by Rachel Williams
Two University of West Georgia graphic design students recently were recognized for their work in national competitions. Carlton Roberts, a senior at UWG, recently won the Merit Award, one of six awards presented at the 5th Annual AIGA Atlanta Student Pin Up Show. Madison DeFilippis, also a senior at UWG, was one of 30 winners in the “Show Us Your POSTERior: International Student Poster Competition” in Chicago. A prestigious panel of professionals judged both competitions.
Joey Hannaford and Cassie Hester, both assistant professors in graphic design at UWG, work with the students to create award-winning pieces. “Joey Hannaford and I are very proud of our students and their accomplishments,” says Cassie. “We are working tirelessly to develop a strong graphic design program, and thanks to the hard work of our students, we are.”
The 5th annual AIGA Atlanta Student Pin Up Show and Membership Party was held on Saturday, Jan. 25, 2014. Ten schools participated, including Kennesaw State University, Savannah College of Art and Design, University of Georgia, Georgia Tech and Georgia State University. Out of 77 students and more than 200 projects, Carlton’s poster was one of only six recognized. His poster was created to promote an event reflecting on the work of Swedish/French architect Le Corbusier, using the blueprints of his famous creations as inspiration.
“I was quite surprised I won, honestly,” states Carlton. “Not that I did not believe in my work, but there was a lot of very talented competition. Cassie Hester and this year’s senior graphic design students had a major hand in helping me create my poster. I believe UWG’s graphic design program is a great, growing program and I’m glad I could be a part of it.”
Madison was the winner in the typography category at the “Show Us Your POSTERior: International Student Poster Competition,” sponsored by AIGA Chicago, Students in Design, which is the AIGA student chapter of AIGA Chicago, and Columbia College. Her piece was included in the “Show Us Your POSTERior” exhibition with a gallery reception for her work on Friday, Sept. 27, 2013. The competition received 106 international submissions. Her winning piece was a hypothetical gig poster for Foxy Shazam, a contemporary glam rock band.
“I was very excited!” Madison adds. “This was my first award ever for graphic design. I created the poster in a class called materials and methods, where we are encouraged to use alternative materials like fabric and food in our designs. Everyone in the class created posters for a specific event. I chose a glitzy fabric to make letters out of for my poster, because it matched the quirky glam aesthetic of the band. My professor for this class was Cassie Hester, and she gave everyone advice and critiques in the process of making our posters. I believe that the graphic design program has grown in a positive way. There are thirteen people in our graduating class this year, which is more than double of the last graduating graphic design class. We are going to be having our senior exhibition in a nice gallery in Atlanta, which is exciting!”
For more information on UWG’s art department, please visit www.westga.edu/~artdept/.
