2024 Senior Exhibition Artists

Emma Yell

Concentration: Art + Design: Illustration | Graphic Design

About Emma Yell

Emma Yell is a professional illustrator and graphic designer based in Southeastern MA. Inspired by the mid-century modern era, West Coast aesthetics, and the liminal space of our subconscious, Emma creates vintage, symbolic images by use of soft and distressed textures, typography, and a montage of unconventional subject matter. As a designer and illustrator, Emma’s work integrates imagery with text to create compelling narratives. In a world often marked by harsh realities, Emma aims to create cinematic moments of time for reflection and respite through the distorted and unique lens of past eras.

Statement

As a dual major, Emma worked on two creative thesis projects.

MadRab is an indie nail polish brand that emphasizes small-batch, handcrafted nail lacquer. Inspired by Emma's admiration for similar lacquer brands, MadRab distinguishes itself through custom illustrations and hand-drawn lettering. MadRab is a comprehensive branding endeavor that encompasses logo design, icons, hand-lettering and typography, web design, merchandise such as prints, t-shirts, and tote bags, and the core product, nail polish. The illustrative story follows a hare with his skeleton cowboy companion as they embark on surreal adventures exploring the American Southwest.

Emma’s illustration capstone examines the relationship between typography and illustration, grounded by her love of music -- especially that of acid and psychedelic rock, progressive metal and grunge rock, and contemporary alt/indie rock. Visualizing lyrics, Emma crafts images to complement their narrative, ranging from single objects to complex illustrations. As this work is imbued with experimental processes and elements, it is intended to work across various applications such as posters, merch, or book cover design.

Both bodies of work reflect Emma’s creative vision and aspirations for her professional career.