My portfolio

Meaghan Dee Here is a selection of work from my professional portfolio since starting at Virginia Tech in 2011. My work includes logos, cards, websites, apps, exhibitions, grant research, integrated campaigns, and installations.

Additional archives of my work online: website: meaghand.com postcard project: meaghandee.tumblr.com sketchbooks: issuu.com/mdee

meaghan dee portfolio

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blacksburg, virginia

Holiday card + chocolate For the Holiday Season, I lasercut cards and chocolate packaging that I sent to friends, family, and colleagues. With all the tension of the political year, I wanted to focus on joy (and chocolate).

This piece won a 2017 Graphic Design USA American Package Design Award (they received over 2,000 entries and only 1 in 5 were awarded). This also won a 2017 Gold ADDY in the Western Virginia American Advertising Awards and a Silver ADDY in District 3 of the Advertising Awards in the category Sales & Marketing: Collateral Material, Special Event Material, Card, Invitation, Announcement Campaign. This was also awarded a 2018 Gold Indigo Design Award, and was one of 53 Professional Shortlisted Winners considered for Indigo’s Graphic Design of the Year. Additionally, this piece was given a Merit Award in the 2017 HOW Promotion & Marketing Design Awards in the Designer Self-promotions category and Honorable mention in the International Design Awards.

holiday card + chocolate | 2017

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Belli Fiori logo I redesigned the logo for Belli Fiori Floral and Event Design, when they decided they wanted to move to a new location and position themselves with a higher-end clientele. The client’s favorite flower is the peony, and they wanted an intricate floral design to stand out from their competitors.

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st. louis, missouri

belli fiori logo | 2019

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blacksburg, virginia

Poe’s Shadows exhibit Drawing from two of Edgar Allan Poe’s most well-known works, “The Tell-Tale Heart” and “The Raven,” our 360 degree video installation explored what happens when literary texts are lifted from the “page to the stage” and then reimagined through the use of new technology. Examining the concept of “shadow” through text, image, and sound, the project is inspired by nineteenth-century crankies, an art form in which an illustrated scroll is unwound in a circular fashion, revealing images that complement a spoken story or song. This work was shown at the Moss Arts Center from October 31 to November 4, 2018. My role was to illustrate and animate the video and to create the program and a promotional glow-in-the-dark poster.

This project won a Bronze award for Multimedia / Animation in the 2018 International Design Awards. Additionally, this won a Gold in Illustration and a Gold in Events at the 2018 Western Virginia American Advertising Federation ADDY Awards and a Bronze at the 2019 Indigo Design Awards.

poe’s shadows exhibit | 2018

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The Dogwood logo The Dogwood is an event space (primarily used for weddings). It is located in “the grove� in St Louis, and was an extension of the larger company The Social Affair. For the logo, I brought together a key form (which they will physically receive when renting the space), a dogwood flower, and a quatrafoil (to symbolize good fortune).

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st. louis, missouri

the dogwood logo | 2018

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blacksburg, virginia + tokyo, japan

Shakespeare’s Garden exhibit Using spatial audio and flexible video projection, a team created an immersive typographic Shakespearean experience to reimagine traditional theater. My role was to create a series of motion graphics, designed to work together in an installation alongside audio recordings (utilizing both spatial and locational audio). Each piece uses the text from selected Shakespearean works to create engaging visuals, which were projected onto a series of hanging scrims.

During performances, audience members follow a meandering path through the installation, actively engaged in their own exploration of Shakespeare’s garden. The aim of this project was to explore ways of bridging the physical and digital domains for both art and design. This project was a pilot for future exploration and experimentation in immersive theater, and was exhibited at the Cube (a four-story state-of-the-art theater) March 22–24 of 2018, with over 1,000 attendees. We’ve also been working with a team at Virginia Tech to translate this into an Augmented Reality experience.

In addition to creating the motion graphics for the installation, I also created a program, a poster, and animated digital promotions.

This project won a Silver award in Signs, Exhibits, and POP Displays in the 2018 International Design Awards and a Silver in the Indigo Design Awards.

shakespeare’s garden exhibit | 2018

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C+I website + poster When Virginia Tech launched Beyond Boundaries, one of the Strategic Growth Areas of the University was Creativity + Innovation. The focus of the area was to meld the exploration of innovative technologies and the design of creative experiences with best practices for developing impact-driven and meaningful outcomes and solutions. I was tasked with a website design and a promotional poster for the group (which ICAT and their designer, Dylan Parker, coded).

