Visual history of women's sports at OSU

Abstract

This poster series was designed to highlight four women's sports programs at Oklahoma State and their achievements over the years. The goal was for the project to be rooted in graphic design while including multimedia and archival elements. For each respective team there are three posters representing different eras in the program's history. Where they started (black background), where they've been (orange background), and where they're going (white background).

I began by researching each sport and noting specific historical events and milestones to establish each era. One of the challenges at this stage was the lack of centralized archived information for women's sports at OSU. Once enough information was gathered, I put together vision boards for the posters using inspiration from Pinterest and social media. My goal was to mimic a scrapbook look by using paper and hand drawn elements.

Next I collected images and elements from various sources. I visited Heritage Hall in Gallagher Iba Arena and took photos of the items in each team's section. I collected images from OSU Athletics and talked to a few sports information directors within athletics. I also gathered old yearbook pages from the library's virtual archive. This process allowed me to establish a vision and gain inspiration for each design.

Once I collected resources, I began designing each poster using Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Illustrator. This process was the lengthiest, but most rewarding. I gained appreciation for each sport by spending time in each era. One of the main issues in women's sports is a lack of media coverage compared to men's sports. This project allowed me to highlight the successes and history of women's athletics at OSU and contribute positively to the media coverage of women's sports.