Author: Wilna Michel

For the next two weeks I was presented with a new client to do some work for. My new client was the interim Dean of the School of Professional Studies; Dean Maureen Archer. She was in need for some new signage for the tv monitors in the Academic Building. These signage was to advertise the Dental Hygiene Clinic , as well as the Vision Clinic , both of which was in the Academic Building. After Introducing myself I had set up an appointment with her to get extra information on the project, as well as to find out the purpose and what was the deliverables for the project besides the monitors. Two Thursdays ago, Me and my mentor for the project Phil, met up with her in her office in the Academic building.

The meeting went great , after showing us all the work needed to be done for the Dental Hygiene Clinic; she then took us to the Eyeglasses clinic. We were introduced to Peter Pineandi who was head of the Vision Clinic. He allowed us to observe a class where the students were creating the glasses frames and lens. He also spoke on the fact that the students also do repairs. He took then on a tour clinic which had the same high end and advanced technology , that are at the eye-clinics all around NYC. Lastly, he showed us the clinic where the frames were displayed and how this was where”fashion meets sight”.

At the end of the entire interaction we realized that besides the monitor, we would have to provide a social media page, as well as an appointment card. It was shocking to find out that they did not have a website, and email or even a social page. It is something that we’re thinking of doing. Although I can’t post any images here, I’ll post the images later. Below is the previous poster done.

For the next two weeks I was presented with a new client to do some work for. My new client was the interim Dean of the School of Professional Studies; Dean Maureen Archer. She was in need for some new signage for the tv monitors in the Academic Building. These signage was to advertise the Dental Hygiene Clinic , as well as the Vision Clinic , both of which was in the Academic Building. After Introducing myself I had set up an appointment with her to get extra information on the project, as well as to find out the purpose and what was the deliverables for the project besides the monitors. Two Thursdays ago, Me and my mentor for the project Phil, met up with her in her office in the Academic building.

The meeting went great , she not only showed us the monitors she wanted the posters to show up on but also she gave us a grand tour of the Dental Hygiene clinic. It was amazing to see al the students work on real people to study. She explained that each student within the Dental Hygiene major was given a cubicle to work on a client and had a professor supervisor to watch over them. A student then joined the tour and spoke on the high tech equipment that they had and that right now their clients were people who had walked in , or clients from a church that a professor knew. They emphasized the need for new clients and the need for student clients. After they spoke on the fact that despite their services being free for students of City Tech, they didn’t get City Tech Students. After they emphasized the overall need to reach the students of City Tech. Once the meeting finished , I got to work on sketched and digital drafts and sent it to the client. She like the final one , however, I had not added color, so I will add color to the drafts and send them to her for feed back once done.

My first Project for the Faculty Commons Internship was to create a poster advertising the Call for papers for the City Tech Writer. The City Tech Writer is an assembly of writing done by the Professors, students and more that is assembled into an issue that can be read by everyone. Any student can submit their writing and work to be in the issue no matter the discipline they are in and no matter their major. The poster asking for work was presented to me during the summer during the training to test one’s ability to create a poster while there was a tight deadline. All the past interns and to go through the same process during the summer. They showed us the past designs and told us to think outside the box. Then we had 3 days to create a poster and finalize it . At the end of the work we were to present to the entirety of the Design Team all the work we’ve done, and all the thought process behind each of the poster designs.

I continued this poster project during the fall semester. It was a long process of trial and error, however the work was finished. Then last week during a status meeting I was approached to create a web banner advertising the City Tech Writer, to be presented on the City Tech Website and on the Faculty Commons website. A status meting is basically a meeting filling out the team about all the work you have done over the week. I was ecstatic to work on it and had to find time to manage that project with all the new projects that I was working on.

For my internship I work for the Faculty Commons Design Team. They are an essential part for the advertising for the college. The Faculty Commons Design Team is a group of graphic designers, photographers and motion designers that work together to provide all the advertising for the college. Not only that but they provide the logos for important groups and organizations within the college. All the posters that you have seen advertising a certain event, club or benefit of the college they create. All the designers have attended the college in the past year or are alumni that applied for the internship in the past and was still kept on working for the college. They are supervised by Professor MaryAnn Biehl which is an Associate Professor and the chair of the Advertising Design & Graphic Arts Department at New York City College of Technology, CUNY.

