BFA Thesis Exhibition

Description: The Flower Bed is a branded communal garden space focusing on suicide awareness and prevention. It is a showcase of my cross-disciplinary practice and includes graphic design, motion graphics, screen-printed posters, sign painting, and a digitally fabricated installation piece. I wanted to create a space that served as a space for reflection and awareness, and ultimately, let the viewer know– you are not alone.

The Flower Bed

My initial ideation and research for this project stemmed from my own experience of losing a close friend to suicide and finding some of the letters she had written to a shared friend. I was challenged to make an awareness poster in a poster design class. I knew a combination of my own grief and my design skills could make something powerful, thus The Flower Bed began.

Ideation & Research

A large portion of my show consisted of suicide awareness posters, many of which included Cindy’s handwriting and phrases that called the viewer to action. The posters were all designed digitally and then screen printed.

Posters

I had two sign paintings incorporated into my show. The mailbox served as my memo book, where I had screen printed inserts for people to leave notes on and envelopes that were treated with letterpress and screen printing for the notes to be sealed in. The watering can served as a tie to both the installation piece, as well as one of the posters included in the show.

Sign Paintings

To further establish the purpose of The Flower Bed , I designed collateral, such as an informational pamphlet, seed packaging, and a t-shirt. These pieces helped to tie in the goals of the brand as well as the installation piece at the center of the show.

Graphic Design Elements

Pamphlet

Inside Pamphlet

Outside Pamphlet

Front/Back

Seed Packaging

Daisy Seeds

Gladiolus Seeds

Sunflower Seeds

Lavender Seeds

Tulip Bulbs

Poppy Seeds

T-Shirt Design

To greet viewers as they walked into the gallery, I created an animation incorporating my logo as well as the flowers featured on the seed packaging and in the installation piece.

Animation

At the center of my show was an installation piece, called The Flower Bed. It was designed digitally and then cut using a CNC router. The flowers and “soil” were laser cut and then treated with an acrylic wash. Also included with some of the flowers, were flower tags that were planted in memory of someone who had committed suicide.