Art Students Create Design for New Recycling Truck

The winning design from a team including Lacy Casteel, Abby Ryals, Haley Johnson, Molly Egan and Jose Aguilar.

The Office for Sustainability enlisted the help of U of A art students to develop a design for Facilities Management’s new recycling truck.

Nadia Issa, a professor in the Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences, worked with Facilities Management to open the design process to students in two sections of her User Experience art course as a “Hogs Go Green” class project. Six groups of five students spent the first month of the spring semester creating potential artwork to feature on the university recycling truck.

“I witnessed firsthand [the students’] enthusiasm and dedication in creating a design that is not only visually appealing but also derives from a deep understanding of the diverse needs and behaviors of our campus community members interacting with the recycling truck,” Issa said.

Eric Boles, director of the Office for Sustainability, said he felt the collaboration between his department and the art school would be mutually beneficial.

“This was a unique cross-campus collaboration that provided our students a platform to show how design can be a means to increase environmental awareness,” Boles said.

EVALUATION OF DESIGNS

Campus employees from Razorback Athletics, University Relations, Facilities Management and the School of Art formed a review committee to evaluate each team’s design and ultimately determine which one would be selected to be placed on the truck.

“All six designs were great, so we talked it through as a group and came to a consensus regarding which design would serve the campus best,” Boles said.

The designs that were featured varied from vibrant depictions of wildlife, iconic campus landmarks, sustainability symbols and Razorback pride. Each design derived from a deep understanding of the user’s experience and explored different ways in which community members could possibly interact with the recycling truck, Issa said.

Boles added that gathering university employees from several areas of campus embraces the “One University” goal of cooperating between U of A departments to create a better campus.

The new artwork will hopefully attract more attention to the U of A’s ongoing objective to keep campus clean and environmentally friendly.

“The folks at Razorback Recycling have been doing the hard work to gather and sort our recyclables on campus since 1992,” Boles said. “I’m hopeful that this project can raise awareness of their tireless commitment to our campus and the planet. It’s the least we can do.”

The students in Issa’s course gained insights through surveys and discussions into the campus community’s attitudes toward recycling. They were tasked with combining their findings with their own thoughts on sustainability efforts and their visual preferences to create an image that both serves the hard work of recycling teams and communicates the necessity and benefits of achieving a cleaner campus. This user-centered approach ensured their designs resonated with the community.

The members who worked on the selected design are Lacy Casteel, Abby Ryals, Haley Johnson, Molly Egan and Jose Aguilar. Graduate student Andrea Guevara co-instructed the course with Issa, and the course’s teaching assistant was graduate student Israel Adeleye.

The design has been finalized and is set for print and installation later this spring.

This story also appeared in the University of Arkansas News publication.

OTHER TOP DESIGNS