They have done the logo and the branding for the SGA ( The Student Government Association) and the SLD (Student Life and Development ) in the past and that branding is still done today. All if not most of the posters advertising events , that are seen on the tv monitors and hanging up are made by the Faculty Commons Team. They provide their services for all the Faculty in City Tech.

In my Internship for Faculty Comms , my first Project was to create a poster that calls submissions for a newspaper. It is a project that I started over the summer; It is for the City Tech Writer. I went through trials and trials of drafts and presented them in the Status meetings. Since the beginning of the fall semester, we have been meeting every Tuesday at 6:00. These meetings are Status meetings where we share the work we’ve been doing as well as get advice on the pieces we’re working on. I’ve loved all the feedback I’ve received and with their feedback I’ve been working hard. For one of my drafts I received a taste of the industry. For one of my drafts I hit a wall, It was like I drew a blank. My layout was solid however my type treatments and color was way off. Through their critiquesI realized my errors and reworked it to create a strong piece. I’m still waiting on the clients response , so I’m unable to post the project or to continue. However for it being my first project there was much to learn.

Last week from Tuesday October 18, to Friday , October 20, I attended the Adobe Max creativity Conference. It was virtual and in person , it was a few days of events in which designers and industry professionals shared tips on Adobe Products and spoke on their experience of creativity. It was amazing to learn tips from professionals within the industry and to find new ways of looking at design. What I enjoyed the most was the keynote that began the conference, it was motivational and very insightful. It was done by the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Adobe: Shantanu Narayen who introduced Adobe and spoke on its past, Adobe’s 40 year anniversary , his own journey with Adobe, and how its changed over the years. It was then continued by the president of the Digital Media Business: David Wadhwani who spoke on the advantages of Adobe and how it can help you develop your ideas and creativity into something more. It was finally continued by Scott Belsky , Chief Product Officer and Executive Vice President of Adobe who spoke of the future of Adobe , but also the new product Adobe Express which will revolutionize the industry.

I also loved the inspirational keynote by Steve Aoki the Grammy-nominated Artist, DJ, Producer. I am a huge fan and it was great to hear what motivates and inspired him. He also spoke on what happens when he can’t come up with a new idea. He says to just reset and go back to everything you learned and to approach it in a new way. He spoke on his new album Hiro Quest which he is merging with TCG. TCG is the Trading Card Game industry which , interestingly enough is apart of Pokemon cards. You can watch most of the keynotes as well as some of the parts of the conference online : https://www.adobe.com/max.html

Although I started a while ago, this will be my first post talking about the internship. Over the summer before I applied for the Internship Class Fall 2020 semester; I applied to be Faculty Comms Design Team Intern. Over the summer there was a week-long rigorous training process, and in the end, I was chosen to continue with the Design Team. To be honest, the training was amazing, although the work was hard I appreciated the feedback, advice, and help I received from the Design Team. We had to do two Projects as well as learn how to communicate with the design team, how to communicate with clients, formatting, and more. I loved the process because it helped me learn more about how to tighten my work and create a meaningful piece.

Since the beginning of the fall semester, we have been meeting every Tuesday at 6:00. These meetings are Status meetings where we share the work we’ve been doing as well as get advice on the pieces we’re working on. Over the summer we had to create a poster for the City Tech Writer and also a personal Project. I continued the City Tech writer Project this semester. I went through 10 or more drawings before the last meeting where we finalized three drawings. I’ve loved all the feedback I’ve received.

This Networking Event was held by the Communication Design Department and the Ink Club. This event was a “Meet the Pros”, where the students met Alitha Martinez; a DC Comic Artist of Black Panther and Nubia and the Amazons. This event was advertised by not only all my professors but also the students. It was an amazing event made happen by not only the student clubs and professors but also through the connection of Professor Woolley.

The event was a Q&A session between the artist and the amazing group of students and professors attending. The topics covered were her life leading up to her career in DC and Marvel, how she received her job, what it was like for people who are minorities and females in the industry, and lastly tips for drawing. I love the interactions she had with the students as well as the professors. It was an informal event and it felt more like a conversation.

One of the things I learned from the event was that connections are important, not only but don’t be afraid to create networks. She also emphasizes the fact that the comic industry was a white male-driven industry. She said that she has only seen one other women comics artist in her office. Not only that but she also gave amazing tips on how to save time on drawing background but also tips on improving your art style.