Visual communication students work across a broad range of media and sectors, developing innovative solutions that combine high levels of craft refinement with strategic thinking and social change agendas.
Visual Communication student work
Blackout
Michelle Chan and Rachel Holt. Winner Yellow Pencil, D&AD Awards
Visual Communication students Madi Chan and Rachel Holt won a prestigious D&AD Gold Pencil for Blackout, their awareness campaign and speculative mobile app that visualises the unseen and alarmingly large carbon footprint of our online activity. The project was the result of an intense six week research and design process that involved surveys, literature reviews, persona development and customer journey mapping, to dig down into this complex issue and identify barriers to young people acting on climate change.
Young Australians are watching their country burn.1 billion animals are dead. 250 million tons of Co2 produced. We feel totally powerless. As we hopelessly watch, scroll and share videos of the bushfires, we think "I'm just one person, what difference can I possibly make?" What we don't realise is that the problem is in our hands. For every 1GB of data used, 27KG of Co2 is put into our atmosphere. That's more than a flight from Sydney to Melbourne. So what do we do? We propose ... a blackout. Connect 4 Climate's carbon neutral app changes the settings of your phone to produce as few carbon emissions as possible. By tracking your data usage you can create a sustainable digital lifestyle. Once you're set up, you don't have to do a thing. We'll switch your default video preferences from high definition to standard definition to save 20kg of Co2. We'll let you know which apps have a poor Co2 rating, and provide you with better alternatives. To help you stick to your new habits, you can even set a daily data allowance and once you've reached the limit, we'll blackout your phone. Blackout will send you one notification a day to show you how much data you've saved. We donate this data to Australians in need. Our partners will greyscale their logos and #blackout on social. We're showing young Australians the real impact of using their phones. We've teamed up with Google Maps to track how your little changes are making a big impact. Blackout will alter everyday user behaviour without you having to do anything differently. You can make your actions count, with Blackout.
Soul Gen
Madeleine Garratt, Hayley Kim, Marc Pizzinato, April Tran, Daisy Yang
In this project, students rebranded Soulgen, a social-enterprise consultancy which collaborates with councils, organisations, young people and diverse communities to grow their confidence and work better together. To drive the rebrand, and updating of digital touchpoints, students applied various design methods including ABCD (Asset Based Community Development), co-design, storytelling and creative arts.
Uncovering Migration Memories
Emily De Freitas. Awarded Merit, ISTD (International Society of Type Designers)
Uncovering Migration Memories is a publication exploring experiences of migration, documenting the often dangerous and emotionally arduous journeys undertaken by migrants. Memory provides an unreliable record of our lives, often fading and distorting over time. Uncovering Migration Memories uses typography to suggest this instability, leaving the viewer to physically uncover and reconstruct each individual story.
UncannyAlgorithms
Hayley Cumming. Awarded Merit, AGDA Student Awards
We live in an algorithmic culture. Computation is everywhere. Algorithms curate our social media feeds and determine our search results. They are all around us, yet remain inscrutable: packaged behind slick, user-friendly interfaces. ‘Uncanny Algorithms’ is a design research workshop that seeks to reveal the hidden algorithms that surround us by translating them into tangible objects and activities. Participants work in pairs; one plays the role of the ‘computer’, while the other plays the part of the ‘human’, The relationship that unfolds between them acts as a metaphor to challenge the uncanny ways computers understand us, and encourages designers to seek moments of intervention when creating the systems that surround algorithms.
Down to Business. Up to No Good
Annabel Cook, Lina Lindberg, Samson Ossedryver. Winner Gold Pencil, D&AD Awards
Tasked with rebranding the Crown Plaza hotel chain to appeal to younger generation of business travellers, the UTS team came up with a campaign to combine business with pleasure.Up to no good or down to business — what will you get up to at Crowne Plaza? Young, urban business professionals are defined by their dualistic desires and demands. They are a generation who yearns for the serenity of the woods but with high speed WiFi in the cabin. The Crowne Plaza rebrand targets this generation through a dualistic brand identity and experience where guests are encouraged to indulge in both business and pleasure in the one trip because, why have it one way when you can have it all?
Hello young urban business professionals. The nature of business is changing and the nature of travel is changing. You want flexible, individual, authentic experiences. You want it all. You want WiFi in the woods. You greedy bastards. We may have been late to the party, but we've got the best costume, and we brought a cake. Introducing Crowne Plaza. Down to business. Up to no good. You want to party and sleep. Get crazy in the bedroom and then seal the deal in the boardroom. Skull a vodka, but then down it with a San Pellegrino. And eat fries while you're on the treadmill. So will you be getting down to business or up to no good when you stay at Crowne Plaza? Our 5 Crowne Plaza emojis suggest what your trip will be like based on your customised choices. For this guest, its somewhere in between. Tickets to a rave on a business trip? You're definitely flirting with danger. We offer a self check-in service, because, we don't like talking to people either. While you're at it, you can check out what other guests are up to. And then head straight up to your room. Swipe swipe. In your room every object has two sides, allowing for no fuss indulgence whenever you please. No matter which space you're in, we'll be encouraging you to work hard, play harder. And at the end of your stay, you'll be getting two invoices. One for your boss "Oh yes... very professional", and one for you "Oooh, 22 beers, hey?". Its our little secret. Crowne Plaza. Down to business. Up to no good.
