Keyboards click and desktop mouses shuffle in a comfortable and dimly lit pastel room. This is the sound of home to many Grizzly Graphics students, where passion exists exclusively through the creation of digital art.
Grizzly Graphics is the newest addition to the Graphic Design Department of Tom Glenn High School. Teachers can request graphic designs that are crafted by students and tailored to meet client specific requirements.
“I think that there’s a lot of teachers that probably want unique designs,” Graphic Design teacher Cilla Hagle said. “I know Canva is really popular, but it’s not exactly something unique that stands out, and I think teachers also like to see student work and the talent that they bring to the table, so it’s a great opportunity for teachers and the students to partner together and come up with unique designs that have the unique Glenn flair to it.”
Though the conception of Grizzly Graphics was intended to provide an in-house graphic team for teachers, it also serves as real-world job experience for students as well.
“I had the idea last year,” Hagle said. “I knew that there was going to be a Graphic Design III practicum course this year, and I wanted them to have a practicum experience that was legitimate and as close to the real world as possible. There’s not a lot of graphic design firms that are willing to take on high school interns, so Grizzly Graphics seemed like a good way to give the students a real-world experience while also weaving in school spirit and just doing something positive for the Glenn community as well.”
Despite being a new program, students have already been commissioned to design graphics for different clubs and teachers.
“I actually just finished a bulletin board design and I have also done some of Ms. Q’s [Laura Quisenberry] fliers; Her FCCLA flier and her ‘Kids Helping Kids,’ flier,” executive editor Lanie Hagle said. “I also designed the Grizzly Graphics fliers that are seen in the hallways, so I’ve done a couple projects already.
According to Mrs. Hagle, Grizzly Graphics only charges for the cost of material, which can vary, but they don’t make any profit.
“I’m really here to help out with the school’s designs. We have a lot of posters around for a lot of different clubs, and being able to create quality work for them is a really cool experience, so everyone has a chance at being seen and heard through designs and art,” assistant editor Emma Faria said. “I’ve done stuff for Mr. Vincent and also did fliers for Mrs. Kennedy for ASVAB testing. Though I would say that Mr. Vincents was my favorite, because it was definitely a lot more artsy. It was taking a type and turning it into different sciencey loo
king things, like test tubes and beakers included into the design; and It took some drawing which I really enjoy. My inspiration for that was the Breaking Bad logo, I included a chemical symbol in it and I knew immediately that it would look like Breaking Bad.”
Grizzly Graphics has had a steady flow of work since the beginning of the school year, having about 15 to 20 requests.
“My inspiration for most of my projects are of course meeting client specifications but also just making sure that it looks good and eye-catching,” Lanie Hagle said. “Even for the smallest things in the school, it just deserves a good design. People can ask for something and we can turn it into a reality.”
Although the designs that are requested can be printed out on paper, they can also be printed out on t-shirts and tote bags, further expanding their business and proving their expertise in the art of designing. Hagle draws inspiration from Pinterest, especially because the platform is widely versed in reference photos.
“Sometimes if I’m given a prompt from a client, I can kind of see it in my head, I’m like, ‘Oh that would be really cool!’ So sometimes I’ll do little thumbnails in my sketchbook to see how it would look in the real world, or I’ll just put things onto the artboard in photoshop and just play with things and see what works,” Lanie Hagle said. “I like a lot of cutesy stuff. I used reference photos for the Grizzly logo that we have, I used references for the shape of the cave and the bear so I could make her fluffy but cute. For the t-shirts I’m working on, I used a reference for the bear silhouettes.”
Faria’s unique artstyle is largely inspired by traditional American art, which fuels the soul of each of their graphics.
“I really love music, so music is a huge inspiration for a lot of my designs.” Faria said. “Album covers as well, and just general things that are seen in the world, especially tattoos. I do a lot of planning once I figure out what I want to do. I figure out the general aesthetic that I want to get, and then just plan different color schemes and different typefaces. Different things like that, is really how I kind of find where I want to go with it. Sometimes when I’m tinkering in Adobe, trying to figure something out, ideas come to me and that kind of points me in the direction of where I wanna go with the graphic.”
If teachers or clubs would like to commission Grizzly Graphics, they can submit a form through the Grizzly Graphics Website.