I worked solely on these projects. These projects include:
Branding, Typesetting, Concepting & Strategy, Photo Manipulation, AI Utilization

What’s a burn?

A burn is a temporary city run by a community of volunteers that focuses on participant-driven creativity and radical self-expression.

It all began with the largest one in the world: Burning Man. Burns have now expanded into regional events across the globe. Each burn has its own theme, branding, and je ne sais quoi. Since the theme changes every year, it creates an opportunity for new ideas and inspiration.

My contribution

At Flipside, which is the second largest burn in the United States (behind Burning Man), I am currently the Graphics Art Lead and Survival Guide designer.

The survival guide is intended to instruct participants on what to expect and how to prepare, as well as help set the tone for that year’s theme. Other assets I’ve designed include the event wristband, the official event map, and volunteer swag.

Since 2023, I have produced work for 4 of the major burns in Texas: Burning Flipside, FreezerBurn, Myschievia, and UnBrokenSpring.

The Work

FreezerBurn 2024

Upon hearing the theme, the concept of eyes being so prevalent throughout history and art struck a chord with me. The chosen pieces—ranging from early years to modern-day works—are centered around eyes, representing wisdom and expression, and play with paint, color, and modern art techniques.

Since the guide experiments with art traveling through history, it’s intended to be read as a long linear path.

Burning Flipside 2024

I was given free rein to interpret the event’s theme, Cosmic Critter Carnival. Per tradition, participants submit their ticket requests in hand-decorated envelopes. The previous survival guides had the envelope art placed in a very clunky way. I wanted to bring the art to life. So this is how I approached it.

I also had the honor of making the art for the event map.

As well as patches and a bandana for volunteer departments within the event.

Myschievia 2024

My concept for this guide was for this to feel similar to an activity book. The theme “All in Play” is meant to bring childhood joy back into adult lives, and I wanted this book to be the first introduction of that idea. There are several games and activities sprinkled in this manual.

Myschievia 2023

Due to it’s use of AI, I decided to remove this project from my portfolio. However, I wanted to use this as a conversation starter.

I used Adobe Firefly, which used imagery from Adobe Stock. I felt that solved the ethical dilemma of using AI for heavy-lifting projects. Since then, I have learned of its other issues, such as the environmental impact, and have changed my attitude toward the use of AI.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on AI usage.

My concept for this guide was to embrace the playfulness of the chosen theme via the feel of a video game dialogue. It’s a combination of pirates, cowboys, and …other creatures teaching the reader how to navigate this wild rodeo of an event. I felt using AI would add to the chaotic, quirky feel, so I utilized Firefly by Adobe to create the majority of the designs.

UnBrokenSpring 2023

Inspired by the theme “Door to Otter Space,” I decided to meld imagery of the universe and the aquatic habitat of these adorable otters. Since the guide can be a bit dry by the required (and kinda dry) information, my design was intended to make reading it feel more whimsical and fun.