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Branding for a Annual Lunar Gala
Led the event branding of the University of Washington Chinese Student Association (CSA) annual Lunar New Year Gala.
Graphic Design
Role
Design Director
Timeline
Nov. 2023 – Feb. 2024
4 Months
Team
Isaiah Hoagland
Cindy Yang
Vince Xiao
Tony Zhou
Tools
Illustrator
Printed Viynl banner 2.5ft x 8ft
Event Banner
This event program encapsulates the day of the 2024 Lunar New Year Gala, who made it happen, and why we put it on.
Event Program
Printed Tabloid Flyers 11in x 17in
Flyers
Assets Library
Countdown Posts
Lawn signs were put up around the University of Washington Seattle Campus.
Lawn Signs
Bookmarks designed by Isaiah Hoagland
Buttons and Tote Bags designed by Cindy Yang and Vince Xiao
Merchandise
Our marketing contributed to an 140% increase in attendance for CSA’s 2024 Lunar Gala, growing from 300 attendees in the previous year to over 720 attendees.
Results
I led a team of 4 Designers to produce the branding and creative direction of the event.
My Role
- Oversaw branding and marketing material creation
- Ensured cultural representation in designs
- Collaborated with a 35-officer team
- Guided design strategy and event promotion
- Managed immersive experience for ~550 attendees
- Managed a team of designers
- Coordinated with leadership to align vision and goals
A student-led group promotes Chinese culture by hosting performances, activities, and food events!
Who and What?
The University of Washington's Chinese Student Association (CSA) annually hosts its largest event, the Lunar New Year Gala, in a concert hall the week after the Lunar New Year. Preparation starts four months in advance, reflecting the CSA's commitment to promoting Chinese culture and fostering cultural exchange among its members.
This project taught me the importance of pacing yourself, and how to lead a team.
Takeaways
Pacing Yourself
I spent too much time on the banner, causing burnout and affecting the quality of other designs like posters and social media posts. For future projects, I'll delegate tasks and work on multiple designs at once to better manage my time and improve overall quality.
Delegation
I learned how to identify and utilize my team member's strengths and weaknesses and how to combine, delegate, and balance them to create a product that is both fun and productive.
Growth and Bonding Sessions
My lead suggested, midway through the project timeline, teaching my members about simple design fundamentals, as I was the only design major in the team. It was a fun process as they also showed me their perspectives from a non-design major viewpoint.
Organization
I learned the importance of organization among team members, such as keeping your team members organized by reminding them of deadlines, managing scheduling, team meetings, check-ins, and monitoring project progress throughout the four months.
The theme of this year's gala revolves around the creation of the Four Rivers and Dragons.
Understand
Creation of the four Great Rivers — the Heilongjiang (Black Dragon) in the far north, the Huanghe (Yellow River) in central China, the Changjiang (Yangtze, or Long River) farther south, and the Zhujiang (Pearl) in the very south.
The story of the Four Dragons teaches the virtues of collaboration, responsibility, and sacrifice in working together to bring rain and benefit the community!
Theme
Process
Before designing, I wanted to see branding for past events and studying similar events to see what works and what doesn’t.
Research and Mood Board
I will be showcasing my process for the event banner as it was the foundation design of the branding.
Event Banner
I begin with layout planning in black and white to understand composition and scalability, assessing how well it adapts to various sizes, such as Instagram posts, letters, and tabloids.
1. Layout Planning
A. Sketches
These very rough, just jotting down thoughts and ideas.
Refinement
I selected my two favorite iterations because they best demonstrated the use of hierarchy and dynamic composition.
B. Illustrator Typography Compositions
After forming an initial concept for my banner composition, I began illustrating some ideas, using red lines to represent dragons.
2. Illustration Brainstorming
When illustrating, I aimed to incorporate the four dragons and the four rivers, drawing inspiration from this year's gala theme. I also included four frames to further emphasize the four symbols' theme.
Each picture frame will represent the same landscape but with different virtues or characteristics corresponding to the dragon.
Quick color vision render
Refining the color and brainstorming how to incorporate the dragons
More refinement + dragons
Final Design
This project taught me the importance of pacing yourself, and how to lead a team.
Takeaways
Pacing Yourself
I spent too much time on the banner, causing burnout and affecting the quality of other designs like posters and social media posts. For future projects, I'll delegate tasks and work on multiple designs at once to better manage my time and improve overall quality.
Delegation
I learned how to identify and utilize my team member's strengths and weaknesses and how to combine, delegate, and balance them to create a product that is both fun and productive.
Growth and Bonding Sessions
My lead suggested, midway through the project timeline, teaching my members about simple design fundamentals, as I was the only design major in the team. It was a fun process as they also showed me their perspectives from a non-design major viewpoint.
Organization
I learned the importance of organization among team members, such as keeping your team members organized by reminding them of deadlines, managing scheduling, team meetings, check-ins, and monitoring project progress throughout the four months.