Whirlwind Design

This award-winning artist turns heads with her work

How does Cynthia’s design convey a sense of energy and movement?

Cynthia Zhou (joh) knows that graphic design can be a powerful way to communicate. A senior at Leland High School in San Jose, California, Cynthia dreams of using her talent to help nonprofits share their messages. “Good graphics really help propel and elevate social movements,” says Cynthia, 17. “I want to be a part of that.”

Cynthia Zhou

What inspired this graphic design?

It was an assignment for a summer course I took in 2017. I was asked to develop the logo and branding for a music festival called Tornado. My challenge was to establish the brand as a vibrant and exciting event using graphic elements—pattern, color, and typeface—that convey the fast-paced energy of a tornado.

 

How did you develop your idea?

I started by sketching my ideas on graph paper. Some of my sketches were focused on a tornado as a symbol. Others were focused on the word tornado and a typeface. Eventually, I settled on text with wind running through itas my logo. It was a combination of symbol and typeface. Then I made a mood board of existing brands that looked cool and had the vibe I wanted. I used this to help inspire my design for products common to a music festival, such as tickets, posters, and tote bags. As I worked on prototypes, I arrived at the underlying concept for my design: a line of action. In the logo, the action appears as ripples to convey air swirling throughout. In the poster, that line of action is conveyed by the swirls of hair around the girl.

Did you face any challenges?

As a designer, your job is to communicate what your client wants you to communicate. It’s always a scary process since you can’t read their mind and don’t know if you can really accomplish what the person is looking for.

 

Was trial and error part of your process?

Yes. I must have made 10 or 20 prototypes. This helped me process everything in my brain and land on the visual direction I wanted to go in. Even if I have a lot of failed ideas, it’s good to get them down on paper. Once I get them out of the way, it helps me move toward the idea that will work.

Cynthia won a Silver Medal for her design in the 2018 Scholastic Art & Writing Awards.

To find out more about this program, visit artandwriting.org

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