Courtesy of Laura Shrago
Hometown: Sharon, Massachusetts
Major: Design with a concentration in Graphic and Information Design
Year: Class of 2021
What extra-curriculars are you involved in at NEU?
I participate in campus Jewish life and attend Scout (Northeastern’s graphic design organization) meetings and panels. I play bassoon in Northeastern’s Concert Band and I recently got involved in WRBB (Northeastern’s radio station) as a media team member.
Top three favorite musicians (bands/artists):
Lady Gaga is my mom. I also love Carole King, and Queen and Beyoncé are tied for third.
What do you do to relax after a stressful day?
I watch T.V., talk to my friends, and eat candy.
Courtesy of Laura Shrago
When are you going on co-op?
I’m going on co-op for the first time next Fall.
Why did you choose a Fall cycle for co-op?
A lot of design majors are going during the Fall because you are able to have more classes under your belt before you go. You have more time to get more classes and work experience before you apply.
Why did you choose a major in Graphic Design?
I really like art, but I also really like the organization and strategy that goes into graphic design. It made sense based on my personality and other things I liked growing up. When I was little, I liked setting up my dolls and stuffed animals in ways that made sense visually and logically. Designing the scene made sense. Honestly, the reason I came across the major is because my mom suggested it because she thought it was fitting for me. And she was right. Good job, Wendy.
Who/What inspires you the most?
I’m really inspired by old and modern art. Any art in T.V. shows, as well. Shows like “Bojack Horseman” are really cool because they use simplified imagery to get across complex ideas in a way that’s understandable to the viewers; I think it’s cool that that appears in television. Also, I’m really inspired by art in general. I love the Swiss style typography; it’s so satisfying and fascinating. I’ve been really into those things lately because it influences so much design in America like book covers and train stations.
Do you do any graphic design work outside of your formal studies?
Yes! I like to practice my skills with graphic design tools by making graphic art that I sell on Redbubble; I also put my art on Instagram. I also have a job at Northeastern’s College of Engineering as a graphic design assistant. Plus I do random freelance work for people, including logos, t-shirt designs, and personal art. My Instagram handle is @laurashragodesigns and my Redbubble is redbubble.com/people/laurashrago.
What was one of your favorite projects, personal or professional, that you’ve worked on?
As of today, it’s a typography broadside that I made for my typography class. Basically, we each got assigned a font and we had to make a poster with information about the font and show what the font looks like. I also really loved making the graphic images of drag queen faces from “RuPaul’s Drag Race.” They have such crazy makeup that it is so fun to make their facial features in a graphic art style.
Courtesy of Laura Shrago
Courtesy of Laura Shrago
Do you have advice for students pursuing a major in the arts that are dealing with the misconceptions that people have about studying in this field?
My advice would probably be, not that I’m an expert, to expect to be underestimated if you are talking about it to people who aren’t in the arts. People assume you don’t have a lot of work because you don’t have the same type of assignments like tests and essays all the time. What they don’t realize is that projects are often on-going so they just keep going as you get assigned more things. So you’re working on a million things at the same time; it’s just hard in a different way. It requires a different set of skills. You also have to be prepared to be critiqued a lot. You have to be able to handle people telling you that you are doing things wrong and that you need to fix them every class. It’s important to be open to suggestion. I’ve gotten a lot better at taking critique from people about all sorts of things, just because of all the practice I get from getting critiqued in my design classes.
Courtesy of Laura Shrago