2017 ADDYs Awards Gala (From left: Brian Rivet, Cassidy Day, Luisa Restrepo Perez, Tory Cunningham, and Courtney Barr)

LSU graphic design students and the Graphic Design Student Office stole the show, bringing home 28 student awards, including best in show, at the 2017 Baton Rouge American Advertising Federation’s awards gala.

The Graphic Design Student Office earned six of the 28 awards—two golds, one special judge award, and three silvers. GDSO operates within the LSU School of Art, much like a small design firm, providing professional design services for local community organizations and university departments while students gain valuable, real-world experience and build their portfolios—and win awards! This year’s ADDY award-winning projects included a special judge award and gold award for the publication design of the book Janice Sachse: A Retrospective; a gold award for the LSU College of Art & Design’s 2015-16 Annual Report; and silver awards for special event materials (Elements, a brochure promoting the LSU School of Art’s exhibitions and lecture series), magazine publication design (the LSU Foundation’s summer and fall 2016 issue of Cornerstone), and single illustration (for the LSU Police canine unit).

The junior graphic design class taught by Associate Professor Courtney Barr and Instructor Luisa Restrepo Perez, received a student silver award for their class project, Experimental Alphabet. The remaining bevy of awards were brought home by individual graphic design students (see complete list below).

Gold student award winners’ work will be entered in the district level competition. Last year, LSU School of Art senior Brandon Coffee’s short film, Kevin & Bert, moved up through the ranks after winning a gold student award; he ended up winning a student gold award in the national 2016 American Advertising Awards competition in the animation and special effects category.

This stunning amount of student awards shows the high level of expertise of LSU School of Art graphic design students. In 2016, the LSU School of Art was ranked by Animation Career Review as one of the top five graphic design programs in the South (in the top three percent of schools considered) and 25th among public schools and colleges (in the top five percent of schools considered).

Students and faculty advisors attended the awards gala at L’auberge Casino & Hotel in Baton Rouge on March 4, 2017, to celebrate their success.