What sparked it all...

I have a varied and extremely selective memory, which makes thinking of my first relationship with design something rather difficult. However, for some unknown reason, a very specific experience popped into my head recently. I was five years old and, tragically, the only girl on my AYSO soccer team (my only female cohort left me for *gasp* ballet). It actually wasn’t as horrible to be the only girl as I expected….until it came time to choose a name. To my horror, the ruling majority (aka BOYS) chose (dun dun dun) the Blue Power Rangers. Yes, there were tears. I was trooper and got over the sadness. Until our first game. I have no memory of what our banner looked like, but I will never forget the opposing team’s amazing banner, complete with a huge, felt dragon. Pete’s Dragon, in fact.

This is Elliot from Pete's Dragon (1977). Pretty impressive, yes?

I can only assume that the team was named the Dragons. But that hardly matters anymore. What matters is the fact that I loved their banner so much that, fifteen years later, I remember being incredibly jealous of their team, possibly to the extent of not playing like the superstar that I was otherwise destined to be. Elliot made me want to be a part of their team. This moment stuck with me for a reason and has affected me beyond wanting to ditch the Blue Power Rangers for better prospects. This experience helped build my affinity for design. I was mesmerized by the looming (yet friendly) dragon and sold on its power of intimidation. Before that point, I can not imagine that I was aware of how powerful graphics and images can be on a person. But my emotional reaction was clearly profound enough to stick with me and possibly shape my desire to be actively involved in design. I can only hope that my designs evoke such emotional responses from five year olds some day.

I still want to be on the Dragons = /