My Experience at Summer Studio: Palm Trees, Pencils and Plenty of Fun 

by Riley Mason

When I ask myself what I want to be when I grow up—or rather, in just a few short years—the creative field immediately comes to mind. I know my path may change, and my current vision of the future might not be entirely accurate, but one thing is certain: I need to work in an environment where I feel creatively inspired.

Riley Mason at Summer Studio

Last summer, I had the incredible opportunity to participate in Grady’s Summer Studio Creative Portfolio Program. I know—that’s quite a mouthful! But in essence, this program was a month-long creative portfolio boot camp. I completed eight mini-modules covering Adobe Creative Cloud, visual design, typography, photography, copywriting, digital design, strategy and personal branding. It offered me a firsthand glimpse into the creative future I had imagined for myself.

My mentor, friend, and PRSSA faculty advisor, Kim Landrum, runs the program and encouraged me to apply. Thanks to her push, June became a month filled with creativity and new experiences including meeting new friends and working with professionals from companies like See.Spark.Go, Apple, Calor Creative and more!

Friendships
Despite being only a month-long, this program led me to friendships that have lasted well beyond the summer. My friend Savannah and I collaborated on several projects during Summer Studio, but our bond extended beyond the classroom. One of my favorite memories was our spontaneous visit to the Athens Humane Society shelter, where we spent a morning with some sweet senior pups.

Deliverable from the photography module

While the program is both academically and creatively stimulating, the community you build with like-minded individuals is truly unmatched. I am so grateful for the friendships I made during Summer Studio.

Portfolio
One of the most impactful modules was personal branding, taught by the amazing Liza Dunning, Associate Creative Director at Apple. She wasn’t just a fantastic design instructor—she also taught us how to better understand ourselves through media. One afternoon, we were tasked with choosing three words to describe ourselves—a surprisingly difficult exercise!

Liza guided us in creating our own online portfolio websites, which I’m proud to say is still featured on my LinkedIn. This website showcases all the creative work I produced during the program, including photography, illustrations, digital designs, poster designs, and more! Feel free to check it out if you’re curious:

Deliverable from my visual design module

Click here for my online portfolio! 

Favorites
One of my favorite projects was redesigning an album or podcast cover. I chose to reimagine an album cover for one of my favorite bands, Watchhouse. From brainstorming to final edits, I poured my creativity into this project using Adobe Creative Cloud—Photoshop and InDesign quickly became my best friends.

This project was both personal and challenging. We regularly presented our work to the class for feedback, which helped me grow comfortable with receiving constructive criticism and using it to improve. Now, I feel much more resilient and confident in my creative process.

If you’re even a little curious about the creative world, I highly recommend considering Summer Studio. It truly is an amazing experience!