portfolio from

CSVPA

Cambridge³

mission:

During the first term, our assignment was to document. We had the world at our disposal and my goal was to document in a n0n-conventional way. Since my previous work has been in aviation, I had the idea to document Cambridge from above……in a Cessna.

process:

After reaching out to a local aero club, I was given full access to take a ride in one of their Cessna’s, on a short trip in the air, to tour Cambridge. Balancing three cameras and four lenses, I shot as many beautiful landscape photos as I possible. I was careful to photograph both architecture and land, making sure to get as much variety in textures and colors as I could. After my feet were securely on ground again, I edited the photos down to the best and decided to go a bit rogue with my idea. The common way to document photos is in a traditional album, but since my photos were taken from an unconventional angle, I wanted my work to be displayed in an unconventional manner. After choosing my favorite images, I laser cut “L” shaped plywood to adhere my images on top of. And with six 8”x8” mirrors, I formed a cube for the images/plywood to attach on. This unique shape, along with the mirrors, created an amalgamation of terrain and architecture, giving the viewer an interesting way to view Cambridge.

results:

Cambridge³ was a project I’ve never taken on before and the process was both exhausting and rewarding. The mirrors created such intriguing angles and views that I believe the viewer would have not seen otherwise. This creation was quite an adventure, from beginning to end and allowed me a fun and exciting way to document my colorful photography.

Sneaks

mission:

The initial project at CSVPA was to research a fairly unknown musical artist/band and recreate their album artwork/branding. I chose Sneaks, a Washington DC based artist, known for her eclectic style and interesting sound. Her album, Highway Hypnosis was released in 2019 and the album cover was basic and didn’t live up to the vibe of each expressive track. I then decided to reimagine the artwork and create something she would be proud to display.

process:

As a photographer, I love to experiment with all types of photography. One particular style I had yet to play around with was light painting. I decided pretty early on that light painting could be as eccentric as Sneaks and could bring her words to life in a bright and colorful way. I also wanted to venture into the world of neon light and how it could intermix with the light painting. With the help of a black light and darkness, I was able to photograph three models, with full-faced neon paint and in interesting angles. Separately, with sparklers and colorful touch lights that I painted, took the light painting shots at night in a nearby park. I then took all images and experimented with overlaying and saturations and hues. In order not to distract from the imagery, I created the personal logo for Sneaks to be minimal and the lyrics inside the album booklet to be simple and not overbearing.

results:

The photographs combined created striking imagery and embodied the music of “Highway Hypnosis” better than I imagined. There were so many vibrant images to choose from that I was able to create not only the album cover, but also the spinners, inner sleeve, album booklet, a CD cover and booklet and a fun poster. This was my first professional attempt at light painting and neon colored photography but it will not be my last. This project was exciting and new and allowed me to embrace the colorful personality of who I am as an artist.

Free Yo Mind (and Let Cosmo Inspire!)

mission:

During the final term at CSVPA, I was one of six students chosen to receive a Hearst UK mentorship. In order to win the elusive mentorship, all students were to compete. With the prompt of “Design a product that can help people get more out of life during lockdown,” my winning idea was a social campaign meant to release Cosmopolitan readers from the monotony of everyday life during COVID. The campaign was meant specifically for Instagram stories and let the readers reminisce, create, inspire and embrace specific articles throughout Cosmo’s monthly issues and bring them to life in individual contests.

process:

Before settling on an idea, I thought about how everyone has been feeling since the arrival of COVID. The three main “symptoms” being exhaustion, repetition, and just a general mind funk. Spending all day on the computer, in meetings and sessions can really becoming exhausting. It’s harder to think of new ideas and get inspiration from the confines of your house. We’re creative beings but currently our creative juices aren’t flowing. This led me to an idea to help them get started.I knew I wanted to focus on Cosmopolitan magazine so I began by taking a look at their social channels. It was then that I decided to focus on Instagram. I created a SWOT analysis analyzing their current content and thought it would be interesting to have a campaign focused on bridging the gap between the physical magazine and everything posted on Instagram. When I first started thinking about the prompt, my mind went to the phrase “Free Your Mind” since our minds (and bodies) have been sedentary in our homes. The campaign would allow the Cosmo audience to create content relevant to each issue’s articles. Once doing whatever the contest asked of, the contestant would have the opportunity to win a COVID- appropriate themed and once in a lifetime prize. As far as the theme of the campaign, once I had the name “Free Your Mind”, it only seemed natural to finish the phrase in the same tune as En Vogue’s song. “Free your mind and the rest will follow” -- "Free your mind, and let Cosmo inspire!” I broke up the contests into five different themes (each with their relevant article). And finally, to keep in line with the COVID theme, I thought it would be fun for the winners to have a meet and greet/zoom call with celebrities.

results:

The “Free Yo Mind” campaign is has many benefits: linking the magazine to social, inspiring creativity, engaging the audience, building the identity and voice of Cosmo UK, forging relationships and lastly, improving the mood of the followers, the “prizes” and even those behind the scenes. The idea of the campaign impressed Hearst employees and I was able to obtain a mentorship with Delish UK’s Social Media Editor, Bobbie Edsor.