Portfolio 1: An Overview

Author: dcrosby

24 Apr 07

I’ve always had an inclination to create artwork that was meaningful and with some kind of cultural significance. I’ve tried to walk in the footsteps of those creative, black, forward thinking men and woman that have come before me, creating work that is informative, loving, insightful and uplifting. Whether musically or artistically or poetically, our history is replete with those individuals who understood that their gifts were meant for more than commerce. I admire the legacies of creatives such as Jacob Lawrence, Emory Douglas, Gordon Parks, Gil Scott Heron, Langston Hughes, Nikki Giovanni and Paul Robeson. I appreciate the contributions of contemporaries such as Spike Lee, Danny Glover, Chuck D, etc.

As graphic designers we’re taught to be slaves to commerce. Our job is to communicate the message of the client. Most times the message is one of consumerism; buy my shoes, my pizza, my live event. That’s not really a bad thing in and of itself but certainly nothing that I’d dedicate my life too. The combination of words and images on a printed page is, in my opinion, way too powerful to leave strictly in the hands of Madison Avenue or Washington lobbyists. I have a voice. I have thoughts and ideas and political beliefs. I feel fortunate to also have skills that can be put to bear in order to educate, inform, cajole and proselytize. I hope that over time I can add something of value to the cultural landscape.

As a design student, (sans real clients), I took the opportunity to create projects that would allow me to put black folks on paper and explore African American oriented themes. As a professional I’ve done freelance work for various community based organizations and individuals. My job at the university has allowed me to work with some of the more progressive organizations on campus as well. Of course I also keep a sizable list of personal projects in progress, some of which I hope to actually finish.

I’ve created a lot of portfolios over the last 20 years. Portfolios as class assignments, portfolios for the job search, multimedia portfolios and portfolios for the yearly job review. This one’s for me. It is the first one to focus on designs that I find meaningful, from my student days to the present. These may not be my latest, or greatest works but they are some of my favorites. I hope you like them too.

[Show as slideshow]

My brothers and me actually. I'm on the far right. From back in my analog days. Watercolor.

GREETING CARDS , 1989
Hand Painted greeting cards. Watercolor on photocopied card stock.

Hand Painted greeting cards. Watercolor on photocopied card stock.

In Our Image _ 1990
A cultural commentary on the visual representation of God. African Americans are one of the few who accepts a god of another race. Guache on Poster board.

SONGS FOR MY FATHER, 1990
Another watercolor. I painted this from a photograph for my pops on Father's Day.

MBARI MBAYO PLAYERS LOGO
An African American theater troup

THE DEATH SIDE, UHURU MAGAZINE
This is one of the covers for a student publication out of Kent State University. It had dual covers and depending on which side you picked up you could read a positive or negative take on black life.

THE LIFE SIDE, UHURU MAGAZINE
This is one of the covers for a student publication out of Kent State University. It had dual covers and depending on which side you picked up you could read a positive or negative take on black life.