Raw Paw Dream Design Challenge
Design process for my submission, "Dream Factory," to Raw Paw's annual T-Shirt designing contest
Raw Paw is a print-on-demand print shop based in Austin, Texas. Every year they host a design contest with varying themes. 2024's contest was dream themed. It was up to the artists to promote, while Raw Paw did the printing and shipping. Whoever sold the most shirts by the end of the pre-sale, won a cash prize (and bragging rights).​
With over 1,000 designs submitted to compete against, I am proud to announce that I created the second-highest-selling design!
The Design
My submission, "Dream Factory," to Raw Paw's 2024 Design Contest. Illustrated on Adobe Illustrator.
Expanding on the tasks at hand for this contest, the design itself could be related to anything in the broad topic of dreams. The limitation of this challenge was that artists could only use one color, black or white. If you did an all-white design it went on a black shirt and vice versa.
The Design Process
Original Sketch of "Dream Factory"
Final Design of "Dream Factory"
Although it would be fitting, no I did not come up with this design in my sleep...
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When Raw Paw announced the contest was dream-themed, I knew I didn't want to go down the typical route of the subconscious. I aimed to capture the allure and reality of the infamous Hollywood Dream. The design contrasts two halves: the characters placed at the bottom represent the struggle to make it in the industry (or make it to the top for lack of better words). The top half represents the dream, the embodiment of fame and success.
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I used a narrative-driven illustration style to explore themes of ambition, inequality, and the "American Dream." The title reflects Hollywood's name, highlighting my ability to create concept-driven designs that visually tell a story.
Marketing & Self-Promotion
As mentioned before, it was up to the artists to promote and market their shirts. I promoted my shirt through Instagram Reels and YouTube shorts, making my audience part of the design process every step of the way, from sketch to finish. To highlight the unique story of the Hollywood Dream and emphasize its stark contrasts, I took this design one step further by creating backstories for every character in the design. Below are my best-performing reels.
