Historic Event Invitation

Class: ART 354 Design for Use 

Professor: Christy Carr

For this project, I need to design an invitation to a historical event. This event can be real or fictional, can be serious or “tongue in cheek” but I need to engage recipients when they receive the envelope or the packaging.  It should create interest and excitement about the event, communicate the flavor of the event, and provide all the necessary information to attend. The visual essence of the message and all the information should flow through the “event” of getting the invitation, and everything about it—receiving, opening, comprehending, and responding to the invitation—should enhance the communication of the facts and the flavor of the event. By its very nature, this project involves the third and fourth dimensions. To begin with, I selected three events from the past and do some preliminary research and exploration.  

From the above three events, I decided to choose the first cocktail party to move further. Specifically, Mrs. Julius S. Walsh organized this event in honor of Dana's eggnog parties. She invited 50 friends over to her mansion for a 1-hour party of drinking and merriment which she termed “a Cocktail Party.” After finding out the details of personal information about Mrs. Walsh and the historical background at the time of the event, I sketched some simple design for my invitation.

From the sketch above, I designed a basic draft of my invitation.

At first, I intended to design a simple three-fold invitation with a laser-cut door in the center but as the project progressed, I decided to make more complex collateral pieces such as a friendly response card and cocktail menu.

For the package of the invitation, I consider applying the origami paper folding technique to create a new feeling for the recipient. There are many diverse origami techniques to choose from, so I had to fold quite a few prototypes to choose the most suitable and convenient origami style. 

After the basic design was complete, I tried printing out an invitation to receive feedback from my classmate. Since this was my first time using the laser cutter technique, I had to reprint quite a few times. 

I bring my prototype to class to critique and receive feedback. From the feedback I received, I decided to change the palette and some details of my invitation to get the final version below. 

Below is my printout invitation that comes along with its package.