Liz Linton of Walden, N.Y., a Visual Communication-Graphic Design major at Mount Saint Mary College, stands alongside her work. The display featured a blend of typography and illustration, including her “Marilyn” piece created in Adobe Illustrator.
For Mount Saint Mary College senior Elizabeth Linton of Walden, N.Y., a blank canvas is a source of inspiration.
A Visual Communication – Graphic Design major with a deep-seated love for illustration, Linton’s journey to the Mount’s Commencement ceremony on Saturday, May 16 has been paved with meticulous line work, vibrant vector graphics, and a continuous drive to keep moving forward.
“I feel like I’m always doing something, which is a good thing for me. I don’t really like sitting still,” Linton explained.
Linton arrived at the Mount as a transfer student from SUNY Orange, drawn by a well-deserved scholarship and the college’s proximity to home. While her academic path is now firmly rooted in the digital arts, her inspiration is found in the analog past. She credits her grandfather, Martin Adams, for sparking her interest through the vintage French posters he kept in his study.
“They were these old French posters – like Toulouse – and they were some of the very first examples of graphic design,” she said. “The posters were so cool to look at because they were very simple, but the text was this beautiful, swirly lettering.”
This appreciation for elegant design and simple, impactful illustration has followed her through her time at the Mount, where she has been a fixture in the Communication, Media, and Art (CMA) program. Whether she was vectorizing logos for the Warwick Community Conference Center or redesigning professional print work at her internship with the Bank Art Gallery in Newburgh, Linton is constantly refining her craft.
Beyond the technical skills, Linton’s time at the Mount has been defined by the community she found in the studio. She speaks fondly of the design sessions and the honest critiques from professors like Christopher Neyen, associate professor of Art and Graphic Design; director of the Communication, Media, and Art program; and coordinator of the CMA Gallery on campus. Linton credits Neyen with helping her navigate everything from class schedules to professional expectations.
When asked what advice she would give to incoming freshmen, her response was as impactful and pragmatic as her art: “Don’t be afraid to do a bad design, because it can only get better,” Linton said. “You can only improve. So don’t be afraid to submit something and then get that critique and work off of it.”
As she prepares to walk across the Commencement stage, Linton is already looking toward a future that might include branding for major companies or designing movie posters. But regardless of the medium, her philosophy remains the same: finish the work, take the feedback, and start another project.
“There’s nothing worse than having an abandoned project because you were too afraid to finish,” she said. “Don’t be afraid to finish something. Because then when it’s finished, and it’s out there, it’s done. Then you can start over and you can do it new.”