This website won a 2018 Graphic Design USA American Graphic Design Award.

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blacksburg, virginia

creativity + innovation website + poster | 2018

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seattle, washington

Oceans Initiative poster Oceans Initiative is a team of scientists on a mission to protect marine life, including whales, dolphins, sharks, salmon and seabirds. Their tagline is “Science for the Sea.” I wanted to make a poster that captured both the beauty and the science of what they do. Using a cymatic visualizer, CymaScope, I played a humpback whale song that Rob Williams had collected. The cymatic visualizer reacted to the notes of the whale song, and through this I gathered hundreds of images. I then went back through the imagery and selected the most striking images and composed the poster, while integrating the subtle “ocean” type.The poster features moments of CymaScope imagery triggered by a humpback whale song, captured by means of the CymaScope Music Made Visible App. Imagery reproduced with permission of CymaScope.com This poster was awarded First Prize in Print in the 2015 International Design Awards. Additionally, it received a Merit Award from the 2017 Graphis Poster Annual and a 2016 Graphic Design USA Award.

oceans initiative poster | 2015

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MLSOC icon design I generated icon design options for Myers-Lawson School of Construction at Virginia Tech. The design is structured around the letterforms M & L and V & T. The selected design mimics the line drawings from construction plans.

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blacksburg, virginia

MLSoC Option 1: The underlying structure of this graphic element comes from the letterforms M and L. The shape implies the visual lines found in construction projects and MLSoC Optionof1:Frank The underlying structure of this graphic element comes from is reminiscent Lloyd Wright stained glass windows.

Additionally thethe separate letterforms M and L. The shape implies the visual lines found in construction projects and construction shapes symbolize the various units affiliated with the school such as BC is reminiscent of Frank Lloyd Wright stained glass windows. Additionally the separate and VCEMP. construction shapes symbolize the various units affiliated with the school such as BC and VCEMP.

myers-lawson school of construction icon design | 2014

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new york, new york

Vote: Midterms Matter poster Voter turnout for midterm elections is generally much lower than in years with a presidential election – as such, I felt it was worth greater promotion this year.

Stylistically I referenced Sanborn Insurance Maps to create a feeling of classic Americana but with contemporary color application.

This piece was featured in Graphic Design USA as a Digital Print Cover Design merit winner and was a part of AIGA’s Design for Democracy. It will also be featured in the 2020 Graphis Poster Annual. The poster also received a Bronze award from the 2019 Indigo Design Awards.

vote poster | 2018

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blacksburg, virginia + athens, georgia

Forgetfulness VR exhibit Our team (myself, Creative Technologist Zach Duer, and Sound Designer Ico Bukvic) created a Virtual Reality interpretation of Denise Duhamel’s piece “Mobius Strip: Forgetfulness,” which is a non-linear poem about Alzheimer’s Disease. For the VR version of this project, we created a giant Mobius strip that viewers could walk through. We also gave users wrist bands that monitored heart rate, perspiration, and location, which both allowed them to be aware of other people in the VR environment, and it gave us feedback on what points in the poem might cause an emotional response and what areas people spent the most time. My role was to create the typographic motion graphics throughout and a promotional poster for an A2RU event.

The poster won a Gold ADDY and the VR piece won a Silver ADDY at the 2018 Western Virginia Advertising Awards. The VR piece was on display at the 2018 New Interfaces in Musical Expression conference and at the 2018 A2RU Conference.

forgetfulness vr exhibit | 2018

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blacksburg, virginia

SOVA posters + website Using a Processing Sketch, designed by my colleague Dane Webster, I generated imagery that I wove into text. The text and image integration emphasizes Art and Technology, which is the focus of the School of Visual Arts at Virginia Tech. This piece was mailed to prospective students of the Creative Technologies MFA program and made available to students interested in pursuing a Pathways Art Minor at Virginia Tech. I also applied this branding to a website redesign that I completed with former student, Sammi Keck.

The Arts Minor poster won a 2018 American Graphic Design Award and The School of Visual Arts website won a 2015 GD USA Graphic Design Award and was featured in GD USA magazine.

school of visual arts posters + website | 2014–18

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Blacksburg Wine Lab logo Blacksburg Wine Lab is so named because it is a place that encourages clients to “experiment” with new wines; the “lab” also has a connotation of a place to learn and discover, and the logo emphasizes both the education and play of the business. The molecules represent the lab and the grapes reference the wine.

I also worked with the group on creating science-inspired decanters.

