Using Graphic Design to tell the Stories of Historic Sandusky
Hello, my name is Hannah Ramsey, and I am a senior Graphic Design major at the University of Lynchburg. I have spent the past semester interning for Historic Sandusky, and using this opportunity to help them out with my design skills. I was able to use what I have learned in my design classes over the last 3 years to complete several projects.
The big, semester-long project that I worked on was two new wall panels for their museum. These wall panels had to be similar in style to the existing panels, while using new information and photos that were provided by another UofL student. The first step in designing these panels was to look at the existing panels, and see how the information was generally laid out, along with more specific details, like font and color choices. I then had to design my own panels based on those observations. Although these panels had to undergo a lot of revisions and editing, the final product ended up being very similar to the other museum panels, while also including my personal design choices. I’m so excited that these are going to be printed, and my work will be viewable in the Sandusky museum for years to come.
I also worked on a couple of brochures that will be used by UofL students. These brochures outline internship and employment opportunities available at Sandusky for a variety of fields and disciplines. The main focus of this project was the pictures, and finding photos of interns and other students working and spending time at Sandusky. All of the photos in these brochures were very carefully picked and organized in order to best convey the message that Sandusky offers a lot of internships and jobs in a wide variety of fields.
Finally I worked on a couple of smaller projects as well. I made some advertisements for the annual Christmas Open House that were sent out to the school in a campus-wide email, and were put on Sandusky’s social media. I also made a flyer that would be printed and sent out to donors that included photos taken at Sandusky over the course of 2018.
Overall, I have had a great experience at Sandusky. I feel like I have created some portfolio worthy pieces, while also helping out a local historical site that I have grown to love over the course of the semester. I’m proud that my work is going to be on display at the museum, and hopefully my brochures will help to bring more students to Sandusky. Interning at Historic Sandusky has been a great opportunity, and has definitely prepared me for working in my field.
