Lehigh University: Undergraduate Admissions

 

   

 

Denise Bogan

Denise Bogan, ‘07, carefully surveys the elegant living room displayed on her computer screen. She has designed every detail from the red shades on the chandelier to the individual flower petals.

This room is part of a semester-long project for Computer Imaging I. In the class, Denise uses Maya, a computer imaging program used to create graphics such as Disney’s Shrek and Smeagol from Lord of the Rings.

Denise’s room began as a plain cube. Throughout the semester, Denise has added furniture and detail. Now, she is learning to create texture and lighting. By December, Denise will have a short animated movie, complete with a character and a story line.

Denise’s computer imaging courses is one of several classes required for the design arts program, which offers concentrations in graphic design, computer imaging, and product design. Most students pick one concentration, but Denise is majoring in both graphic design and computer imaging.

“The design arts major teaches students to apply art and creativity to functional projects,” Denise says.

Students learn to use commercial software, such as Maya, Photoshop, and Adobe Illustrator. But Denise’s professors also emphasize basic art tools.

“I was given a strong background in design tools, ranging from a simple pencil to elaborate software programs,” Denise says.

Some tools were more natural for Denise than others. Before Drawing I, Denise was uncomfortable using a pencil to express a thought. 

 “I went in [to the class] thinking I’m a computer person,” she says. “I’m just not good at making things look good with a paper and pencil.”

 Her professor, Berrisford Boothe, transformed these fears.

“He doesn’t believe in talent,” she says. “He teaches a method and a mindset to getting results.”

Under his direction, Denise has thrived in an area where she previously struggled. “I look at some of the drawings I’ve done,” she says, “and I can’t believe I did them.”

Denise has already used her skills in business settings. Last year, she and a team of students from different colleges created an ergonomic lid for Crown Holdings as part of a year-long Integrated Product Design (IPD) class. The cap had to be difficult for a child to open, but easy for a senior citizen. Denise’s team gathered information on the coordination and strength of a 5-year-old’s hand and the hand of a 65-year-old. They discovered that the abilities of a child and a senior citizen were nearly identical; the difference was their mental understanding. After a semester of intense research, the students developed three ideas and created models of possible caps.

Designing the cap was only the first step. Next, the students created a marketing plan. To her surprise, Denise found herself conducting financial research with business majors, designing ads, and working with engineers. 

 “When I started out, I thought I would be the creative person,” Denise says. “When we started working on the project, everyone had to give up their roles and dive in. We didn’t have the luxury to specialize.”

Working with business majors brought Denise full circle at Lehigh. When she first came to Lehigh, Denise searched for the right major. She considered psychology and then business. In the middle of her sophomore year, Denise dropped her business courses and enrolled in art classes.

“I was majoring in business for the wrong reason,” Denise says.  “I chose it because I thought it would give me job security, not because it was what I wanted to do.  Design made me happy, I enjoyed it, and I decided that this was more important than whether or not I would have a clear-cut career path.  In 40 years, I want to wake up happy, even if it means giving up the security of knowing right now exactly where my career will lead.”

But Denise will not starve for her art. Instead, she is learning how to create art with a purpose. With a minor in marketing and a major in design arts, she will have many job opportunities in advertising and computer imaging. Her art will provide beauty to the mundane.

“Through the design arts program,” Denise says, “I’ve learned that designers hold an amazing power to influence and touch the daily lives of people in unexpected ways.”