Student news

Design student creates winning magazine cover

Fourth year Illustration student Laura Griffin fought off tough competition from fellow students with her winning design for the front cover of Edinburgh Friends magazine.

The brief

Edinburgh Friends is produced by the Alumni department and is sent to 10,000 donors to the University. Design students were asked to produce a cover illustration under the theme of Global Academies - the University’s multi-discipline initiative that aims to tackle worldwide problems such as inequality, poverty and hunger. Laura also received a commission fee of £250 for her work.

Impressive designs

Thirteen fourth year students submitted entries using varying styles and techniques and interpretations of the theme. Lucy Roscoe, teaching fellow in the School of Design was impressed by the submissions:

This has been a fantastic project for the students to work on, allowing them to be creative with their interpretations as well as connect with the work of the wider University. The submissions show a real grasp of the concept of the Global Academies and the far-reaching work of the University.

The winning illustration

Edinburgh Friends front cover

The competition was a great way for me to feel engaged with the University as a whole. It was also a challenging brief to interpret.I focused on the concept of interdisciplinary research, visualising a cover that associated a variety of ideas together as an interconnected structure of unity, research, education, and the city of Edinburgh itself. I wanted to convey the idea of this structure being supported by collaboration to reach a future ambition.

Laura GriffinFourth year Design student

Brian Campbell, editor of Edinburgh Friends, added:

It has been a real pleasure to work with students on the cover of the latest edition of the magazine. It has always been an important publication for the University to communicate the positive developments that have been happening in the past year, so it is very fitting that we involve our students in its production.

Laura’s illustration can be seen on the cover of the latest edition of Edinburgh Friends.