Tools Used
- Adobe Photoshop
- Adobe Illustrator
- Adobe InDesign
Skills Demonstrated
- Art direction and concept development
- Complex compositing and image manipulation
- Detailed selections and masking
- Multi-channel advertising design
- Visual storytelling
- Layout adaptation across print and digital formats
Project Description
As part of my role as Graphic Design Lead at Thunderbird School of Global Management at Arizona State University, I developed a series of print and digital advertisements promoting Thunderbird Executive Education’s Space Diplomacy and Operations courses in Washington, D.C. and Los Angeles.
With space becoming an increasingly important arena for international collaboration, the campaign needed to communicate the intersection of two seemingly different worlds: global diplomacy and space exploration. I approached the creative direction by grounding each advertisement in the city where the course would take place, then transforming familiar landmarks into visuals that look toward the future of diplomacy beyond Earth.
Design Considerations
For the Washington, D.C. campaign, I selected an image of the Washington Monument photographed from a dramatic upward perspective. The angle was chosen specifically for its resemblance to a rocket launching into space, allowing an instantly recognizable symbol of Washington and international affairs to take on an entirely new meaning within the context of space diplomacy. Through compositing and atmospheric effects, I extended the monument into a celestial environment that visually connects the course’s location with its subject matter.
For the Los Angeles campaign, I centered the composition around the Griffith Observatory. Beyond its connection to Los Angeles, the observatory offered an opportunity for more symbolic storytelling. As a place built around observing and understanding the universe, it represents humanity turning its attention toward the stars—an appropriate metaphor for space emerging as a new frontier for diplomacy, leadership, and international cooperation.
Together, the two concepts establish a cohesive visual system while giving each course its own sense of place. Dramatic perspectives, celestial imagery, and Thunderbird’s brand elements unite the campaign across both print and digital applications.
BONUS:
The visual direction proved strong enough that I saw an opportunity to extend the concept beyond the Space Diplomacy campaign. I developed a similar advertisement promoting Thunderbird’s broader degree portfolio, this time blending the Arizona desert landscape with imagery of outer space. The composition connects Thunderbird’s home in Arizona with opportunities that reach far beyond Earth, reinforcing the school’s forward-looking approach to global leadership while expanding the visual language established by the original campaign.
Results
The final campaign created a distinctive visual identity for Thunderbird Executive Education’s Space Diplomacy and Operations offerings, balancing recognizable landmarks with unexpected, aspirational imagery to make a complex subject immediately engaging. The ads were diplayed in Bloomberg Businessweek, Space News, and Thunderbird Executive Education’s social media channels.
The degree portfolio advertisement was also selected for placement in Bloomberg Businessweek. After seeing the final creative, the publication upgraded the advertisement to the opening page of their B-school report—giving the campaign significantly greater visibility and serving as a rewarding validation of the strength of the design.
This project was an exciting opportunity to use conceptual thinking and compositing not simply for visual impact, but to communicate the larger idea behind the programs: as humanity’s reach expands beyond Earth, the principles of diplomacy and global leadership must expand with it.
Katie Stains 