Each spring, Bachelor of Fine Arts candidates in graphic design present their work in an exhibition at ShiftSpace, Wichita State鈥檚 student-run, downtown gallery.
Students began working on the exhibition in January in their graphic design capstone class. When the university cancelled in-person gatherings, they realized they couldn鈥檛 present their work as planned.
鈥淲e had two weeks of uncertainly where we didn鈥檛 really know what was going on, and things kind of stalemated,鈥� said Jamie Staggs, a graphic design senior.
鈥淲e had a video call to brainstorm how we can take everything online now that we wouldn鈥檛 have the use of a physical art gallery,鈥� said graphic design student Sofia Burnett. 鈥淣ormally at senior shows people are walking around, looking at all the senior projects, sometimes even flipping through portfolios. There were a lot of factors we had to think about with taking everything online.鈥�
Student Katelynn Sears said Irma Pu拧karevi膰, visiting assistant professor of graphic design, helped them form a new plan.
鈥淚rma was our guiding light in moving forward, Sears said. 鈥淲e didn鈥檛 really know what to do. It was a lot of back and forth and a lot of discussion in order to decide.鈥�
Pu拧karevi膰 had already given the show its name, if unintentionally.
鈥淲e had a whole class where we brainstormed a list of themes for the show, and then Irma made a group on Slack and she just randomly called it Design Zoo,鈥� Burnett said. 鈥淚t wasn鈥檛 even on our list, but everyone saw that and said, 鈥楬ey, that鈥檚 a pretty cool idea.鈥� We talked about it in our next class, and everyone agreed that they liked it. It just kind of happened.鈥�
鈥淚 wanted to make it fun for them,鈥� Pu拧karevi膰 said. 鈥淟ike these designers, each animal in the zoo is distinctly different.鈥� She gave herself the role of zookeeper.
The 21 students had taken most of their design classes together over the past three years, so they were already close, but this was the first time they had produced a project as a group.
To present themselves, each student assumed an animal identity. Their profiles describe their 鈥渉abitats,鈥� 鈥渉ours of activity鈥� and 鈥渆ating habits,鈥� and they gave themselves Latinate scientific names. Each student chose a design campaign or other project to present with their profile, which includes links to the designer鈥檚 own online portfolio.
The class originally planned to create stickers, flyers, vinyl type and graphics, and environmental design that emphasized their zoological theme to accompany the exhibition.
Instead, they created an online catalog at , a virtual exhibition video that introduces each student, and a collective art project to go with their and accounts. Student teams worked on each element, and another group of students tackled the exhibition鈥檚 visual identity.
In place of a traditional First Friday reception, students will present their exhibition live on their at 6 p.m. May 1. A question-and-answer period will follow.
Both Pu拧karevi膰 and her students agree that there were benefits to making the drastic change in format.
鈥淚n the beginning they were devastated, of course, and understandably,鈥� Pu拧karevi膰 said. 鈥淏ut it all turned around once we figured out the other possibilities. Online opens some possibilities that we would not have had if the show was in physical form.
鈥淚t may be even be better, because they got to expand the exhibition so much more than they would have if it was just in ShiftSpace.鈥�
For Sears, having to pivot was an extreme version of what designers deal with all the time.
鈥淭here are always moments when you have an idea and it doesn鈥檛 work out the way you thought it would,鈥� she said. 鈥淵ou have to rethink and come up with a new solution.鈥�
Staggs viewed the experience as an opportunity for growth.
鈥淚t taught me how to get things organized on my own time, on my own schedule, and how to motivate myself,鈥� she said.
For Burnett, the pandemic has caused her to slow down, rest and think.
鈥淚 think of plants and growing crops, and every once in awhile you have to have to have a season of nothing happening so new growth can come,鈥� Burnett said.
鈥淚 hope this show encourages people, and we can show that even though we do have this stay at home order, creators can still make things, and life is still going on.
鈥淛ust because we can鈥檛 gather in large groups doesn鈥檛 mean that we can鈥檛 do cool things in our community.鈥