For this project, I was assigned to design a series of stamps in Adobe Photoshop that highlighted a culture or community to which I felt personally connected. I decided to create a series highlighting four landmarks in my hometown of Fall River, Massachusetts. This city is also home to a large population of Portuguese immigrants and descendants who played a hand in raising me. To combine both aspects of my childhood, I wanted to showcase the selected landmarks and encase the images in a traditional Portuguese mosaic tiling pattern.
research
selected four most iconic landmarks in Fall River, MA
researched traditional Portuguese mosaic patterns I could incorporate to represent Portuguese culture in the city
sketching
sketched layouts, typefaces, and photo orientations
In the end, my stamp series is a culmination of the culture and community that raised me and highlights the city's historically significant landmarks. Showcasing this city also preserves the memories of my carefree, wonder-filled childhood.
process
design
gathered high-quality images
removed subjects from backgrounds in Adobe Photoshop
roughly laid out images on canvas, before refining
Since my designs focused heavily on the landmark images, I thought it would be best to start by locating those images before sketching out ideas. This way, I wouldn’t have to find images that fit my vision in the sketches and, most likely, make further sacrifices that could diverge from my initial ideas. After selecting a sketch that would become my stamps, I began experimenting with the typography of “Fall River.” Since all of my images captured a large portion of the sky, I thought it would be visually interesting to include the text as if it were part of the sky itself, almost like clouds. This approach allowed me to make the typography compelling without drawing too much attention away from the stamps’ main subject.
