First Year IDEA School of Design students designed some fabulous international shopping bags for their last big project of the year

The last big project of the year in IDES 142 Survey and Principles of Design II is for First Year students to design a shopping bag to represent a country, city or geographical location.

There was some extraordinary work created overall, showcasing both the students' design and illustration skills. Below are a few of the standout projects from IDEA School of Design Grad 2023 students including ‘New York City’ (shown above) by Marko Jones.

“This year’s crop of First Year students designed some fabulous international shopping bags for their last big project of the year. There were some innovative typographic solutions as well as some very graphic and illustrative takes on countries and cities.”

— Vida Jurcic, CGD, Instructor

“This shopping bag was inspired by the bright lights of New York City. I chose to recreate the cities iconic skyline only using small white dots. The dots signify different aspects of New York, one being the lights that shine through the windows of the Manhattan skyscrapers. Another area I drew inspiration from was the infamous Time Square. I was lucky enough to visit Time Square a couple years back and I remember being amazing by the size of the screens. From afar, the dots on the shopping bag create a unified form but when you look closer it is actually made up of little dots, similar to the pixels on the screens of Time Square.”

— Marko Jones (IDEA Grad 2023)

'Papua New Guinea Eharo Mask' by Connie Low (IDEA Grad 2023)

In the Eastern Gulf of Papua New Guinea, the Elema people have Hevehe ceremonies where they wear masks for dance rituals called Eharo masks. This shopping bag showcases one of those masks on the front along with patterns inspired by paintings and textile patterns from Papua New Guinea on the sides. I chose this idea because I wanted the bag to be repurposed interestingly and interactively. The mask can be cut out of the bag and the handles can be reused as straps so that people can wear the mask.

'Philippines' by David Bautista (IDEA Grad 2023)

This shopping bag pays homage to the Philippines, my country of birth. I wanted to illustrate certain aspects of its culture, such as the woman in traditional attire, the Manila skyline and the sun symbol of the national flag in a stylistic manner. All to express the beauty one could experience while visiting the Philippines.

'New York' by Justin Filippone (IDEA Grad 2023)

2020 is a year like no other. To depict the devastating effects of Covid-19, I choose to design a shopping bag for New York. A city facing tremendous gloom at this time. In 2017, I traveled to New York and took this photo from the Empire State building when the city was previously booming, vibrant, and full of life. I decided to use the photo designing the bag using a minimalist approach by using black and white with black in the fold for a somber feel. I inverted the photo to depict the city turned upside down to show the current situation at the moment.

'Kyoto' by Kathrin Teh (IDEA Grad 2023)

Japan is known for a multitude of things - one of the more underrated being their graphic design. I went on a month long trip there last summer to explore their art and culture on my own, falling in love with the cute and clever style prevalent throughout each prefecture. This shopping bag for Kyoto was inspired by their simplistic logo designs and clever usage of typography.

'Loch Ness Lake' by Kelsea Vance (IDEA Grad 2023)

The Loch Ness Monster or Nessie is such an iconic part of Scottish lore and such a rich mythology demands to be featured on tourism products. I wanted to capture the eerie grey skies over the lake and I had to make sure the bag had a ribbon so Nessie's body becomes a part of the bag.

'Antwerpen' by Megan Barry (IDEA Grad 2023)

Antwerp (or Antwerpen in Flemish) is Belgium’s most populous city and Europe’s second-largest port. It has been a major economic and cultural hub of Europe for centuries; however, despite its storied history, the city maintains a fresh and contemporary image. I wanted my bag to represent this contemporary fashion-forward look through clean and simple typography. I chose the colour red because the roof of Antwerp’s central train station (which you should see if you ever get the chance) is held up by steel supports which are painted a beautiful shade of burgundy.

'Florida' by Nisa Hansen (IDEA Grad 2023)

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In IDES 142 Survey and Principles of Design II students study the global dialogue of design movements and look at many countries for design inspiration. This is the final big project.