AFH Graphics Studio Apprentice On Assignment

Jeung Soon Takeda, an apprentice in the AFH Graphics studio, is a senior at Boston Latin Academy. Jeung plans to go to attend college to pursue studies in education and the arts.

"Our project for Graphics is for a client named Sollievo, a massage and acupuncture company. They requested a design for the front three windows and door of their building to draw people in. The instruction to our group was to design something resembling the Italian plains. AFH mentors teach us that in the design process, it is critical to remember the way light shines through the window. So I knew that we had to leave an opening along the top to have space for the lights the client wanted to display. That 's all we had, plus a piece of paper with five shapes arranged as our template, when we started brainstorming and searching for references to guide this project.

My objective was to draw something that I would enjoy seeing on the window. Online research inspired me to sketch mountains, rivers, a bridge, some houses and two Roman temples. When I presented my sketch to the client, I learned that they did not want us to include any type of architecture. Rather, they wanted a design that widened the range of perspective within a natural landscape.

I learned that it is not easy for a client to express their expectations early in the process. I saw that even though they did not approve my initial complex sketches, there was an opportunity to try again. The highlight of this project so far has been learning the process of sketches and feedback to improve my design and attain the clients’ satisfaction. My next step is to have my sketch include expanded nature scenes of an Italian countryside and hopefully meet their expectations."

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