Student Spotlight: Brielle Stein

Brielle Stein, a senior in Auburn’s School of Industrial and Graphic Design (SIGD), loves typography and engaging with her community. Originally from Dallas, Texas, Stein decided to visit Auburn with a friend just for fun and ended up falling in love with the campus and surrounding area. She first started at Auburn as a business major before realizing that graphic design appealed more to her creative side. After meeting a few students from SIGD and doing some research, she made the switch and hasn’t looked back since. “I’ve fallen in love with graphic design” Stein stated. “Good design is all about finding clever and relatable ways to communicate messages. If I had all day to talk design, I would.”

Stein’s favorite area of graphic design is typography, describing it as “beautiful in its undeniable power to reach people and share messages both literally and artistically.” Naturally, this love is reflected in her favorite classes: Type I and Kinetic Type. She especially appreciates the honesty of all her professors and their ability to not only provide critiques but also push their students to trust their own instincts. Stein especially credits Professor Kelly Bryant as a source of inspiration. “She is incredibly talented and has such a fine-tuned awareness of space, composition and concept,” Stein commented.

Stein has also studied abroad in Switzerland, working in the studio of Dafi Khune, a Swiss designer and letterpress printer. She was able to further pursue her interest in typography by learning about analog letterpress and typographic rules and anatomy. “I was exhausted by the end of it, but I walked away with a better understanding of typographic practices,” she commented. Stein wholeheartedly recommends this program to others since it is a wonderful opportunity to work with a diverse demographic of designers and take advantage of the experiences and resources out in the world. “These experiences informed my work here at Auburn. I think my process and outcomes are much better for it!”

At the moment, Stein doesn’t have specific plans for after graduation but hopes to find work in Boston or Austin and potentially pursue graduate school. Her dream is to find a job that will allow her to be hands on and involved in the process. For now, she is very invested in her community and draws inspiration from it. “I am part of a community that is not just college kids. Participating in life with people in all different phases all contributing to the health and well-being of one beloved community is formative to who I am,” she explained.

Her advice to other students in her field is to “not get bogged down in what everyone else is doing or in feeling like you need to have a personal style.” She believes that being fluid and open with one’s style allows for more opportunities and results in a well-rounded designer. She also advises students against comparing themselves to others. “Comparison will steal all your joy,” she stated. Rather than comparing herself to others in her field, she finds it useful to learn from her colleagues in order to grow as a designer. “I never want to be done learning.”