MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY
Katie White is a senior pursuing her BFA in Graphic Design with a minor in Leadership of Organizations. Ever since she was a child she has always loved exploring her creative side and trying new things within the arts. After deciding to take a Digital Illustration course in high school (not really knowing what she was signing up for) she immediately fell in love with design and knew that she needed to learn more. She has been a design intern for the MSU Department of Art, Art History, and Design for almost two years now, where she gets to apply her design skills to a wide-range of projects and become more involved in her community through the experiences she’s had and her communication with visiting artists, faculty, and other students. She loves being able to apply her love for the arts in a way that serves as a form of communication, and is always excited by a creative challenge. Outside of her love for art and design she enjoys spending quality time with her friends, listening to music, reading, traveling, and skiing.
What makes you feel inspired?
I’m extremely inspired by music and find it to be essential to my design process and focus, but I think I’m most inspired by being surrounded by other artists and designers who genuinely love what they do. I find myself learning new things every day from the other artists and designers I am surrounded with, and am constantly inspired by the conversations that we have and the shared passion we all have for our work.
What areas or areas of design are you hoping to work in or specialize in?
After graduating I would like to pursue brand identity design. After getting some experience in brand identity and developing an identity for my own fictional company this past semester, I knew that this area of work would be something I want to pursue.
What is one thing that design school has taught you that you did not expect?
One thing that design school has taught me that I did not expect is that it is okay to “color outside the lines.” Since we were children we have always been told to color within them, but since going to design school I’ve learned that although there are design rules that you should follow, it’s okay to push their boundaries and challenge yourself to create something unique.
Who is someone you look up to in your field? Either today or historically?
Two people who I look up to in my field are Nancy Skolos and Katherine McCoy. I find both of their works to be extremely inspiring, and often refer to Type, Image, Message by Nancy Skolos and Thomas Wedell for inspiration.
What are you reading, listening to, watching?
I’m currently watching the show Kaleidoscope, reading The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid, and just started listening to the podcast Did I Do That? with Sean Schumacher where Sean sits down with guests from the design world and they talk about making graphic design and mistakes.
