Client
Ohio Department of Health
Public Health Campaign · Event Branding · Visual Communication
Ohio Department of Health
During a design consultancy with the Ohio Department of Health, I created public-health communications where clarity, accessibility, and speed directly affected how information reached Ohio communities. My hands-on work included Zika awareness graphics, trade-show and environmental signage, print collateral, editorial materials, and statewide visual communication. The project demonstrates visual design and art direction within government communications, translating complex health information into clear, credible, audience-focused design.
Project Overview
Where Every Design Decision Carries Responsibility
Public health communication has one standard that overrides everything else: It has to work for people who are not looking for it. At a state fair, in a building corridor, on a postcard, the message has to land quickly, clearly, and for an audience that includes every age, background, and level of health literacy. That is a different creative challenge than most client work, and it requires a different kind of discipline.
During a six-month design consultancy embedded within the Ohio Department of Health (ODH), the work ranged from urgent public awareness campaigns to institutional signage to multipage editorial publications. The most visible project was the trade show presence at the 2016 Ohio State Fair, built around two health issues that were front of mind for the public at the time: Zika virus awareness and childhood immunization requirements for school attendance.
My Role
Senior graphic design, visual design, campaign concept development, art direction, and production.
Project Goal
Translate the central message into a clear, engaging visual system that could work across formats and audiences.
Deliverables
Brochure design, editorial and report design, poster design, signage and environmental graphics, motion graphics, presentation design.
Design Approach
The Ohio Department of Health is the state agency responsible for protecting and improving the health of all Ohioans, with responsibilities spanning infectious disease prevention, emergency health preparedness, chronic disease reduction, environmental health monitoring, and healthcare quality assurance. ODH's reach is statewide, its audiences are diverse, and its communications carry real consequences. Getting the information right, and getting it seen, matters.
Design Consultant, Art Director & Senior Designer Brought in as a design consultant through a contract engagement, the work was fully integrated into ODH's creative operations. Day to day, that meant working directly within the department, taking direction from the creative director, and functioning as a senior member of the design team for the duration of the engagement. The output covered trade show graphics and signage, infographics, print collateral, direct mail, indoor and outdoor building signage, and multipage publications.
Public health design has to do something that most design does not: Communicate clearly under conditions of anxiety, distraction, and limited time. Zika was a genuinely frightening topic in 2016. Misinformation was widespread, public concern was high, and the department needed graphics that could cut through the noise at a state fair, where families are moving quickly and competing for attention in every direction.
Visual Design
A closer look at the visual system and the ways it was carried across the project.
