Thank You, Luxembourg is by far the most unexpected and extensive endeavour in my life. As such, it needs some background context:
During my junior year in 2018 while attending undergrad at Miami University, I studied abroad for a semester at our european campus in Luxembourg, aptly called Miami University Dolibois European Center (MUDEC for short). My time abroad coincided with the 50th anniversary of the European Center, and the university had commissioned a book, titled Thank You, Luxembourg to commemorate this anniversary. They had published brochures in the past that showcased alumni and faculty stories, but nothing to this degree — this book was going to be a proud, hard-bound, full-color, coffee-table masterpiece. And I, through some unexpected fortune, became a part of this project.
As if travelling the world wasn't enough, I signed up to work as a graphic designer on this book, which was still very much in the beginning phase. When I came on board, all we had was an outline and a few pages in Google Docs. We were a team of 3, and it quickly became evident that my role would have to expand beyond graphic design (and eventually leave it in the dust). I stepped into whatever task was needed that week; sometimes it was going through the archives and pulling old stories that could be re-included; sometimes it was conducting historical research and fact checking; one week I interviewed over 30 alumni, and the next week transcribed those interviews.
At the end of the semester, I offered to keep working on the book even after my return to the states, and since my associates only had enough bandwidth to act as supervisors, this suggestion was enthusiastically received. I continued my work on this book for the next year and a half, managing my own time and deadlines, and checking back in every couple weeks with my supervisors. I was in charge of coordinating a timeline with our publishing company, and crafted the book from start to finish following the initial outline that had been made. In the end, I only played a minor role in the design of the book. Life is funny sometimes.
During the semester I was in Luxembourg, MUDEC hosted a weeklong celebration to commemorate their 50th Anniversary. Over 700 alumni attended, and I had the opportunity to meet and interview many of them. More than once I was asked if I was a journalism student, which always made me laugh in response as I explained that I was a business student pursuing graphic and web design.
One of my favorite parts of creating Thank You, Luxembourg was researching the history and creating a timeline, which includes relative world events and MUDEC events, as well as sifting through MUDEC's archives to find the best vintage photos to pair with the history.
I interviewed and compiled over 100 alumni stories. I also compiled and retouched hundreds of photos to be included in the book. My favorite section is the travel section, which includes stories of travel mishaps as well as a collection of alumni photos from the past 50 years.
