PRINT & MISC.
DESIGN PROJECTS
RESTORING PROMISE PHOTO BOOK
A photobook designed in collaboration with creative studio, Dresscode NY, who I supported in their documentary work of the initiative, designed as an elegant souvenir and powerful visual overview for current and potential funders not only as a token of appreciation but also as a physical reminder of the kind of change they were or would be funding.
Photography: Andre Andreev, Dresscode NY / Design: Jack Duran, Vera Institute of Justice
THE PAST IS PRESENT TIMELINE POSTER
Designed to accompany the “Past is Present” exhibit as a self-guided experiential design that visitors could take home or to their office as a souvenir to display.
Design and production: Jack Duran, Vera Institute of Justice
DESIGNED FOR DIGNITY POCKET PAMPHLET
I suggested and led creative direction/design, including copy strategy, of this small pocket-sized handout for the initiative that could be handed to people we come into contact with as a quick overview of why we should reform American prisons and why we should look to European systems as a model for human dignity. The pamphlet had been distributed at Restoring Promise’s national convenings for participants skeptical of prison reform.
Design and production: Jack Duran, Vera Institute of Justice
NATIONAL CONVENING AGENDA
I designed the initiative’s convening agenda and overhauled the design strategy for its conference materials to ensure maximum impact on participants across every touchpoint.
Design and production: Jack Duran, Vera Institute of Justice
DESIGNED TO HEAL MICROSITE
I produced this immersive photo essay microsite, using photography of prisons abroad and video, including interviews, as a digital overview of a global exchange study tour Vera hosted in 2019 for funders, state legislators, corrections officials and officers, and more, that would be sent to them to reaffirm their commitment to driving transformation inside prisons and jails across the country.
Design and production: Jack Duran, Vera Institute of Justice
A key feature of my design practice is immersiveness, so the microsite featured an immersive three-part menu that broke the global study trip into three key themes: 1.) The problem of mass incarceration we’re faced with in the U.S.; 2.) How Germany reckoned with the Holocaust to then make human dignity central to its government policies; and 3.) How they then redesigned their entire correctional system to uphold this principle of human dignity. The microsite was meant to function as a call to action for American leaders to reckon with the state of American incarceration and redesign facilities with a commitment to upholding human dignity.
FUNDRAISING DESIGN
As part of my creative strategy work embedded in Vera’s flagship prison reform initiative, Restoring Promise, I helped initiative directors overhaul the content design of fundraising material and presentations being done for the initiative. As a research organization, Vera had struggled with effectively communicating its work in a concise and engaging way, so I had worked to overhaul the design direction and content strategy of its fundraising materials as part of its narrative change efforts to shift the public discourse. The focus on designing bold and visually expressive materials for donors was part of strategic efforts to diversify Restoring Promise’s donor profile, shift away from dependency on government/legacy foundation grants, and attract private major donors whose investments would allow the initiative to exponentially expand across the country. Part of the challenge was succinctly and visually conveying the data behind the work in simplified and digestible ways while helping team members think through how to make presentations more impactful for donors and public audiences.
RESTORING PROMISE PITCH PRESENTATION DESIGN
RESTORING PROMISE
FUNDRAISING PACKET DESIGN
MYVOTE VOTING APP BRAND CONCEPT
I designed this brand concept for a voter registration app in 2018 at a time when civic participation and voting rights are increasingly threatened in the U.S. The process to get people to register to vote can be cumbersome, bureaucratic, menacing, and out-dated, and in an era of unprecedented technological advancement, it was a wonder to me why more designers and technologists were not using their skills to improve and increase access to democracy through service and civic design. A simple, user-friendly, well-designed voter registration app could help ensure a thriving and active democracy in a digital age, especially with younger generations that tend to be more politically active and digitally savvy than previous ones.
MyVote was a personal thought exercise of mine in imagining what the future of voting in the U.S. could look like. Perhaps, one day I will be able to bring it to life, or perhaps these designs might inspire someone else to take up that challenge. Either way, I believe a healthy democracy requires making civic participation accessible and easy to everyone, and a mobile voter registration app like MyVote that help citizens register to vote and find their polling place with the tap of a finger is just the thing we need.
