SIGD Alumna Wins Indigo Design Awards

Kaiyah King, a recent graduate of the School of Industrial and Graphic Design (SIGD), received several honors in the 2023 Indigo Design Awards. King’s submissions were all projects completed during her time in SIGD’s Graphic Design program. The Indigo Design Awards recognize exceptional projects that shine with an uncommon artistry and offer a fresh new take on design-inspired composition and layout.

As a student at Auburn, King completed a project for a directed study with Assistant Professor Lee Clark titled “Spindustry Annual Publications.” “Spindustry” is a fictitious publication that follows the trends and news in music throughout the year, with each publication giving fans the rundown on a particular genre of music. King won a Silver Award in the Magazine & Newspaper Design for Graphic Design category.

She was also named a Silver Award winner in the category of Branding for Alcoholic Beverages based on her senior project titled FIVEpm Distilling. This fictitious distilling company, based in Brooklyn, New York, makes small-batch vodka, gin and whiskey and specializes in curating cocktail kits. In addition to the Indigo Design Award, this project won a 2023 Graphic Design USA (GDUSA) Package Design Award.

Finally, King received a Silver Award in the Promotional Materials for Graphic Design category with her promotion for the fictional music album and tour of real-life recording artist Kehlani. Titled “Tsunami,” the project was inspired by the name of Kehlani’s clothing brand and their fan base’s nickname, Tsunami Mob. This project, completed during a package design class with Associate Professor Courtney Windham, also won a GDUSA Package Design Award in 2022.

As a student at Auburn, King was an Ambassador for the College of Architecture, Design & Construction (CADC), an officer for the Auburn chapter of the American Institute of Graphic Arts (AIGA), a board member of Student Alumni Ambassadors and the former VP of Marketing & Communications for the Black Student Union. She also worked for two years in CADC as a student designer. Since graduating in 2022, King has moved to Houston, Texas, to work as a designer for the full-service branding agency Primer Grey. She says she is grateful to the faculty who guided her through her time in SIGD. “I appreciate the Graphic Design faculty placing an emphasis and importance on the process of a project. I’ve felt prepared in how I approach projects, and storytelling has become my favorite part of designing.”