About the Design
The cover and design direction for 2024's Give!Guide was created as part of PNCA’s Center for Design, a working studio driven by students, operating within the Graphic Design program at the Pacific Northwest College of Art (PNCA). This studio mixes graphic designers and illustrators together in teams to work with client partners on real-world design challenges that contribute to the extended Portland community.
We decided to use collage motifs and the punk aesthetic to promote the empowerment of the Give!Guide non-profits and accentuate the Skidmore prize winners. Our punk design represents our desire, and this project’s goal, to set aside complacency, and push against expected norms. We built on the strong design direction that Give!Guide and Willamette Week uses, but wanted to push it further: to show the activism and energy that the initiatives featured here embody. We’re using that punk energy not just to dismantle things, but to build something new that frames the importance of community work being done.
Our team structure, supported by our faculty mentor and Willamette Week’s art director Whitney McPhie, allowed us to have collaborative work space and twice-a-week critiques and brainstorming sessions. The process for finalizing the artwork you see was experimental, with lots of trial and error together. Our lead illustrator, Relic Puente, explains, “I have never done collage in this way. Every class session I was pulling inspiration from my other team members to make my designs stronger. The consistent communication and feedback about what was expected helped keep us on track. I was focused on really understanding the nuances of collage in a digital format, trying to make it authentic. Overall, the process was really fun and collaborative”.
In a way, this process reflects the energy of the organizations and people highlighted in this issue and the support we hope it channels from readers: eye opening, inspiring, transformative…and fun.
PNCA Center for Design Team:
Nico Bakh:
Art Director / Designer (@nicobakh)
Alishba Rahim:
Project Manager / Illustrator (alishbarahimart.com)
Soren Spina:
Illustrator (@sporrenss)
Relic Puente:
Illustrator (@relishradish)
Rey Nolan:
Illustrator
Kristin Rogers Brown:
PNCA Graphic Design Department Head / Creative Director