This logo won a Gold ADDY at the 2018 Western Virginia American Advertising Federation Awards.

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blacksburg, virginia

blacksburg wine lab logo | 2018

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watkinsville, georgia

Sound of Silence poster This piece is a tribute to those women that came forward against Harvey Weinstein, which accelerated the “me too” movement begun by Tarana Burke.

Seen here are the names of the Weinstein accusers (as of October 2017) breaking through the lyrics of the Simon & Garfunkel song “The Sound of Silence.” The overall shape of the letters form The Weinstein Company logo, which is dissolving into an hourglass. This symbolizes how societal change can take a long time, but these women coming forward has set that change in motion.

This poster was a part of the exhibition “Typo-Poetry: Despite Black and White in Sound” at the Oconee Cultural Arts Foundation Hall Gallery and was accepted into the 2018 FL3TCH3R Juried Exhibition, and it is now a part of the traveling exhibition “Women’s Rights are Human Rights.” This poster received a Silver Award by Graphis and is featured in the Graphis 2019 Poster Annual.

It also was one of only two Golds awarded by the United Design Alliance in the 2018 UDA Poster Awards (in the category of Experimental Designs). The poster also received a 2018 Merit Award from HOW International, a Silver ADDY at the Western Virginia Advertising Awards, and a Silver Indigo Design Award in Tokyo, Japan.

sound of silence poster | 2017

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blacksburg, virginia

Arts at Virginia Tech book I was selected to work with a team of designers on a book to promote the Arts at Virginia Tech. I met regularly with the other designers, and I designed the “Depth” chapter of the publication. I also assisted a web design agency on the design of a corresponding website, by providing visual assets for the parallax interpretation of our publication for the web.

The Arts@VirginiaTech book received an Award of Excellence in the 2016 UCDA Design Competition – it was selected as one of 187 winners out of over 1,000 print entries. This piece also won a Silver ADDY at the 2015 Western Virginia Advertising Awards Ceremony and a 2016 Graphic Design USA Award.

arts@virginiatech book | 2015

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Build LAB icon design The Build LAB at Virginia Tech is a shop that is available to students and faculty.

They have wood-working tools, CNC routers, laser cutters, vinyl cutters, and 3D printers. They were looking for a mark that would represent the School of Construction and one that could be rotated and arranged in a variety of settings. I based this mark on surveyors measurements, with the overall form as a B (to stand for BuildLAB). The form can also be rotated to look like mountains, which are indicative of the Blue Ridge surroundings. The client also wanted a mark that would work well in grayscale, so it could be easily reproduced in a variety of materials.

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blacksburg, virginia

build lab icon design | 2014

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blacksburg, virginia

CAUS + SOVA posters Using Processing-based drawing tools, I individually drew each letter multiple times – and I collaged the digital piece in Photoshop. I chose a colorful palette, as it fits with the School of Visual Arts at Virginia Tech’s branding. These each unfolded to reveal more information about the college and school. The method I used to generate these designs (creative coding) emphasizes the mission of Art + Technology.

The School of Visual Arts poster won a 2015 Merit Graphis Award and the College of Architecture and Urban Studies poster won a 2015 GD USA Graphic Design Award.

college of architecture and urban studies + school of visual arts posters | 2015

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blacksburg, virginia

Day of the Dead invitation I designed and laser cut 30 invitations for my friend’s Day of the Dead holiday gathering. The invitations were printed on French Paper’s Pop Tone Lemon Drop – and the envelopes were printed with a custom designed stamp. I wanted to create a design that could work in a postive printed form (stamp, etc.) but that could also translate in reverse, when laser cut. I explored how expressive paper could be without over-using printing, as the exterior of the card uses no ink.

This piece won a Gold ADDY at the 2015 Western Virginia Advertising Awards Ceremony and a 2016 Graphic Design USA Award.

day of the dead invitation | 2015

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SOVA poster Using Processing, I coded script that would fracture type. I ran the script, many times, using images of the letters S, O, V, and A. Then I merged the forms in Photoshop to create a promotional poster for The School of Visual Arts at Virginia Tech. While this is a printed piece, it still references contemporary technologies in its creation.

This poster won a 2014 Graphic Design USA Award and was featured in the December 2014 issue of GD USA.

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blacksburg, virginia

school of visual arts poster | 2014

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santa fe, new mexico

Wedding invitation + farolitos My mom got married at the Inn and Spa at Loretto in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

The venue is known for their farolitos (luminarias), so I decided to capture that look for the invitation design. I created laser-cut imagery that was inspired by New Mexican pottery and textiles. I then created customized farolitos and candle holders for use at the wedding.

