RISD is an amazing and mysterious place. The talent and amount of creative output on our campus is staggering and nearly impossible to quantify. We invite luminaries from around the globe to challenge us, inspire us, and push us to be our best. However, at times we forget to stand back and attempt to understand what RISD has really given us and what we’ve given back.

It is common practice to cite that “students” are what make a school great but in the case of RISD, our students truly play a unique role in that statement. By the nature of the studio environment, the intensity of our pursuits, and the general personality of our work, RISD students stand alone in their importance in shaping the academic environment and experience.

This book isn’t meant to encapsulate the breadth, depth, or richness of that perspective but rather act as snapshot to provide a look into what really makes RISD, RISD. It is the work and people. I hope this will be a resource to provide you with the perspectives of an amazing collection of talented individuals as they make the transition from this school out into the world they will someday hopefully impact.

Thank you to all the students that participated in this exercise (see full list of names at the back of the book).

Throughout my undergraduate career at RISD, I feel like I have developed almost as much as a writer as a designer. Rarely do I create a design project or undergo any design exercise without pausing for reflection and taking the time for a more critical reflection of my practice through writing. While this has led me to feel empowered to both articulate my thoughts visually and through language, at times I feel the two exist in separate universes within me- the complex division of left and right brain.

In order to remedy this I chose to reinvestigate my entire writing portfolio both for content and a deeper contemplation of my personality with the hope that I would find a more holistic cooperation between my “two sides.” The result, the record you hold in your hands, is a collection of relevant pieces chronologically organized to illustrate the development of my thought process and skill as a writer. To further challenge myself to understand the significance of my writer I have included visual poetic summaries to precede each piece, inviting the reader to better understand the unique combination of my passions.

This complete work has enabled me to re-approach and re-package my thinking, in an exercise that is counter to my normal practice. My ability and failure at times in this challenge have reaffirmed my love for both visual design and writing. At the same time they have provided a coherent and intensely personal record of my undergraduate education.