While this is certainly an unorthodox way to open a Presentation Of Rightly Timed and Formulated, Ostentatiously Laid out, Imperative Observations of my skills and abilities to convey messages in a visually appealing manner — both for you the viewer and myself the creator, I must say the experience has been rewarding, monumental, and worth the weight.
The completion of Selected Works: 2019 marks a milestone for me as a creative. At this moment in time (which happens to be a first in my life), I have a clear understanding of who I am as a creator.
My first attempt at curating a portfolio two years ago was precisely the thing I’d expect from myself at that level. That isn’t to say that it was below average or menial. On the contrary, it was excellent for a novice designer. The issue, however, was that it didn’t reflect the person who created it. It contained substance, but no flavor. It was substantial but lacked the energy needed to grasp attention.
I had mastered, to a degree, the art of mimicry, but still struggled with the art of individuality. And in this industry, with so many pseudo designers and tenured professionals, uniqueness is nearly a requirement. Some will disagree with me. And to them, I question their purpose for spending hours perfecting their craft. But, to be fair, what more could I expect? I had just come across an aesthetic that I could use as a mold. There was no way I could fill this mold after just discovering it. Accomplishing that feat would take time.
Honestly, it’s still taking time. But that leads us to this moment; this very moment where I make the first leap towards marrying art with design. A leap which represents the idea that design lives and breaths. Not on its own, but with the help of those that interact with it. And the more that interact with every designed piece, the healthier it becomes. It’s the idea that design has to be treated with intent every time it’s practiced. Most importantly, for myself anyway, it’s the idea that there is an art to design. It shows that perspective and context is crucial for both the creation and reception of design.
Selected Works: 2019 is a first of it’s kind in my collection. And that fact makes it exceptional. No, I’m not saying it’s perfect. I’ve come to realize that no matter what I do, that isn’t possible. What I am saying, though, is that this is a much stronger attempt at my portfolio.
So, as you dive deeper into the worlds that each designed piece lives in, remember the intended experience. Remember how you would feel in each scenario. And remember to enjoy yourself.
I am delighted to present to you, Selected Works: 2019
For years, you dreaded this moment. Ever since she was a little girl, your one wish was for her to stay that young. Adorably innocent. Precious and pure. It’s not necessarily that she isn’t precious anymore, because she will always be precious in your eyes. It’s just that from here on out, she isn’t your “little” girl anymore. She’s all grown up and going to college.
The process hasn’t been a walk in the park either. She’d been so particular about her choices, and all you wanted is for her to be happy, safe, and fulfilled. When she told you that she wanted to go to The New School in the heart of downtown NYC, your heart skipped a beat. “New York City?” The words flew out of your mouth with such velocity that she could hear the angst. And after rounds of explanations, videos, and student exhibitions, you reluctantly agree. And today she received her acceptance package in the mail.
You open the package. You read the words lining the inside of the package and get a feeling that you’re opening the gates to a whole new world. You imagine all those heroic stories of people doing amazing things and think “this will be her one day.”
This acceptance package consists of paper-based promotional materials, including a notebook, stickers, a poster, and the acceptance letter. The packaging itself is also reversible.
The package design leans on bold typography and irregular design patterns to maintain The New School’s boundless brand.
JONATHAN HEMINGWAY JR.
W ELCO m E T O Th E nEW S C h OOL
Now’s your chance! For over a year, you’ve heard about these amazingly themed culinary kitchens that have otherwise been kept private. But you’ve just come across an invitation to an Italian themed kitchen that’s open to everyone. And you’re not going to pass up an opportunity on some free, delicious food.
At first, you didn’t think anything of the flyers hanging up around campus. They got lost in the mix. But once you started spotting postcards all around campus and on your Instagram feed, you had to take a peak. You were sold on the theme immediately.
As you stand in line, waiting to be let inside the dining room, all you can think about is how much you are going to enjoy the food.
“What will I choose to eat? Should I order something off the grill? How about a sandwich from the deli section? Maybe a bowl full of seasoned vegetables and meat?” There are so many options. Out the corner of your eye, you see an Italian flag illuminate through the glass doors of the dining room. You get a feeling in your gut, knowing you’ll be satisfied.
“Tutto Italiano” translates to “Everything Italian.”
