2024 Senior Exhibition Artists

Lauren Olivia Davis

Concentration: Art + Design: Graphic Design

About Lauren Olivia Davis

Lauren is a graphic designer and hobbyist illustrator from Massachusetts. A lover of all things creative since childhood, Lauren was gifted her first sketchbook on Christmas of 2012, and the rest is history. She attended Diman Regional Vocational Technical High School, where she entered the Graphic Communications program, discovering a love and passion for graphic design and printmaking. In her free time, Lauren loves to write fiction novels, draw, bake, play video games, and learn whatever creative skill piques her interest next.

Statement

Hair dye has been an integral part of my identity ever since I first started dyeing the tips of my hair with Kool-Aid in middle school. It was a big aspect of establishing who I am through my adolescence, especially around the time where I was questioning my identity as a pansexual woman. It was a piece of me that I could control, an outlet as I coped with an unhealthy and abusive environment. I wanted to choose a project where I could showcase both my illustration and graphic design disciplines, within something that means a lot to me. The project was inspired by two dye brands I use and love: Good Dye Young (created by Hayley Williams and Brian O’Connor) and Danger Jones (created by David and Alexis Thurston).

Chrysalis (stylized as CHRYSɅLIS) is a semi-permanent vibrant hair dye brand for all people who cherish self-expression, progressive values, and creativity. People who are weird, bold, unapologetic- and wear that badge with pride. Specifically, Chrysalis is marketed towards members of alternative and/or LGBTQ+ communities, where colorful hair, music, and creativity come to a crossroads.

Why Chrysalis? A chrysalis is the hard outer shell of a butterfly’s pupa. Butterflies, known mainly for their dazzling and vibrant patterns and colorings, are also symbols of transformation and rebirth.

I especially wanted to create a project where I could showcase both my illustrative and design talents. Inspired by Danger Jones, the dye boxes feature a full piece showcasing the color of the dye imagined as a concert poster.