The Amen Corner
Poster Design, Illustration, Marketing
The Feast, formerly known as The Williams Project, hired me to create a full set of marketing materials for their production of James Baldwin’s play, The Amen Corner, and for the additional events leading up to the production titled, Summer of Baldwin.
In an early meeting, the play’s director, Reggie D. White, said this and it became the leading inspiration for the image and subsequent artistic/design choices: “Lean into the idea that the stained glass is a language, the people are a language that fit into that, because they are part of the artwork of the church and she is not.”
The Amen Corner
Web Hero Image
“Lean into the idea that the stained glass is a language, the people are a language that fit into that, because they are part of the artwork of the church and she is not.” - Reggie D. White, director
Instagram tile, 1 of 3
Instagram tile, 2 of 3
Instagram tile, 3 of 3
Blank instagram template
Flyer, front & back
Array of digital advertisements and thumbnails for The Stranger, EverOut Seattle, Converge Media, South Seattle Emerald, and the online ticketing service
Summer of Baldwin
Advertisement for The Frye Museum
Advertisement for The Frye Museum
Summer of Baldwin Instagram Tile 1 of 2
Summer of Baldwin Instagram Tile 2 of 2
Blank Instagram Template
The Voices of Legends Instagram Tile 1 of 2
The Voices of Legends Instagram Tile 2 of 2
Blank Instagram Template
Process & Considerations
On the project, I became very familiar with the script and drew upon historical research and photos of Baldwin, Harlem, and the church to thoughtfully and accurately compose a main image and concept that could be used across all materials.
Visual Inspiration
Reggie shared some of the paintings below with me because he liked how they expressed joy and emphasized celebration. In the poster, we strove to capture communion and worship contrasted by the main character’s interiority and the ways she is ostracized.
As a white designer, it was necessary to be informed and to be aligned with the director’s vision, whose own lived experiences shared commonalities with the play’s content.
While I found most of my references for visual elements in historical photos, Jacob Lawrence and Romare Bearden were extremely useful when I was first ideating on the idea and composition. I looked to these artists’ work for composition, poetics, reference for color, materials and textures, and depiction of the Black church. The mood boards below are a collection of the photos and paintings that visually informed the production’s poster.
