Victoria Knieper
Graphic Designer, Illustrator, Creative
Central Michigan University President's Mural
This project was assigned to me by the Chairperson of the Department of Art and Design, Associate Dean of the College of Arts and Media, and the President of Central Michigan University.
Designing for a High-Profile Client
Because President MacKinnon is understandably a very busy guy, I had limited communication with the actual client of this project. There was a trickle down of information from the President to the Associate Dean, to the chairperson of the department, and finally to me. From this communication at the start, we got the prompt to "capture the spirit of CMU".
Three Early-Stage Concepts
I knew the best way to approach such an open-ended project was to iterate. I wanted to be able to present President MacKinnon with three different concepts of where we could take the project.
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Taking on a more graphic style, the first approach focuses on the CMU arch as a landmark on campus. It emphasizes the students’ experience while walking between the Student Activity Center, dorms, and classes. While the focus is the arch, there’s also some emphasis on the natural beauty that CMU’s campus is known for.
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The second approach relies on CMU's "We Do" slogan. The concept with this one was showing off a hands-on approach to education,
While incorporating a variety of students from different backgrounds, the design includes each section with a unique setting of active learning. One such section, the second from the right, has already been developed to include a student wading the waters around Beaver Island.
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The third concept was the most abstract, but also the most visually striking. I wanted first and foremost to capture the part of CMU that is unique to the university: its place in nature. The gold section that flows through the middle is representative of a map view of the Chippewa River, with
the foreground working to emphasize the community's enjoyment of Mount Pleasant’s natural environments and parks.
