a site I referred employers to when I was applying for internships. So it came in handy!

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ASSIGNMENT For the entire 10 weeks of the Winter quarter we were given a theme of ‘coincidence’, and the research and thinking we produced was then developed into a mind map, a visual map, a 3D representation (bottom left) and then a poster (right) using our own photography of the objects.

Studio 1

CONCEPT Starting from coincidence, I developed an equation which explained that there are no coincidences, only the idea of a coincidence. This equation is made up of ones personal experiences, time, senses and perception, and that in turn generates a perspective: one’s verbal expression. Every part of the project was printed on transparencies to emulate the idea that you are seeing into my mind, thus understanding my perception and how I arrived from coincidence to “Perspection.”

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challenging quarter in understanding my role as a paying student in the classroom. I struggled with not producing projects, but with producing conceptually-solid projects which I have real connection to and am proud of. I found myself in the middle of the quarter feeling “rushed” to put out work for the sake of my portfolio that was mediocre in concept, instead of addressing real problems with my work. And being the time-efficient queen that I am, I want to do a project and not just exceed the standard level, but do it in a way that when it comes time to “re-work” my project there isn’t much to re-work because I’ve put the time in up front. But, most of my projects this quarter fell from those standards and I was pretty disappointed in the lack of concept most of my work contained. I took three classes again: Type II, Production and an art history class, 20th Century. In Type II I produced a type book that I plan to re-design to not only be conceptually stronger but more aesthetically cohesive, as well as a set of academic calendars. In my Production class I developed identity work for a mock agency (which was a group of kids in my class), a mailer for the group ‘Negativland’ and a paper robot project where I was able to collaborate with friend and designer, Bristol, to bring the project

a real-world application via a stop motion clip. You can see the clip at: www.youtube.com/thegaffenater.

In other news, I was awarded the privilege of co-presidenting AIGA during the 2011-2012 year with my wonderful friend Bristol Dunlap! Since I’ll be in Hong Kong Fall quarter she will president the group in my absence, and I will take over when I return. For those who don’t know AIGA is a national group of graphic designers who have formed this alliance to promote and set standards for the growing field of graphic design. So, together Bristol and I will be organizing events that are the same, yet differ from those of the previous year. Bringing in speakers, making ourselves present at on-campus events, community service, etc. And speaking of community service, I was nominated and chosen for the Spring quarter SCAD Ambassador “Hive of Fame” for my energy and high spirits throughout all of our quarterly events. At the End of the Year Ambassador Banquet I was also given the “Happy Henrietta” superlative, and that was enjoyable.

In late February I was also given the opportunity to participate in an on-campus interview with Hallmark which preceded my official application to their Summer Internship program and gave me the chance to get my foot

in the door. A month later they notified me that out of 943 applications, I was one of the 20 creative interns who was selected to be a Summer Hallmarker! But more on that later-my last bit of news was that my Production teacher extended an opportunity to our class on behalf of the Fashion Department at SCAD. We were to design an invitation for an event that was sponsored by InStyle magazine and Handbag Designer 101, my design was chosen and in addition to being able to say I’ve produced the work I was given 4 tickets to the 2011 Fashion Show! So I invited 3 of my closest friends and amazing designers: Blair Kawa (interior design-she made her dress), Andrea Nordstrom (graphic design-had just cut her hair!) and Bristol Dunlap (graphic design-You’d think Bristol would be sick of me by now, yes?). Our tickets were at the head of the cat walk and it was a breath-taking experience. I felt so honored to be able to be there and share it with those girls, it was truly a once in a life time experience.

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FASHION SHOW 2011 Top: (left to right) Blair, Andrea, myself and Bristol. Bottom left: “We’re going to the Fashion Show” dance. Bottom middle: Serious. Bottom right: Some more fun.

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CONCEPT This was my robot, Arleene, who not only was a paper robot, but to enhance to project Bristol and I decided to make a video with our paper robots together. View it here.