Your usual stroll through the busy streets of NYC is quite what you’d expect; car horns blasting, citizens casually conversing at the top of their lungs, and that peculiar smell of fumes that you get used to after being in the center of it for so long. Nothing too out of the ordinary. That is until your eye is caught by what looks like either a very rushed work of art or a very intentional advertisement for an all too familiar cultural entity.
It’s the title that catches you. It’s stark contrast tugging at your attention, just begging to be read. It reads “What Isn’t Hip-Hop?” as if there is nothing in this world that isn’t related to the worldwide phenomenon. In just those moments of you standing there, you can name 10 things that aren’t directly related. However, while searching the depths of your memory, your brain comes up with at least 20 different things that are in some way part of the globalized culture.
Thinking to yourself, while the busyness of the street passes you by, you realize, “maybe that’s what this line truly means? And just like that, your interest has peaked enough to Google this museum exhibit.
“What Isn’t Hip-Hop?” is a conceptual museum exhibit that showcases the complete timeline of Hip-Hop from its origin to where it is currently.
This poster series uses textured paper from the Neenah Paper line, including their Bare White Woodgrain, Recycled White Linen, and White Felt. The handdrawn icons represent themes, motifs, and elements within Hip-Hop culture.
Starting any new career is always a rollercoaster ride of anxiety and worry. It seems like everything that could go wrong in any situation will go wrong on your first day on the job. You can’t find clothes even though you picked them out the night before. You stain your shirt with a drop of your morning coffee. Now, your car won’t start even though you were driving all day yesterday. And the one time you need to take the bus, it’s running late. Not to mention you forget which floor to go to once you get to your new job.
But, through all the ups and downs, you make it in one piece with a couple of minutes left to spare. Not too long after you check-in, an escort greets you and brings you to a small conference room. You watch a video enlightening you on the history and mission of the company. All the while, you are anxiously shaking in your brand new leather shoes, wondering how the rest of the day will turn out. After the conclusion of your video, your manager arrives to walk you to your desk. And to your surprise, waiting for you is a glossy covered notebook and a card containing warm wishes from your entire team. Maybe that roller coaster ride was worth it after all.
Although the design mainly followed the IGT brand guidelines, the illustrations used were original.
This onboarding kit was a product of research and design between interns in four different departments; Graphic Design, HR, Diversity & Inclusion, and Talent Acquisition.
“The smell brings you back to a time before the busyness of the city. It tastefully reminds you of a time when life was simple; naturally organic.”
Pack your things! We’re taking your tastebuds on a five-star, fine dining field trip to the lush green region that is Pacific Northwest America. Home to the great Creator Lakes and Cascade mountain ranges, prepare yourself for cabins full of decadent dishes and lodges full of exquisite expeditions. Our first stop is none other than Native: Northwestern Cuisine.
Enjoy the taste of the cedar smoked richness combined with the crisp texture of nuts and grains. Don’t forget the hint of sweetness of the fruits and berries, which settles in right where it should. It’s careful not to interfere with the dominant flavor. It just enhances the elegance of each dish by delivering an almost required contrast. It’s an experience like none other. Best of all, you can experience all this in the comfort of your seat.
“Native: Northwestern Cuisine” was a JWU culinary pop-up event whose six attendees included the head of JWU Campus security, the Providence Fire Commissioner, and the Chancellor of JWU, Mim L. Runey.
I worked in a team with two other designers to quickly develop a brand identity and deliver a set of menus, comment cards, stickers, and a poster.
For years, you’ve heard how amazingly creative and talented you are. And, for years, you’ve been shrugging off the idea of pursuing your creative talents and abilities. You didn’t do it because you weren’t interested. You did it because you weren’t confident that you could make a living off of it. You didn’t see a future in the craft you love. But lately, you’ve seen so many different stories of people making a change and pursuing the things they love to do. And now, it’s your turn.
Your only problem is you have no idea where to begin. How do you start a business? How do you build a following? More importantly, where can you get materials to start your journey?
Today, you will receive an answer to one of those questions. In your haste to act on your decision and find a concrete reason for pursuit, you come across a website. This company, which seems to be legitimate, appears to have a wide variety of categories and items for people in creative fields. “The Blacksmith for Designers?
I guess this is a good place to start.” After seeing everything that’s available, you decide to purchase a few starter items and sign up for the mailing list. As a thank you, they are even going to send you a catalog of their Spring 2019 Essentials Collection. “You know what... maybe this is where I needed to begin.”
