Everywhere you turn, there are always posters hanging in the hallways of AHS. Who are the creators behind these aesthetically pleasing designs? The Designation club meets on Tuesdays at A-212 and is responsible for many of the countless posters you’ve seen around campus. 

President senior Angela Tran elaborates on the rewarding experiences a person can gain from this club. She said, “Not only can you acquire useful graphic art skills and learn effective branding strategies, you also have the opportunity to challenge your creativity. Essentially, you gain an appreciation for the arts through teaching outreach workshops for the community.” 

Designation takes on a strong initiative to give back to the Arcadia community. They’ve hosted more than eight free workshops for graphic design and a summer intensive program, mentored middle school students with their projects, and have constructed over 50 designs for the school, community, and partner organization, Project Designation.

Artistic director sophomore Vanessa Zhang comments on how Designation has given her a new hobby she’ll keep up with beyond high school. “I wasn’t too knowledgeable in graphic design, specifically Photoshop, especially when compared to the other officers. However, they looked past my limited skills and took notice of my passion for teaching kids, learning, and creativity when I attended a workshop,” she said. Vanessa said that having little experience in graphic design shouldn’t have anyone be afraid of pursuing it. “The most important thing is the effort you put into it, and that’s the exact amount you’ll get back.”

Treasurer sophomore Adela Tran gave us insight into why students should join the club: “This club is a great chance for them to learn the basics of graphic design and how they apply those lessons into their daily life. We also do fun projects that help them learn aspects of graphic design. Club members can also gain volunteer hours through a very interesting and fun way. We teach students in middle schools at the Arcadia, Pasadena, and Monrovia library about the fundamental technique that they should know about graphic design and how they can implement our lessons into their everyday lives.” Adela then explains how a usual club meeting and workshops would go.

“Every lesson, we teach a principle of graphic design and provide examples and games to help them learn these concepts faster. We also let them work on two projects or crafts that they can take home that includes and teaches them the principle. Almost all of our members love our club, so we believe that almost all students that join will enjoy as well.”

Club member sophomore Grace Mohandoss told us the coolest thing she’s learned from Designation. “I learned how to make personalized badges using Photoshop! I made a monochrome badge with my cat’s name on it, Ginger. Designation taught everyone on how to make the badge using different shapes on Photoshop and then we printed them out at the end. It was pretty fun!”

Designation is open to everyone, regardless of their knowledge of graphic design! From their informative, yet fun, workshops to volunteer hours to visual arts projects, there’s no denying the useful skills you can learn through this club! Go join!

—

Photo courtesy of ANGELA TRAN