As Hamilton College appraoched its 10th anniversary of need-blind admission, the Communications team decided to create a cover for Hamilton Magazine that captured the essence of their commitment to admitting students without regard to their financial circumstances.

I reached out to my first design mentor, the legendary Milton Glaser for inspiration. I had previously worked for Milton as an intern, which shaped my entire career. I was uncertain if Milton would even remember me, but I received a response from him the very next morning, along with a sketch (above) reflecting his concept for the cover.

I created a pencil illustration based on his idea. In this image, the blindfold doesn’t obscure Hamilton’s vision: It provides a window of opportunity for its students.

Common Ground is Hamilton College’s multi-format program that is designed to explore cross-boundary political thought and complex social issues, Common Ground brings highly respected thought leaders to the Hamilton campus to participate in small classroom dialogues and large event discussions. Topics are chosen to foster critical thinking and holistic examination of difficult and often contentious national and global policy issues.
The design concept is straightforward: The concentric “CG”recalls a labyrinth. Subjects are discussed with a level of complexity not shared on cable the news “point-counterpoint/left/right/us them” narrative.

The first comprehensive brand and visual identity guide for Hamilton College. A difficult but rewarding exercise. The message map, the photo guides, and the grid templates needed to work, but just look great in a book that users consign to a drawer.