Fall 2025
@ University of Tennessee - Knoxville
GRDS 355 - Advanced Typography
Recipitant of a Graphis New Talent Awards 2026 Silver award
Assignemnt
This porject asked students to design a type-driven label for a beverage of their own invention, aimed at a clearly defined audience. I approached the assignment throuhg a concept affectionately called “Grunge Baseball,” a visual blend of mid-century Americana and the raw, tactile sensibility of grunge design. The goal was to create packaging that felt expressive and genre-specific while remaining functional and appropriate for a physical soda bottle.
Approach
I began with research into existing soda brands, focusing especially on those sold in glass bottles. I analyzed packaging conventions, visual styles, and label content both online and through visits to local stores. I also studies vontage baseball graphics, including posters, jerseys, and sticket stubs, to inform the aesthetic direction. The name “FlyBall Bottle Co.” emerged from exploring baseball terminology. After experimenting with several visual languages, I landed on an angular, high-contrast system with a black, white, and red pallete. The minimal color scheme reinforced the grunge feel while avoiding overly nostalgic Americana tropes.
Results
I produced two cherry soda bottle prototypes featuring unique type compositions and back labels with public domain photographs from mid-century baseball games. The result is a brand concept that feels authentic to its “Grunge Baseball” roots— rough, memorable, and visually striking— yet flexible enough to expand into additional soda flavors. The bodl type, unexpected imagery, and layered design system work together to give the packaging a strong shelf presence and conceptual depth.