Renee is an Associate Professor and Program Coordinator of the Communication Design program at the University of Cincinnati\u2019s College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning. She is a graduate of the Graphic Design program at the University of Cincinnati in 2002 and received her Master\u2019s from North Carolina State in 2008.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAs a Black woman, my identity of being Black sometimes supersedes that of being a woman, and all of this came out in this poster I was working on for AIGA,\u201d said Renee Seward, director of the Communication Design Program at the University of Cincinnati for the past fourteen years. She was asked to create a poster encouraging women to vote, but with the events happening in June 2020, that evolved the way she tackled the work. \u201cI was happy that that opportunity came my way, and that I could make what I want and say what I want, but I was slightly nervous in how it would be received,\u201d she adds.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Including her voice paid off – she recently was named a winner in the Graphic Design USA<\/a> Design competition for the poster she developed for the American Institute of Graphic Arts (AIGA) to promote voting. Reaching this point in her career has been a long road, but Renee has never been shy about speaking her own truth.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI think there are lots of good discussions and when you have lots of different voices, you can hear everyone\u2019s perspective. I think the love in my research is dealing with people who can\u2019t read and seeing the world from their perspective and how they solve problems. So, difference is good,\u201d she adds. <\/p>\n\n\n\n