ASSIGNMENT To design a paper robot to understand the use of die cuts, and paper mechanics in design.

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Natalie Eyerman O (212) 517-7962C (212) 244-4164

natalieeyerman@touche.comDesign Director

www.touche.com

333 E 79th St., # 1TBrooklyn, NY 11210

production

CONCEPT “Touché” was an agency that was young, genuine, connected and proud of their New York roots. They, like their name, emphasized the desire to have their design affect a viewer or client as that of the fencing term ‘touché”’. Thus, in the identity, the fluid mark on top of the word represents the swift movement of a fencer while serving as the accent over the ‘e’.

ASSIGNMENT We were broken up into 2 groups in my Production class, had to come up with a name for our “agency” and then individually had to design a logo and collateral for the opposing agency.

PRIMARY LOGO

ALTERNATE LOGO

333 E. 79th St. # 1T, Brooklyn, NY 11210

O (212) 517-7927 F (212) 459-7937

www.touche.com

Sincerely,

Pattie HayesCEO/Founder

April 11, 2011

Dear Mrs. McPepper,

Mentoring works. We know this intuitively. We know this through research. We also know that mentoring works best when members of the community come together to invest in the future of their youth.

In her book, Stand by Me: The Risks and Rewards of Mentoring Today’s Youth, Dr. Jean Rhodes of the University of Massachusetts concludes that mentors infl uence young people in three important ways, by enhancing social skills and emotional well-being, improving cognitive skills through dialogue and listening, and serving as a role model and advocate. Also, studies by the Carnegie Corporation note that when asked what teens wanted most in their free time, one of the most frequent responses was “long talks with trusting and trustworthy adults who know a lot about the world and who like young people.”

We have more good news to share: adults would like to be mentors. In 2002, a national mentoring poll conducted by MENTOR/National Mentoring Partnership showed that 57 million adults would consider becoming mentors if they had access to an array of support services and had the ability within their schedules to commit. (To view the poll online, visit www.mentoring.org/poll.)

Here is the icing on the cake: corporate CEOs tell us that companies whose employees volunteer in mentoring programs are more productive, are more loyal and embody an esprit de corps not found in businesses whose employees are not mentors.

Whether through starting or expanding a mentoring program, or through recruiting or sustaining volunteers, together, in partnership, all of us can make a tremendous impact on the young people in our community.

I would like to talk with you more about local mentoring opportunities and the resources we can provide to make mentoring a meaningful and effective endeavor for your organization and our community’s youth. I will follow up soon with a call to your offi ce.

Sofia Ordonez-Gamble

O (212) 517-7368C (212) 309-2213

sofiaog@touche.com

Advertising Director

www.touche.com

333 E 79th St., # 1TBrooklyn, NY 11210

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production

CONCEPT As a designer, I feel that my process is very similar to a Hobberman Sphere which is the scientific children’s toy that is multi-colored, and expands and contracts. When I work I am constantly starting at one point of an idea, which then expands to be refined through outside inspiration, revisions, questions, doubts, redefinition, critique, feedback and purpose. This consistent contraction and expansion of my ideas is the strategic method under which most of my projects develop. I utilized a scientific, space theme to demonstrate this idea and represented my process as the “Gaffney-Hobberman Theory.”

ASSIGNMENT Design a book that explains your design process.

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Typography II

CONCEPT Shown are my executions of separation (below) and fragmentation (right). Both were created using my own photography which was manipulated using Photoshop to create the textures in the background of the works.

ASSIGNMENT Design calendars for SCAD that excercise your ability to understand fusion, inversion, fragmentation and separation of typography.

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typography iiASSIGNMENT Select a number of typefaces and create a book that explains and displays typography, it’s anatomy and how the selected typefaces compare or contrast to other typefaces.

