Dear Corita
Screenprinting, Digital Design, Web Design, Online Commerce, Sales Management
Screenprinting, Digital Design, Web Design, Online Commerce, Sales Management
Designer: Brittany Latham
The Brief
“Corita Kent (1918–1986) was an artist, educator, and advocate for social justice. At age 18, she entered the religious order Immaculate Heart of Mary, eventually teaching and heading the art department at Immaculate Heart College. During her career, her artwork evolved from figurative and religious imagery to incorporating advertising images and slogans, popular song lyrics, biblical verses, and literature. Throughout the ‘60s, her work became increasingly political, urging viewers to consider poverty, racism, and social injustice.” (Corita.org) As an admirer of Sister Corita Kent’s work and as part of studio exploration, I wanted to curate a project exploring Corita Kent’s recontextualization method in a modern context. Later, as a personal summer project, I created an online pop-up shop to sell each tote.
Discovery
Through a meticulous exploration of Corita Kent’s body of work, I found that many of her messages involved commonly found symbols such as bible verses, song lyrics, and advertising images to urge viewers to consider major socio-political issues of the time. Through her many serigraphs, watercolors, and commissions, her work remained vibrant, hopeful, and optimistic. My goal was to emulate this in the context of the 21st century.
Applied Outcomes
- Canvas bags as the project's foundation allow the work to be mobile and easily accessible to viewers.
- An online pop-up shop allows users to explore more about Corita Kent and to purchase the work at an accessible, low cost.
- Recontextualized symbols include messages of love, default digital fonts, standard placeholder text, social logos such as a re-post icon and equal sign, and silhouetted stock images. Together, the symbols speak to current standards of equality and beauty in a digital world.
Design Highlights
- Screen printed using cut vinyl and acrylic paint. This allowed for a loose application, parallel to Corita’s, and an efficient way to screen print bags within two days.
- Vibrant colors melting into each other conceptually capture the fluidity and positivity of the symbols at play.