JONATHAN HEMINGWAY JR.
The brand centers on the idea that creatives could find and order materials that uniquely fit their environment.
The one thing people around you talk about the most is brand name apparel. Everyone in school could care less about grades or achievements. It’s all about the name stitched on your chest or the logo embossed on your sneakers. If your wardrobe isn’t up to par with expectations, you are immediately an outcast. Better luck next year.
You would love to join in on these conversations. You want to, at least, feel like you can relate. But, when the least expensive items are just outside your parent’s budget and the most eye-catching items cost more than some of their bills, your only option is to wear what’s affordable. You try not to let it bother you too much, but a part of you wishes that there was another option that was fashionable and affordable.
Little do you know, you will shortly come across a new brand that knows how you feel. This brand not only understands how people in your situation feel, but they’ve also teamed up with a well-known brand to deliver a collection that is sure to catch your eye.
During class, you get the urge to scroll through Instagram. You perceive it to be boredom, but it’s something more. As you peruse through the “explore” section, you see a post that grabs your attention. Curious to see what it is, you open the post and find yourself in awe of what you’ve discovered.
Elevate is a conceptual brand created to deliver fashionable and affordable apparel to kids, teens and young adults, mainly in urban neighborhoods.
Instead of competing with dominant brands Nike or Adidas, this brand would be a homegrown entity that partners with these well-known brands to bring variety and exposure to customers.
The season ended with a bang! You and your team worked extremely hard and pushed through every obstacle faced. Now, you have the gold and the recognition to show for it. This victory calls for a celebration. And there’s no better way to celebrate than over a delicious meal accompanied by the ones you’ve grown closest to over the past year.
Now, just because you’ve reached your end goal, doesn’t mean you can afford to slack off and devour every savory dish in sight. Maintaining your health and physique is a never-ending battle, meaning you always have to be agile. That is precisely why the JWU culinary students have prepared a special dinner for you all to enjoy.
We’ve taken into account everything from your BMI to the specific ingredients needed to target and help enhance your strength and energy. We’ve even curated a list of tips for you to follow before, during, and after competition. And we’ve packaged it all into a savory, elegant twist on one of the largest and most festive cities in Mexico. Welcome to Oaxaca.
I worked in a team with three other designers to develop the brand and six print deliverables, including menus, a brochure, and table tents.
In our approach, we married the festivities of Mexico with the sophisticated feel of a high-end dining experience.
The graphic design students at Johnson & Wales are full of talent and personality. And, while some are doing it because they studied design at a vocational high school or have an undying passion for the craft, you are just testing the waters.
It’s been four months since you moved away from home and began your journey, but you aren’t sure graphic design is the right fit for you. It’s not that you don’t understand the material or even have the talent. You grasp the material very well. And your final products seem to be on par with expectations. You aren’t sure, though, that you can handle the process.
On your way to class, you notice a few posters hanging on the walls. And they’re different than the usual JWU club or event advertisements. These posters make this place feel like the birthplace for something great. And here you are standing in the center of it.
You’re struck by the wall of student work as soon as you turn the corner. The work ranges from freshman to senior level, and before you even realize what's happened, you’re overcome with motivation to do more. With your curiosity peaked like never before, you explore the gallery. Taking it all in, you see something very familiar out the corner of your eye. “No way! It can’t be.” Hanging on the wall, amongst all this talent, is your project from your first design course. One of your best projects is on display for everyone to see. You hear the voice of your professor from two months ago telling you that you can make it and, suddenly, you feel you can too.
The College of Engineering and Design at JWU annually hosts a gallery of design student work across all levels. I created and formatted the poster for print and digital applications to advertise the event.
The poster represents the dawn of a new set of passionate and talented aspiring designers.
Living in the middle of one of the world’s busiest cities is both daunting and desensitizing. Not only does the constant noise become a normality to you, but the continuous rush to get from point “A” to point “B” creates a tunnel vision of sorts. It takes away the curiosity of the wonder and leaves you with the angst of the worry. “Will the trains be on schedule?” “I can’t be late to work. I have an urgent meeting.” “Please don’t let the traffic be too bad today!” It would be great to decompress for a little while.
You know what people may think. “What about Central Park? Isn’t that the perfect place to decompress?” And yes, they’re right.