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4, I flew home to Denver for 7 days, and on June 11 my Mom and I drove to Kansas City so I could start my internship on June 13. I lived within walking distance (about 20 minutes) from work or had the option of catching the bus (6 minute walk, 4 minute ride). I interned in the Marketing Design Studio as a graphic designer where I produced marketing collateral for Hallmark. During my 12 weeks I worked on merchandise bags, t-shirt designs for the Life is a Special Occasion campaign in the Gold Crown stores and for our recruiting team, the end of Summer t-shirt for the interns, a presentation for a Marketing Evaluation with the Halls, the For Keeps Keepsake newsletter, a circular for Walmart (the mini-newspapers you get with weekly specials in the mail/in the store), the refreshing of the Gold Crown aesthetic, an event called “Moments Between the Milestones” and lots of other opportunities like a letterpressing workshop! You can see some of those projects in my presentation located on my issuu page-it’s called End of Summer Presentation.

All Summer long I was completely amazed with the resources and facilities that Hallmark had. From world renowned pieces of fine art like Alphonse Mucha’s work when

you exit the elevators to 5 creative libraries and their our art supply store (all in the building, mind you), Hallmark truly amazed me. They have everything that a creative would want in a corporate environment and are actively involved in their community. While I was there I not only worked the 9-5, but was able to get involved with their community service opportunities like pulling carrots in the garden that the Hallmark employees built for the Ronald McDonald house across the street.

I was able to connect with an expansive range of talented people within and outside of my department. My team was a group of about 30 outrageous crazy people who definitely liked to have a good time, and worked hard so they could. I have also never worked with a team of people that had so many duplicated names-we had two Kathys, Amys, and Johns. My mentor Bob Comire was beyond great-truly someone who I enjoyed working with even in our completely opposite personalities (because you all know how shy and quiet I am). Shout out to the Marketing Design Studio! Thanks for the opportunity to experience a rockin’ in-house design agency.

During the Summer I also did the following things:

• I ate… a lot. My favorite part of Kansas City: the food.

• Abby Huebner’s (‘Carey’ now) wedding (Berthoud, CO)

• Jamie Warkentin (‘McHale’ now) wedding (including a road trip with Sweet Sweet, Anni and Libby to get there)

• Visiting Savannah, MO

• The Lenexa BBQ Challenge

• KC Royals game

• Kauffman Foundation KC Intern Event

• Transforming into my NATURAL HAIR!

• Met R. Kelly

• Spent the 4th of July with Kate Severson (Wheaton grad)

• Sade & John Legend concert

• Lawrence, KS for Bob’s show

• Hallmark Annual Sample Sale

• Janet Jackson concert

• AIGA Kansas City chapter banquet

• The Taste of Colorado and the Boyz II Men concert

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As some of you may know, SCAD opened a satellite campus in Hong Kong last year which I considered studying at during that time. But, having it be my second year in Savannah, I finally felt like I had gotten the hang of things and I didn’t want to uproot myself so soon. So this year I made the decision to go to China for the Fall Quarter of my Senior year! I leave September 8 and arrive in Hong Kong September 9 in the afternoon and I’m SO excited! I can’t even begin to tell you guys how happy and ready for this adventure I am! The food, the shopping… the artistic influence and culture! I can’t wait! Do I speak Chinese? Yes… I can say “hello.” But I’ll also keep a translating dictionary with me, or just write out the phrases on sticky notes and carry those around with me to get by. I’ll be living “on-campus” in the “dorms” which are closer to high-class luxury living (pictured right, top): completely furnished with a bi –weekly

cleaning service. I’m living with two other girls, one who is a graphic design major from SCAD Savannah, and the other I have never met! We are living in a 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom apartment in the 6th tower on the fifth floor. And you can even write me, too! MY NEW AddRESS IS: Ashley Michelle Gaffney, Tower 6, Floor 5, Flat A, 1 Castle Peak Road, Castle Peak Bay, New Territories, Hong Kong.

