UH Design Program Receives Local, National and International Recognition

The UH Design Program was honored this year by national and international designers and design critics. Work by BFA students was solicited for the Designing with Type website (initiated by the well-known designer, James Craig – and hosted by Cooper Union in New York City).



Additionally, two student projects from the Design Program won awards of excellence at the Hawai‘i Pele Awards (a local advertising competition sponsored by the American Advertising Federation). One of these projects, the Hawai’i Environmental Council Annual Report, was selected in a national competition to be included in the Design Annual of HOW Magazine. Given that there are over 3,000 graphic design programs in colleges and universities nationwide and only ten student projects were selected, this is a singular honor for our students.



A third student project, Reading the Urban Landscape, was selected for the new book (just released) Design Confidential: Extraordinary Design Projects from International Design Schools. This book was co-authored by Lita Talarico of the School of Visual Arts in New York City and Steven Heller, editor of the AIGA (American Institute of Graphic Arts) publication VOICE, contributor to international graphic design publications such as Print Magazine, EYE and Baseline, and past Art Director for the New York Times. We are particularly proud of this last publication. Not only did the editors invite our participaton, but UH was one of only fifty design schools internationally who were asked to participate.

Having student work from our Program showcased with work from such notable, larger design programs as the Rhode Island School of Design, the Royal College of Art (London), School of the Art Institute of Chicago, University of Ulster: School of Art and Design, and the Berlin University of the Arts is a special honor. Together these awards represent the work of over twenty graphic design students at UH. We are pleased with their accomplishments—ones that few professional designers in Hawai‘i can claim.