IEW 2021

Visual Branding, Illustration & Event Identity

Overview
For the 10th Annual Boston University International Education Week, I created a full visual identity used across posters, programs, schedules, and digital materials. The goal was to design something bold and cohesive that celebrates global connection while still making a lot of event information clear and easy to navigate.

Concept
The design is built around ideas of connection, movement, and cultural exchange. Intersecting lines and geometric color blocks form a structured grid that represents networks spanning countries, people, and ideas.
Alongside this system, the climate-focused panel What About the Planet? introduces a more expressive illustration style. Fluid, hand-drawn shapes and a water-inspired blue palette bring emotion and urgency to the topic of climate change, balancing the strict geometry of the overall layout.

Design Approach
I combined clean structure with human expression:

• A geometric grid creates strong hierarchy and helps organize dense schedules.

• A limited palette—Boston University red, bright blue, black, and white—keeps everything high-contrast and consistent across print and digital formats.

• Clear, modern typography ensures readability while allowing key messages to stand out.

• Custom illustrations, created in Procreate and refined in Adobe Illustrator, add storytelling and emotional depth within an academic setting.

• This flexible system made it possible to keep a consistent look across many different formats while adapting to varied content.

  Symbolism
  The raised hands represent participation, shared voice, and unity. Reaching upward from the structured grid, they suggest people coming together across cultures to learn, speak, and take action—capturing the spirit of International Education Week and its focus on global community.

  Outcome
  The final identity presents International Education Week as connected, inclusive, and forward-looking. The cohesive visuals strengthened recognition across campus and helped frame the climate panel within a larger conversation about global responsibility, dialogue, and collective action.