I was a designer for The Burr Magazine at Kent State University in Spring 2024, and put together multiple layouts for stories covered in the issue. Designing both spreads was a process filled with research and ideation to fit the topics I was working with. After I created my individual pages, I worked with the rest of the team to edit the spreads and ensure a cohesive layouts with attention to quality. I greatly enjoyed the collaboration involved and the whole process was a confirmation of my desired career.
Early stages of my research and inspiration.
Sketches for the pages, which developed into the final images seen above.
Continuing my work in the fall, I worked with an entirely new branding guide and list-based articles, allowing for more creative freedom. Both articles involved a heavy amount of information that needed to be considered; therefore, I paid special attention to my hierarchy and size contrast. The book reviews struggled with pacing due to the number of submissions, which was resolved by paring down the content and including more negative space. The Hot Takes article’s primary challenge was the type size and the layout of the boxes, with many adjustments made for text length and speakers’ names. Through this process, I was better able to understand how to handle more unique editorial designs that didn’t include the usual columns of text.
Early sketches for concepts of the articles.
Printed Article