This piece received a Gold at the 2018 Western Virginia American Advertising Federation ADDY Awards, a Graphic Design USA 2019 American Package Design Award, and a Bronze from the 2019 Indigo Design Awards.

wedding invitation + farolitos | 2018

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CAUS 50th poster I created this poster of the College of Architecture and Urban Studies at Virginia Tech, for the college’s fiftieth anniversary.

Each letter is comprised of 50 nails (one for each year), and each of the four schools of CAUS is represented by a different color. The industrial materials are meant to make a connection to Architecture, Construction, and Art (the various focuses of the college).

This poster won a 2013 GD USA Graphic Design Award.

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blacksburg, virginia

college of architecture and urban studies 50th anniversary poster | 2013

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blacksburg, virginia

Symposium poster I used an image I created of a glitched hand as the primary focus for the College of Architecture and Urban Studies Research Symposium Poster, to emphasize the “hands-on making� of the faculty in the College.

This poster received a Merit Award from the 2017 Graphis Poster Annual and a 2016 Graphic Design USA Award.

college of architecture and urban studies poster | 2016

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The Diamond Center posters I designed these posters for the band The Diamond Center, for a series of performances with other bands in Richmond, Virginia at Strange Matter and for First Friday. The image is a digitally modified photograph of wax drippings onto paper.

This poster won a merit award at the 2013 AIGA Grade 7 Award Show and a 2013 GD USA Graphic Design Award.

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richmond, virginia

the diamond center posters | 2011

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blacksburg, virginia

Snowflake holiday card This holiday card features a message on one side and a quote on the other: Snow was falling, so much like stars filling the dark trees that one could easily imagine its reason for being was nothing more than prettiness.

Mary Oliver, Snowy Night The card itself includes a laser cut snowflake and a cut-out. Tucked inside is a laser-cut ornament, which utilized the counter space from the front of the card.

The laser-cut paper used was Neenah’s Reich Shine Pearl, which added a slight shimmer to both the card and ornament.

This card received a 2018 Gold Indigo Design Award and a Silver ADDY at the Western Virginia Advertising Awards. It also received Honorable mention in the International Design Awards.

snowflake holiday card | 2017

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blacksburg, virginia

ESCHER protective body panels I collaborated with my colleague Sam Blanchard, graduate student Phat Nguyen, and Virginia Tech’s TREC Robotics Lab to create a contoured suit of interlocking protective panels for the ESCHER (Electromechanical Series Compliant Humanoid for Emergency Response) Humanoid Robot. The body panels were designed to promote familiarity and recognition of the robot as an emergency first responder. I was responsible for branding, color studies, mood boards, and weekly development meetings. For more information on the project please visit the website that I created for this project: vthumanoidrobot.com We presented this research at the 2016 SXSW Trade Show in Austin, Texas, and we had the most attended booth.

escher protective body panels | 2015–2016

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Gene Kane book cover Birth of a New Machine is a novel written to help victims of sexual assault. It is a first-hand account of Gene Kane, a survivor of childhood abuse. It is a story of politics and community efforts to find empowerment and protection.

To represent the broken system (and the possibility of rebirth), I photographed old watch parts. Not only did they visually connect to a ‘machine’ – but they also symbolize how something small can become a part of something greater.

This piece won a Silver at the Regional 2015 American Advertising Federation ADDY Awards Show.

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st. louis, missouri

birth of a new machine book cover | 2014

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CAWRI logo The Center for Applied Water Research & Innovation group wanted a logo that would immediately get across water but also represent where they were located (in the blue ridge mountains). So I brought the two together and then pulled the treatment through the text as well.

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roanoke, virginia

center for applied water research and innovation logo | 2018

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blacksburg, virginia

Postcard Project mail art I started a project where I send unique, individually designed postcards to strangers. Each card is numbered and has a written URL or QR code linking it to a website that exhibits every card. I’ve now sent over 440 cards. After each set of a hundred cards, I produce a book documenting each design.

All of the cards can be seen at: meaghandee.tumblr.com.

While I began this project as a focus for my creative practice and to push me to get out of my comfort zone, by sharing my work with others – I continue this project as a way of thining about slow and fast design (e.g. snail mail versus digital communication). I’ve also enjoyed some of the responses I’ve received over the years, such as hand written letters, emailed selfies with the cards, and the occasional in-person interaction where someone tells me that they think they received one of my cards.

