Posting Date: April 17, 2009
Student has designs in the new KSU Dining Hall
By Liza Scales
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Senior graphic arts major Jenny Park |
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Part of the winning design to be displayed in new Dining Hall on the KSU campus |
Faye Silverman, director of the Auxiliary Services and Programs at Kennesaw State University, presented a challenge to the art students to design for the main menu in the new Dining Hall. Senior graphic arts major Jenny Park’s work stood out as the perfect design to reflect the building's energy. Rob Nolen, marketing manager of ASaP, says, “We got some great work from the students, but Jenny really grabbed the concept of what we were looking for.” Nolen describes Park as professional, easy to work with, efficient and right on target. “When we requested minor changes,” he says, “she reflected what we asked for on the first try.” Park was awarded a $500 prize in addition to exposure for her design.
Her inspiration was to create a sense of the aroma of coffee wafting through the air. The winning design measures 36 feet around and six feet high and will be superimposed on a huge bowl structure above the coffee kiosk, immediately visible to all who enter the building. “I am so honored and excited to leave a piece of myself behind at Kennesaw,” says Park.
In addition to the winning design for the Dining Hall challenge, Park was the runner-up out of 20 submissions in the contest to create artwork for permanent displays in the Science Building on the KSU campus.
Growing up, Park said she wanted to be a fashion coordinator, but she had “no idea what that meant. But my mother was an artist, and I think I have her talent in me.” Through her early school years, she was always involved in something related to art, but it wasn’t until middle school when she took her first formal drawing class. Then Park’s family emigrated to the U.S. in 2000 to escape the hectic lifestyle and small spaces of Korea. As a permanent resident, she feels at home here, but her cultural roots still lie in Korea.
Initially, Park thought she would start her art studies at KSU and transfer to an art school. “But,” she says, “After my first few years here, I realized that Kennesaw was growing, and I wanted to be part of that growth. And the professors are so passionate when you get into upper level courses; you can’t help but be inspired just being around them.”
Her favorite course is Design Strategy with Associate Professor of Art Jeanne Sperry; this course brings students into contact with real-world clients. “We have to think outside the box as we blend the clients’ marketing needs with our skills,” says Park. “In that course, I grew as an artist and a person; I got wiser and more seasoned. Prof. Sperry made me realize this is exactly what I want to do and be the best I can be.”
Park’s work is often inspired by the variety of non-academic reading she does in her spare time—not only books, but visual images in magazines stir her imagination. As a “much needed diversion from so much time on the computer,” she explores baking and cooking.
Lining up interviews for a career is on the horizon for Park. Sperry believes that Park will have no problem finding a great job. “Whoever finds her will be lucky and very fortunate because she is one of the most poised and mature students I’ve had in a long time. She has a striking presence about her, and is polite, courteous and thoughtful.” Sperry deems Park a wonderful designer, complete and thorough in her work, and an inspiration to other students.