Capital City Arts Initiative
Sunday, September 26, 2021
Graphics Extraordinaire 2021 is on display at the Community Development Building (the Brick), 108 E. Proctor St., Carson City.
The Capital City Arts Initiative exhibit is on display from Sept. 27 through Dec. 3.
The Brick is open to the public, from 8 a.m. to noon and 1 to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. The exhibition video tour will be online at ccainv.org.
Eight students from Western Nevada College’s Carson City campus created the posters in Graphics Extraordinaire 2021 during two online Graphic Design classes.
Participating students include Ayla Charles, Diana Estey, Jacob Flynt, Kelly Kiesow, Jennifer McKenzie, Angel Natividad, Isela Rodriguez and Dylan Sliger.
“The work in this exhibit was created by WNC students enrolled in online graphic design courses during COVID,” said faculty member, Jayna Conkey. “They should be complimented for their creativity while working under those conditions. The high quality of their work speaks to their dedication and reflects the solid foundation they learned from their previous course work in the Graphic Design Program.”
Conkey described the two assignments that she gave the students. “The Bodoni, Alphapipe, Helvetica, Futura, and Caslon posters are from a typography assignment given in an intermediate graphic design class (GRC 210 - Type 1). The purpose of this project was to expand creative typography and design approaches while showcasing the history of a typeface. Every font (typeface) on any given computer was designed by someone - probably hundreds of years ago. For this assignment, students were required to choose a typeface then research it's history. Next, they created a poster that had to include a biography and image of the type designer as well as a dynamic display of the typeface's elements (uppercase, lowercase, numerals, glyphs and punctuation).
“The Milton Glaser and Jan Tschichold posters were assigned in an advanced graphic design class (GRC 220 - Graphic Design 1). As a tribute to some of the most noted designers in the graphic design field, the students were asked to create a poster showcasing a famous graphic designer. They were required to research designers and, after choosing one, create a poster reflecting the designer's style - without simply copying their work. While researching, they had to ask themselves what characteristics made that designer's work so unique - what was their ‘claim to fame?’ An understanding of these ideas helped them create visually interesting designs, echoing the work of Milton Glaser and Jan Tschichold.”
This show is another in CCAI’s ongoing series of student exhibitions in the Brick.
“The Initiative is delighted to present this excellent work — these weren’t easy assignments. Professor Conkey’s lessons challenged the students and they definitely rose to the occasion,” said Sharon Rosse, CCAI Executive Director.
The Capital City Arts Initiative is an artist-centered not-for-profit organization committed to community engagement in contemporary visual arts through exhibitions, arts education programs, illustrated talks, artist residencies, and online activities.
The Initiative is funded by the John and Grace Nauman Foundation, Nevada Arts Council and the National Endowment for the Arts, Nevada Humanities and the National Endowment for the Humanities, Kaplan Family Charitable Fund, U.S. Bank Foundation, Southwest Gas Corporation Foundation, Steele & Associates LLC, and CCAI sponsors and members.
The Governor’s Office of Economic Development provided additional support through its Nevada Pandemic Emergency Technical Support Grant for 2021.
For additional information, visit CCAI’s website at www.ccainv.org.