This work has been exhibited at The Moss Arts Center and at the Gallery at Mish Mish in Blacksburg, Virginia.

postcard project mail art | 2010–present

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blacksburg, virginia

Eclipse invitation I created an invitation design for a party celebrating the 2017 Eclipse. The envelope has a laser-cut opening, showing a full, gold circle (sun) and a black circle (moon). As the recipient opens the envelope, the sun passes behind the moon – mimicking the eclipse itself.

This invitation won a 2017 Graphic Design USA Award and a Silver ADDY at the 2018 Western Virginia Advertising Awards ceremony. It also received Honorable mention in the International Design Awards.

eclipse invitation | 2017

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roanoke, virginia

SECAC conference branding I designed the branding and promotional materials for the 2016 SECAC Art Educator Conference in Roanoke, Virginia. This included the conference program, a notebook, the visuals for the Crowd Compass App (for iPhone, Android, and Tablets), name badges, signage, and tote bags.

The SECAC organization had recently decided to change their name from the “South Eastern College Arts Conference” to “SECAC,” and, as such, for the branding of that year’s conference, I wanted to develop a typographic solution to emphasize the new importance on the letters – so I created custom letterforms for the S, E, C, and A, and a corresponding gradient grid, which could be used as a supporting pattern element.

The SECAC Conference Branding is featured in PRINT magazine’s 2017 Regional Design Annual, it received Honorable Mention in the International Design Awards, and it won a Silver ADDY in the Western Virginia American Advertising Awards in the Cross Platform: Integrated Brand Identity Campaign category.

secac conference branding | 2016

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CTRHB logo The Center for Transformative Research and Health Behaviors at Carilion Clinic requested a butterfly logo for their new center.

I began by researching the Center and establishing a focus (clean, healthy, and transformative). I then looked at the parent company, Carilion Clinic, as the organization wants to feel connected. I took the forms from the parent company to build the final butterfly design.

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roanoke, virginia

center for transformative research and health behaviors logo | 2017

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blacksburg, virginia

NIME conference branding Our design team (myself, Patrick Finley, and Dane Webster) created a poster and visual identity system for the 2018 New Interfaces in Musical Expression conference at Virginia Tech. I created a logo and a supporting typeface, based on Bauer Bodoni but with the serifs mostly removed, to create a more vertical rhythm, similar to that of notes on sheet music. The reflection of the mark is the embodiment of the conference theme, “Mirrored Resonances.� The supportive imagery is a processing-based sketch I developed (with the help of Dane Webster) that runs in a loop on the NIME website (in a black theme at night and a white theme during the day). The forms relate to the sound waves, connecting the visuals to what the audience will hear.

The branding won a Gold Graphis Award, and a Gold ADDY in the Western Virginia Advertising Awards in the Integrated Brand Identity Campaign category. The branding and posters also received Honorable Mention from the International Design Awards.

new interfaces in musical expression conference branding | 2018

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st. louis, missouri

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Type Hike Arch poster I was accepted to be a part of Type Hike’s Arch series, which helps raise money for the Gateway Arch National Park – by selling posters. The concept behind my poster was that the Arch is the most iconic symbol of St. Louis, and it reminds me of where I grew up. So I filled the poster with icons of additional things that reminded me of that time (Ted Drew’s frozen custard, the Cardinals, Imo’s Pizza), and other significant structures in St. Louis (the old courthouse, Busch stadium, the sculpture in front of the Art Museum, the Science Center).

The star in the middle is based on the old iron stars you find in alleys throughout the city. And the quote “Once free, Always free” was the doctrine upheld by Missouri courts in determining slave freedom (Dred Scott sued for his freedom and is honored at the Gateway Arch National Park).

" ONCE

F RE E ,

A LWA Y S

F RE E "

This poster was on display at “Type Hike: Arch” at Brennan’s Work and Leisure in St. Louis, MO. The poster was sold and proceeds went to benefit the Gateway National Park – it was also accepted to the Library of Congress.

Additionally, a limited edition book of the posters was produced (and sold out).

type hike arch poster | 2019

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blacksburg, virginia

Requiem for a Wanderer book I had the opportunity to typeset Requiem for a Wanderer, a short book on the last days of the author Sherwood Anderson. I was inspired by Louise Fili’s illustrative copyright pages, and I was fortunate to have a client that let me infuse a little “play” into the design.

requiem for a wanderer book design | 2019

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Thank You Thank you for taking the time to review my materials.

meaghan dee portfolio