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Bethany Ediger

Hi, my name is Bethany Ediger

I am not going to stick a definition onto who I am as a designer because I have a lot of different interests. So I am going to try to define a few learning points that will lead me to who I am going to become: I came to KCAI wanting to go into painting until...

I fell in love with letters and calligraphy during my foundations year. This is what sparked my interest in graphic design and I decided to pursue it instead. I have never regretted my decisioneven when I didnt understand how to use illustrator or know the names of many typefaces other than Times New Roman and Curlz :)

Through graphic design, I didnt forget my love for painting, and it showed up, by incorporating design principles and illustration through applications like a wayfinding map for the NelsonAtkins...

and Honey package re-design that used emotion to appeal to the buyer...

as well as applying illustrative quality to the screen, to create a rich experience for the user to obtain information.

Then, I began to learn about structure...

and creating systems, where each element supports the other (which is great because I have always been a fan of systems :)

This learning point began to be defined my sophomore year through an icon set that was used to create an identity system for a museum exhibit...

and was brought full circle this past semester through my rebrand of the crossroads district in Kansas City.

I know branding can be a lot of fun and, as I was trying to figure out why I enjoy it, I realized it is because you are creating an identity for something, for someONE.

Design is for People

Which leads me to another reason why I enjoy graphic design. Because design is for people. But this doesnt just happen in branding. It can also be used to be an advocate for someone. I am a messenger for information...

like in the So What campaign that recognizes and exposes the struggles of those in poverty...

and asks those that are more fortunate, to give, during holiday seasons.

NAME PASSWORD

Or lingolink, that was designed specifically for children to communicate and learn...[double click]

[click] across cultures with other students to understand another language in a virtually immersive environment.

Details Make a Difference

This requires research to thoroughly understand who you are representing and what they are trying to say. I have found that these quiet details make a big difference.

I began to understand this best through researching the Hike Enthusiast Community and then applied this research to create an iphone application that was tailored to the audience. Of course, this process could and should be applied to every project I work on from here on out.

Interning at small design studios has been a great opportunity to both observe and experience designing and following systems for real people.

Non-traditional design work, letterpress, as well as branding and environments have given me a better understanding of the relationship between the designer and the audience or user.

SO, I found out what I have learned and what I like to do, but pinpointing what I want to pursue is another story. These specific projects have helped me realize that I honestly love to look, see, decode and experiment to find new ways of visual communication

How can Graphic Design be used to inform, create and alter environmental experiences for viewers through the use of illusions, type and technology?

Through my degree project, these points will help me answer: How can graphic design be used to inform, create and alter environmental experiences, for viewers, through the use of illusions, type and technology? And how can this become a system?

This exploration started through my type experiments last year where I combined anamorphic and optical illusions onto mocked-up wall graphics. I have found that sculptural work in this area has made a big impression on me and developed a good starting point:

This creates a problem that can be solved through what I have learned at KCAI; systems, people, research and analysis and will take form through environmental and experiential applications that utilize my previous research and experiments on the subject, but will apply it in a much different and more more meaningful way as far as message, scale and material.

Luis Tomasello, whose piece is currently being installed at the Nelson-Atkins, has been my greatest influence with in this direction. He uses sculptural forms that are mounted on walls, color, and angles, to distort the perception of the viewer depending on their position in relation to the piece.

Other environmental work like those from Fabio Ongarato use the surrounding space and strategic placement of identifiers to communicate messages to viewers.

and Charley Peters who studies the intersection of light and architectural forms to communicate ideas.

Cognitive and perceptual psychology, visual and spoken language, interaction, and haptics like seeing, feeling and hearing will become especially important to understanding this topic and application thoroughly.

How can Graphic Design be used to inform, create and alter environmental experiences for viewers through the use of illusions, type and technology?

I hope to put my experiences both in the classroom and during internships to good use, by combining the core principles I have learned (and enjoy) in design: systems, details and people.

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