However, any true New Yorker knows that a trip to Central Park is more than a quick trip. It’s a several-hour-long event. Most times, your busy schedule doesn’t allow for an extended exploration of the vastness of Central Park. You need a way to let your mind wander, but a way to control where your wandering leads. You need the joy that comes with being surrounded by nature and the comfort that comes with knowing that you’re not too far from where you need to be. Luckily for you, The High Line has a mixture of everything you need plus some.
The High Line is a 1.45-mile nature walk through the Chelsea District in lower Manhattan. The walk provides an elevated, scenic view of the immediate area while exhibiting artworks specifically created for the attraction.
JONATHAN HEMINGWAY JR.
Wan DER Wan DER Th E h i G h Lin E
This wayfinding system would signal visitors to street entrances/exits, exhibitions, and hotspots and expand The High Line app by adding a “Wander” feature. This feature would allow visitors to scan exhibits to view more information.
JONATHAN HEMINGWAY JR.
Wan DER Wan DER Th E h i G h Lin E
The arts have always been a foreign concept to them. They tend to have a hard time grasping the power of spending hours writing and performing with fervor. But you adore every bit of the craft — from the heartwarming story to the thrill of being on stage. You’ve been in a few school plays, and they were great. But they didn’t satisfy your thirst for more. And, as much as you try to explain to your parents that it’s not a waste of time or show them how fun it is, they don’t see the point in it all. They only seem to care about great grades. That’s about to change. It’s been two months since you moved to a new neighborhood and attended a new school, and today you learned about the perfect afterschool program. It’s called The Manton Avenue Project and, according to your classmate who is in the program, they not only teach kids how to write plays but have adult actors perform these plays as well. How cool is that? It almost seemed too good to be true. That is until you searched the organization on Google and found their website. Now, all you need to do is convince them that you can still get great grades while you go to this program. If they see the website or even go to one of their shows, you might be able to do the one thing you truly love. You might even turn out to be the next best playwright.
For this 22-week-long project, I worked in a team with 3-to 4 designers to revitalize a non-profit organization in Providence, RI. The project consisted of a rebrand with accompanying brand guidelines, poster template design, and website redesign.
The Manton Avenue Project is a nonprofit organization that brings students together by teaching them how to write plays and having professional actors perform them for local audiences.
It’s finally that time of year again! The annual senior showcase where the seniors show off their best design work on a wall in the gallery. Since the first showcase you saw in your freshman year, you knew you wanted to go big. You’ve been working hard day in and day out to reach that level of senior work. We’re talking sleepless nights, asking every senior for feedback and advice, and learning everything you can. All the professors know how hard you’ve been working and see the potential you have. And while you see it in yourself, you know you aren’t quite where you want to be. So, you’ve been patiently working on your craft, striving to be the best designer you can. And today is your day to take it all in. Today you see how high these seniors set the bar.
You walk into the gallery blown away. In previous years, people have shown a handful of projects. But this year, nearly every one took a single project and expanded on it. As you walk around, admiring all the talent, one particular wall grabs your attention. The work is great, but there’s something else you aren’t getting. “Am I looking at it wrong? Can’t be?” Then, you notice something on the ground. It matches the logo on the wall, so you go to investigate. Curious, you look up at it again. Then you see it. You see what you’ve been missing.
This installation utilizes nine wooden boxes and vinyl letters to create the anamorphic message.
The wall background consists of words used to describe me as an artist, designer, and person.
Hi, I’m Jonathan Hemingway Jr. You can think of me as a designer, artist, creative, or skillful communicator. I like to think of myself as a gateway to The Storyteller. (I would explain, but it would take way too long to explain in this format). All you need to know is that I’m a deliberate, conceptual thinker who believes that every project has a unique story. As you may already know, stories told in specific ways gain specific reactions and experiences. That’s why I’m here. I’m here to pull out these experiences so viewers can build lasting connections.
As a strategic thinker, I always aim to streamline cohesiveness across experiences, as well as make design decisions that are relevant to the intended audience. I take my time to ensure that every element is well-organized, balanced, and pleasing to view. My goal is to deliver products that respond to the needs of the user. My promise is to strive to deliver quality work that you and the audience will love.
Special thanks to my professors, who were instrumental in my development as a professional creative, and to Mickey, for your unwavering support.