HOMECOMING PRINT ISSUE

The Maneater, University of Missouri

Art Director

Project Type: Newspaper

Skill Focus: Creative Strategy, Layout Design, Leadership

In 2023, Mizzou’s student newspaper, The Maneater, decided to bring back print media in the form of a special homecoming edition. In 2024, I had the opportunity to lead the art direction of our now annual paper as the graphics editor. 

We wanted to put the magic of the Mizzou Homecoming traditions in print so generations from now, people can still see our legacy. Because of this, I decided to focus on Mizzou’s Black and Gold branding, instead of Maneater green. The interior is clean and crisp, reflecting that classic newspaper layout style, emphasizing the talents of our writers and photographers.

COVER DESIGN

For the front cover design I followed the idea of putting classic Mizzou traditions in print for future generations. I found an old photo of one of our most iconic landmarks, Jesse Hall and the Columns, and merged it with one of our photographer’s recent photos of the same location with homecoming decor. 

In photoshop, I manipulated the images, added grain, made them monochromatic, then brought them into Illustrator. There, I was able to make opacity masks, layer them in a clean, purposeful way, and push pixels ever so slightly until I was satisfied my message was clear.

This process made the cover sentimental and historical. I wanted to encourage readers to reflect on the years that came before us and how we can still see those traditions today. With the final touch of our classic Maneater logo, and the opportunity to add “Annual Homecoming Issue,” I felt like I was adding to the history of Mizzou and The Maneater. 

INTERIOR SPREADS

Though newspaper design is very layout oriented with crisp columns and few images, I wanted to break slightly from that pattern, while still staying clean and pristine. Here are a few examples of the interior spreads. 

As a creative, I wanted to be able to showcase not only our writers, but our photographers as well. I featured ten of our photographers' top photos from sports, fashion, and lifestyle. This page was coupled with the sports page. 

I used a combination of Illustrator, Photoshop, and (mostly) InDesign for these layouts. We outlined general story length at the start, which gave me the opportunity to create layouts before stories were done, expediting our process. The Missouri College Media Association awarded me with first place cover design, second place photo page design, and honorable mentions for my sports page and the paper as a whole.