PORTFOLIO 04
GRAPHIC DESIGN SAMPLER
A wide, intriguing collection of design projects, noodlings, experiments, and creative activity.
STREET FOOD ICONS
These icons were crafted to meet the needs of introducing icon logos for a street food vendor. The icons are designed to be perceived as an inter-related companion set. The designs are also styled to convey a strong sense of the energy, movement, and vibrancy typically found in street market environments.
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ICON 01: Street food, cone of french fries
ICON 02: Street food, morsels on a stick
ICON 03: Street food, bowl of ramen
ICON 04: Street food, small plate
MINNESOTA STATE FLAG REDESIGN
In 2024, the state of Minnesota sought to redesign its official state flag through an open-call, public design competition. The three flag designs below were submitted for official consideration.
Each flag designs reconceptualizes Minnesota’s state flag with new ideas that position the state flag to be attractive when hung on a flagpole or when flown vertically, and/or when the flag is imprinted on material objects (i.e., stickers, pins, patches, physical insignia, websites & documents).
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MINNESOTA STATE FLAG REDESIGN, 01
MINNESOTA STATE FLAG REDESIGN, 02
MINNESOTA STATE FLAG REDESIGN, 03
MINNESOTA STATE FLAG REDESIGN, 01
Rectangular, 2-point pennant. Pennant style is distinctive and attractive. Also, right edge mimics the state’s eastern geographical border.
Large blue center field signifies rivers, lakes & other bodies of water. Top green border signifies Minnesota’s forests, and bottom yellow border signifies golden fields heavy with crops.
8-point star signifies the North Star, suggests a snowflake, and strategically repeats 2-point pennant shape.
8-point star’s style purposely pulls from star designs in quilts, and this gesture seeks to suggest Minnesota’s early history.
Yellow in the star signifies light. Blue signifies water/snow. Green signifies the land. A multi-colored star also seeks to symbolize Minnesota’s racial, ethnic, and cultural diversity.
MINNESOTA STATE FLAG REDESIGN, 02
Rectangular, 2-point pennant. Pennant style is distinctive and attractive. Also, right edge mimics the state’s eastern geographical border.
Varying shades of blue featured through multiple stripes placed diagonally in the flag’s center field seek to symbolize the movement & flow of water (i.e., the Mississippi River, lakes). Green edged borders signify forests and land as well as the banks of a river.
8-point yellow star signifies the North Star and strategically repeats 2-point pennant shape.
8-point star’s style purposely pulls from star designs in quilts, and this gesture seeks to suggest Minnesota’s early history.
MINNESOTA STATE FLAG REDESIGN, 03
This design utilizes a traditional rectangular flag shape.
Large blue center field signifies rivers, lakes, and bodies of water.
Wide white borders signify Minnesota’s unique snowy winters.
8-point multi-colored star signifies the North Star and also suggests a snowflake shape.
8-point star’s style purposely pulls from star designs in quilts, and this gesture seeks to suggest Minnesota’s early history.
Yellow in the star signifies light. Blue signifies water/snow. Green signifies the land. A multi-colored star also seeks to symbolize Minnesota’s racial, ethnic, and cultural diversity.
AQUA CITY: A MINNESOTA SONGBOOK
Specialty Printed Booklet
This lush, bespoke, 14-page, full color printed booklet offers an essential collection of songs and lyrics written by legendary musicians from Minnesota.
Utilizing stylized images of Minneapolis’ geography as a cultural touchstone, the booklet’s layout weaves together landmarks with the text of song lyrics. Offered as a tribute to the state’s incredibly vibrant music-making environment, the songbook animates a lively interplay between lyrics and manipulated images that interpret the work of each musician or band in a compelling, baroque mix made of images, color, text, and page design.
8.5” X 7”
< use this arrow to expand
EXPANDABLE FLIPBOOK VIEW
Select the diagonal “arrow” button at bottom right hand corner to view booklet in large, “flipbook” format.
Once in flipbook layout, controls also offer zoom-in viewing.
AQUA CITY: A MINNESOTA SONGBOOK, page 2
AQUA CITY: A MINNESOTA SONGBOOK, page 9
SURREAL LANDSCAPE // DIGITAL COLLAGE
What if dogs had wings? And what if they could fly?
This fantasy piece offers an imaginative, surreal, visual pun that renders a world where dogs can fly - and are also humongous creatures among us.
Created by manipulating realistic photographic imagery in Adobe Photoshop.
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U.S. POSTAL SERVICE STAMP DESIGN
U.S. Postal Stamp
This illustrated stamp design for the United States Postal Service features a stylized depiction of a palm leaf fan made in Mexico during Easter Holy Week. In Spanish this week is called “Semana Santa.” These large palm leaf fans are waved during historical re-enactments that dramatize Jesus’ entrance into the city of Jerusalem.
The design of this postal stamp highlights the unique craftsmanship and sculptural quality of these palm leaf fans. A tight, pink-hued color palette signals spring and Easter and also describes the landscape colors of Northern Mexico in springtime. The proportions of this design have been crafted to fit on the very small field of a postage stamp.
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Sheet of U.S. Postal Stamps, mock-up
ROUND PINBACK BUTTON DESIGN
Round Pinback Button, 1.25”
Llama head illustration for a classic pinback button.
A wry and witty interpretation of a Llama’s head set against a colorful background.
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BUSINESS CARD & LOGO: MAYORGA DESIGN
Business Card, 2” X 3.5”
My business card & logo image features a stylized image of the one-of-a-kind, massive, high-voltage electrical transmission arches found in the Nicollet Island neighborhood of Minneapolis.
Nicollet Island sits in the Mississippi River across from downtown Minneapolis and was once a major industrial area of the city’s storied flour milling history. Now, the island is a beloved urban park and historical district.
The soaring, double-circuit steel arches that march across Nicollet Island were designed specifically for this crossing area of the Mississippi. Planners concluded that standard utility towers would have disrupted the majestic skyline views of Minneapolis. Their unique design seeks to echo the lines and arches of historic bridges found in this protected neighborhood—such as the nearby Hennepin Ave. and Stone Arch Bridges.
Each graceful, cathedral-like arch conceals a two-pole configuration that carries high-voltage lines safely over the Mississippi’s water channels.
My logo pays homage to these dramatic arches by symbolically invoking not only the city of Minneapolis but also the powerful energy the arches carry as well as the elegant, ingenious design solution the arches provided for a pragmatic need. Also, the arches form the letter “M” - which is particularly appropo for my name!
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Business Card, side 02
Business Card, side 01
Business Card graphic, detail