BreakFree Hip Hop, Cornell University

Artistic Director, September 2012 - May 2013

During my senior year I acted as the Artistic Director on the Executive Board of BreakFree Hip Hop, the dance crew that I was on throughout my undergrad career. In this role, I was responsible for overseeing the visual design of all media that was released as well as costume theme design for major crew performances.

"Gangnam Style" Costume Design

The costume design for the "Gangnam Style" Flashmob that we put on in the Fall of 2012 had foundations in the official PSY music video by incorporating blazers and a K-Pop vibe. Additionally, I wanted to make sure that the members stood out from the participants, so each member was also adorned in brightly colored tops and each had a small purple ribbon (girls in their hair and boys pinned to their blazers). The only exception to this dress code was the member reenacting PSY's part in the music video, who can be seen in the accopanying pictures wearing a red bow tie and yellow shirt - though the crew dress code was meant to reflect the main character's outfit.

Event Advertisements

When designing advertisements for events such as auditions and shows, my goal was to draw in the widest range of students with a range of poster aesthetics. This meant that the designs had to have enough familiarity for fans to easily recognize them as BreakFree media, while also creating enough intrigue that students who were not already interested in dance events would be intrigued by them. This concept can best be seen in the first two photos (the auditions advertisement and showcase poster #1).

Showcase Posters

The 2013 showcase was entitled "Tell Me Your Story", and the theme was for each dance piece to tell a story by the choreographer (true or fictional). Thus, the posters reflected this theme by encompassing a storybook feel. Although I was the head of all artistic developments, our group promoted an engaging atmosphere and all members were encouraged to contribute to any department they chose. Since I was about to graduate and positions needed to be filled for the following year, it was necessary to have multiple younger members participate in training for the role. A major effort towards training was put in for the 2013 showcase posters. While the main poster was designed by me, I directed and oversaw the designs that junior members contributed such as the the Facebook-ready images for cover photos and profile pictures and a secondary showcase poster.