Sign Language Table Topper

As part of my graduate program (view my program here: Interactive Media), there was an opportunity to travel abroad during their winter term to complete a project for the public good. Seven colleagues and I traveled to the city of Leeuwarden in the Netherlands to work with the Afûk organization. Afûk is a non-profit organization focused on preserving the Frisian minority language. My team worked with Afûk during their build of a language pavilion during the European Capital of Culture celebration taking place in Leeuwarden from April to October 2018. The language pavilion was a space for patrons to learn and experience minority languages from all over Europe during the European Capital of Culture.

My role in this assignment was to be the graphic designer and social media specialist. I initiated the creation of a table brochure after a discussion with Afûk about how they planned to have deaf volunteers working as servers in this pavilion. This brochure would allow the patrons in the pavilion to interact with the deaf volunteers instead of just pointing at menu items. The hand motions are that of Dutch Sign Language, and the words are translated in Dutch, Frisian, and English. The vibrant colors were pulled from the brand color scheme, and the quilt design was a homage to the women of Leeuwarden who were creating a traditional, tower-sized quilt for the celebration. This is the final design that would be used in the pavilion. Software and Skills Used: Adobe Illustrator, Graphic Design, and Branding.

To learn more about this project, view the video below directed and edited by Kelsey Lane and Rhett Lawson.