Once Upon A Poster Show And Sale

The New Paltz Design Society told stories and myths last week through their annual Poster Show and Sale.

Held on Wednesday, Oct. 23 in the Honors College, artists displayed 16×16 and 16×20 posters both in portrait and landscape form that were available to order for $5 each.

The student-created posters, 23 in total, were inspired by classic literature such as “The Three Little Pigs,” “Alice in Wonderland,” “Peter Pan,” “Where the Wild Things Are” and “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.”

While some of the posters included the title of the story or fairy tale others revolved around a well-know quote while some simply included an illustration.

The Design Society decided to make this a regular event after hosting a successful Poster Show and Sale last semester with the theme of nostalgia.

Members met on a weekly basis at the beginning of the semester and decided on mythology as the theme of this year’s event.

After the initial meeting when the theme was determined, designers brought ideas and sketches to additional meetings and dedicated the time to critiquing each other’s work. Final posters were submitted as a collaborative effort between students.

“We agreed though, that the theme needed to be more open than that, and decided to make the theme stories and myths,” Nicolette Seeback, a third-year graphic design BFA, said. “Since our posters were ‘inspired’ by stories and myths, we wanted to make sure that we were creating our own illustrations, but that it wouldn’t be a challenge for the viewer to know what stories and myths we were referencing.”

The Design Society has been using the Honors Center as their Poster Show and Sale venue for the past two years under the supervision of the Director of the Honors College and Professor of Communication and Media, Patricia Sullivan, who said she is “pleased” to use the space to showcase students’ work.

“The graphic arts students create exceptional work,” Sullivan said. “I look forward to supporting their efforts at future events in the Honors Center.”

Preparation for the show included a mounting of the pieces that were to be sold a week prior to the event.

The only challenge artists faced was working within the constrictions of a theme-based sale, according to fourth-year graphic design major and Vice President of the Design Society, Erica Leigh Montine.

“Designers work well when there are rules in mind, because it gives them the opportunity to restrict themselves and surpass themselves as well,” Montine said.

Regardless of the challenges some of the students faced complying with the guidelines of the show’s theme, Seeback is amazed by her classmates’ dedication and said she hopes they can continue to develop these kinds of projects.

“Design Society isn’t about grades or rules,” she said. “It’s about everyone’s ideas coming together and doing projects that are for us that we love.”