Sharanya Durvasula was ready to challenge herself in spring 2011 when she began her graphic design internship in Rutgers Office of Trademark Licensing.
But she was a bit taken aback when a new assignment came in: design a corn maze.
Sharanya submitted three designs to the Von Thun family. In late May, they approved the design at left.
A company that specializes in creating corn mazes (Yes, there are such things) then “mazified” it and laid out the design on a young cornfield using computers, a GPS system, and herbicide.
When Sharanya saw an email mention of a paid graphic-design internship at the university’s Office of Trademark Licensing, she pounced.
So far, it’s proven a great opportunity to strengthen her skills:
“The best part of the internship is being able to see my work come to life! When T-shirts or a magazine is printed, it's always exciting. But a maze, that's crazy ... This project was particularly exciting because of the grandness!”
Sharanya, from Princeton Junction, New Jersey, took art classes throughout high school and helped write and do artwork for Sex, etc., a Rutgers-affiliated magazine for teens by teens. Through the magazine work, Sharanya developed an interest in public health and reproductive health and decided she wanted to continue to study the subject in college.
“Rutgers was a great pick for me. Here, I could study public health and health education and still pursue my interest in art. Rutgers has strong programs in both those fields,” she says. “Some people don’t see an overlap in the two subjects, but I think there’s a lot. You use the same critical thinking skills in developing a design as in formulating a public health education campaign.”
Sharanya really had to use those critical thinking skills in designing the maze.
“When I got the assignment, in March, my first thought was, ‘Where do I start? This thing is humongous!’ I did a lot of research online on corn mazes, especially football-themed mazes. In a lot of them, you walk through the figure of a player or a helmet. I wanted ours to do a bit more.”
She took inspiration from crop circles and the hedge maze in The Shining and incorporated a block “R”, a football, and a Scarlet Knight logo in a design of interlocking circles.
Now a double major in public health through the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning & Public Policy and visual arts through the Mason Gross School of the Arts, she is on course to graduate in May.
While the opportunity to create another corn maze might not be in her future, Sharanya does have an idea of her dream job: “I’d love to work at a health-related nonprofit designing communication materials. I think the visual component is pretty important in any health message. ” she says.
Sharanya plans to take her parents to visit the maze this fall. But if you happen to see her in the labyrinth, don’t bother asking her for directions: “Even though I designed it, the first time I visited, I was way off when I tried to figure out where I was in the maze. It’s easy to get lost.”
