NCC Alumna Illustrates Children’s Book
Lynda Hight
“I am excited to finally share what it means to me to dream big, work hard, stay focused, and surround myself with good people,” Lynda Hight said.
Hight graduated from the Advertising and Graphic Design program at Nash Community College in the spring of 2016. She began her studies with visual communication by placing emphasis on aiding in trauma recovery. “It wasn’t until after my knowledge and interest in the field of graphic design grew that my goals in all areas of my education and career evolved,” she said. “As I found my specific interests and honed my skills, my instructors at NCC took an interest in my ability to learn, create, and become successful.” The NCC alumna is now an instructor in the program.
Hight recently completed the illustration for a children’s book, “The Penguin Gift” by Bill Sydney. The story of friendship and making a difference in the lives of others debuted at the Nash Community College Betsy B. Currin Child Development Center with a reading by Lisa Cooper, Department Chair, Humanities and Social Sciences.
Lynda Hight began sketching in July 2017 and said it was an honor to bring the story to life as the book’s illustrator. “As a Graphic Designer, the author gave me an opportunity to make my dream come true.”
“My first sketches consisted of stick figures on scraps of paper. I chuckle when I look back at those sketches,” Hight said. “I tend to find inspiration in nature so I spent a week in the mountains where I gathered most of my inspiration while sitting creek-side. I used the rock formations along the creek bed to create the basic shapes of the book’s characters – a lot like how we look at clouds and use our imagination,” she said. This creative process is similar to the creative concepting methods Hight teaches students to find their inspiration. “It was especially challenging to visually communicate an overly confident, friendly, 13 year old penguin named Palmer.”
Hight credits NCC faculty and staff for their support of her both as a student and a colleague. “My Graphic Design instructor, Natasha Neal, was my mentor throughout the process. She not only taught me the basic skills of design, but she has the ability of being able to hone in on a creative opportunity and she encourages me to stretch my boundaries a little further with every project.”
The art was illustrated utilizing Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, and InDesign design software. “It has been cool to see how the creative process continues to evolve after graduation,” Hight said.
