My Journey
7 February 2024
*created with canva ai*
I want to say that it was love at first sight but it was more like I tripped and fell in love with graphic design. Truth be told, I never knew that I wanted to be a graphic designer when I was little, frankly I never knew that this job existed! Growing up, I was (probably unhealthily) obsessed with the movie “The Devil Wears Prada” and the several fashion magazine pitch and design scenes in “13 Going on 30”. When Jenna stood in front of a dozen executives from the magazine she worked at and pitched her spread idea, I realized I wanted that. Now at the time, I had no clue what “that” was but I was determined to try to figure it out.
“Then there was me who went silent when someone asked me what I wanted to be.”
In middle and early high school, everyone seemed to have it figured out. “I want to be a chemist. I want to be a teacher. I want to be a doctor, hopefully…” Then there was me who went silent when someone asked me what I wanted to be. I could not say “I want Jenna’s job from ‘13 Going On 30’” or I would get those crazy looks from people. I still could not put my finger on what I really wanted to do. Throughout my schooling from elementary to high school I really loved art class. I enjoyed being creative and playing with colors, textures, and tools. I was not the next Van Gogh so I had to, again, think about what I wanted to do with my life. Then there it was, a class titled “Intro to Graphic Design”. I went to my guidance counselor to sign up for classes for the next semester and immediately told my counselor I wanted to take it. I do not know what compelled me to take this course but I knew I wanted to explore what it was. Looking back, it was probably the smartest decision I had made in high school because without that class I would not be writing this blog post right now!
Fast forward five years and now we are here. I am a Graphic and Interactive Design major at Quinnipiac University who is about to graduate! Throughout my four years of taking several graphic design classes, I have experienced many challenges. It was tough being in classes and feeling like your work is not good enough when comparing your work to other students. Through my recently found love of color theory and typography, I gained the confidence to love the work I make. Taking two typography classes really changed the trajectory and perspective of my potential career path. I loved exploring the endless combinations of typefaces I could choose from, pair together, and play with. It felt freeing in a sense due to my ability to make daring choices and “break the rules” of design. I am forever grateful for “13 Going On 30”s Jenna for being the passionate character that inspired me to be the graphic designer I am today.
Hi there! I’m Lauren Melville.
I love to delve deep into the world of graphic design, exploring areas like branding, typography, and advertising campaign strategies.