While I’m there I’ll be taking 3 classes at the SCAD Hong Kong building (pictured right, bottom): Studio II, Trademark and Logo Design and the History of China. My studio class is taught by a teacher that they pulled from the Savannah campus and the other two classes are taught by Chinese natives, but all classes are in English (kind of a culture kill, but a bonus for my grades). I have also volunteered

to help be an Ambassador on the Hong Kong campus as well as help out as an Orientation Assistant (which were two commitments I had made to participate in had I been in Savannah). I intend to spend my weekends traveling to nearby countries and plan to get a full experience of China as well as the surrounding areas. I’m most excited to be somewhere that’s so different from what I’ve known

for the past years of my life and you’ll be able to read all about it on my blog: missgaffney.tumblr.com. I’ll be sure to update you all with pictures either while I’m there! Let me know if anyone has any special requests for merchandise and I’ll see what I can barter to work out!

Classes end November 18, and I have to be out of the dorms by November 24. I plan to return sometime after Thanksgiving, but before Christmas making possible connecting stops in the Chicago area since I have to fly through there on my way back to Denver anyway. So look out for that call if you’re in the area!

destination: hong kong

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pro/bono

CONCEPT The recipient of this year’s award was Dooney & Burke-a classic company with clean, simple, yet extravagant products. Using that a direction I wanted to implement non-traditional colors and delicate line work that still played off each other to create an exclusive, yet fun feeling. Setting the type in Bodoni and Futura also gave the invitation a nice balance of modernity and structure-the same elements that produce a quality handbag.

ASSIGNMENT This was the project my production teacher opened up to our class for InStyle magazine and the SCAD Fashion Department, an invitation for the 2011 Independent Handbag Designer Awards.

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freelance work

CONCEPT The mark is comprised of a combination of basic shapes and colors to emphasize the connection between our consumer and the children they are buying for. The green shapes represent food, but symbolize growth, while the red shape represents a bowl but symbolizes a stomach; hence this product puts good food in your baby’s stomach! I also provided Adrienne with an alternate logo for applications where the entire bowl may be substituted.

ASSIGNMENT Adrienne Edge approached me in March and asked if she could employ me to design an identity for her start-up business, a local baby-food company aiming to unite families and communities through healthy and local options. By the end of this project I will have designed a logo, business cards, packaging for all 7 flavors, a banner, and some type of potential mailer.

Check out her website: tummytimefoods.com!

PRIMARY LOGO

ALTERNATE LOGO

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freelance workCONCEPT I wanted the packaging to reflect the same spirit of the company while being a product that is separated from others on the shelf and most importantly in the local competition. I wanted it to exude a professional, yet friendly, look to attract the main target audience (Moms, Grandmas, etc.).

Tummy Time Foods, LLC

147 arbor village drive

Pooler, GA 31322

Adrienne Edge, Owner

adrienne@tummytimefoods.com912-996-7120

www.tummytimefoods.com

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food

MMM, TASTY TASTY Top left: Honey and Oil chicken (Courtesy of Mr. Idris and I’s grilling efforts). Bottom left: My first spring rolls! Top right: Mango Salsa. Bottom right: Stuffed mushrooms.

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• I still work at the library as a computer assistant

• Over the Summer they moved the Graphic Design department into Adler Hall under the Advertising department so I will have a completely new environment when I return to Savannah.

• Lived with Andrea Nordstrom, a Wheaton grad (pictured top right).

• It was a Summer of quick turn arounds-I was never at home for more than a week. 7 days before I left for Hallmark, 3 days for Abby’s wedding weekend, and just 5 days before I left for Hong Kong.

• At the INROADS Banquet I was presented the “Trendsetter” award and another award for my 4.0 GPA (pictured top left).

• I was one of the winners in the AIGA Seed competition for my “Undez” project (pictured right)

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click here to see pictures of hong kong!wanna hear about hong kong? read my blog.

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