NICOLE FARNSLEY

she's a star
Crazy Bowls
Get after Fit
THE ZINE SCENE
the smelly lunchbox
What If Humans Were Furniture?
Vanity
The Sun Also Rises
The Lazy River

Photography
Archive
She’s a Star  An Olivia Rodrigo Album Review


Book DesignSpring 2024

Featuring Alexandra Fiorentino-Swinton’s article, “Olivia Rodrigo’s New Album Is a Brilliant Study of Child Stardom,” this book combines a bubbly pop style with a 90s grunge, much like Rodrigo’s own music. I incorporated elements of physical making and collage to create a zine-like experience for the viewer.





The Cover ExperienceInspired by the physical experience of an album vinyl, the book’s cover envelopes the book, encouraging the reader to interact and pull it from its case.





Interior Pages



Creative Process

My project began by arranging magazine letters onto an image of Olivia’s face, to bring a zine-like, 90s grunge to the book cover.  
Post-Production Book Cover
Physical Collage

To emphasize the concept of metaphorical projections placed on popstars,  I physically projected pull-quotes from the article onto images of Rodrigo.
Initial Iterations
Final Spread



Crazy Bowls & Wraps




Summer 2024 Internship Animation, Art Direction, Copywriting, Graphic Design, Photography
Social Content Rebrand Founded in 1994 with over 15 locations, Crazy Bowls & Wraps is a St. Louis staple. But while the company grew and evolved, it was time for their brand to grow too. As a creative intern for Crazy Bowls, I spent the summer pitching and creating content for their social and email audiences, refreshing the visual identity to reflect the nutritious, fun food they offered. Introducing graphic shapes and retro imagery, I stayed true to the restaurants’ memorable color scheme and character, while still giving it the glow up it deserved.








Go For the Gold The Paris Games were the talk of this summer, and a great opportunity for Crazy Bowls to engage with the St. Louis athletic community. I proposed that Crazy Bowls adopt the saying “Go for the Gold”—a riff on their classic slogan “Go for the Good.”




The Gold BowlTo raise engagement and brand loyalty during the Olympic season, I created animations for followers to vote for their favorite bowls.









Make A Splash  St. Louis is hot! Especially in summer, everyone’s looking for that perfect drink to cool off. Since Crazy Bowls offers house-made fresh juices and teas, I pitched we “make a splash” on social media, showing off our most popular drinks with bright blue goggles for that extra cool factor.









Monday Night $5 After 5PM Crazy Bowls’ best deal had a problem: no one knew about it! Called many different names over the years, the Monday discount was not clear, even to the company’s most devoted customers. So in turn, I created a suite of direct graphics that brought people into stores each Monday.





Table Seating Numbers
The in-store experience needed to be just as crazy as the food! That’s why I designed some eye-catching seating cards for the restaurant locations.






Tanjerine Studios: Get After Fit 





Summer 2024 Fashion CampaignArt Direction, Photography, Copywriting, Logo Design, Book Design

Art Direction Working with Tanjerine Studios, my objective was to set the scene for their summer sports line: Get After Fit. Designed for tennis and beyond, this shoot was fun, fresh, and designed for those on the move.

Photography My foremost aim as a photographer was to emphasize the movement and energy of the clothing line, shooting primarily at a low angle with dynamic, active posing.




The Brand Book






Logo Design



The Zine Scene





Museum Exhibition Animation, Poster Design, Copywriting, Curation

The Riot Grrrl movement was a burst of vibrance, excitement, and unapologetic noise. This exhibition honors the fearless voices behind the feminist zines of the 1990s.
AnimationThrough page tears, screenprinted textures, and dynamic photo montages, I sought to capture the raw energy and rebellious spirit of the Riot Grrrl movement.
Full Animation




Exhibition Design
This exhibition wall features 14 zine entries and 6 contextual segments, incorporating collaged and screenprinted elements in a style that mirrors the Riot Grrls' own DIY aesthetic. The spun web background image and dotted lines are designed to evoke the wide geographical spread of the movement across the U.S.



Copywriting + CurationThis project aimed to celebrate both prominent figures and lesser-known zine makers within the Riot Grrrl movement. Whether they were inventing, shaping, or critiquing the Riot Grrrl sub-culture, each entry is dedicated to amplifying voices that deserve to be heard.





The Smelly Lunchbox




Featured in Armour Magazine No. 32 Creative Direction, Photography, Graphic Design, Layout

For plenty of Americans, school lunch was the boring PB&J and chips. But what happens if you broke that mold? Instead, lunchtime meant pulling out a meal, looking around, and realizing everyone is watching. What is that? Why is it different than ours?

Featured in Armour Magazine’s 32nd issue, The Smelly Lunchbox combats the isolating experience of being “othered”—whether that means getting strange looks in the cafeteria, or receiving outward judgment of your own culture.

Following a series of interviews, I directed, constructed, and photographed sets featuring four people who knew what it meant to stand out at lunchtime. Putting a positive spotlight on individuality, this editorial demonstrated how cool it is to celebrate your own culture.




Photography As I spoke to others about their school lunch experiences, it was commonly compared to being “a fish out of water.” So, it felt fitting for our shoot to be captured entirely with a fish eye lens. The images capture small moments from odd angles, “blowing up” the moments that feel big, and exaggerating that feeling of having eyes on you. The image treatment runs from realism, from the images’ texture to the funky colorful backgrounds.





Art Direction + Set Design
Building the sets for this shoot, I channeled three things: bold, bright, and big. The goal was to create eclectic settings, with flashy and eye-catching styling and makeup.



 



Layout + Graphic Design As the layout designer, I focused on incorporating simple and organic shapes that were colorful and retro, with moments of solid color for the images to shine.
What If...Humans Were Furniture?




Featured in Armour Magazine No. 31Photography, Creative Direction, Graphic Design


Creative Direction Has your husband recently turned into furniture? Likely not, but in this editorial for Armour Magazine’s “What If…” issue, he can. Drawing on 60s and 70s advertisements, this satirical piece is campy, fun, and a little bit weird.

Layout Design by Madison Wang




Photography Staging the ShootUnfortunately, I couldn’t really turn men into furniture for this shoot. But that just meant getting creative! Using chairs and strategic posing, I built furniture-like setups to photograph and work with post-production.

Strike Magazine: Vanity




Featured in Strike Magazine No. 7 Photography, Graphic Design, Layout

Starring in Strike Magazine’s “Through the Looking Glass,” “Vanity” explores the beauty and burden that comes with loving yourself a bit too much.

Equally dark and glamorous, I loved executing this shoot. The somber lighting choice and glitzy makeup made for the perfect mysterious vibe.

Designing the editorial’s cover spread, I selected modern but classic design elements to create an timeless, elegant feel.





The Sun Also Rises




Book Jacket DesignFall 2024

Ernest Hemingway’s The Sun Also Rises is considered a quintessential novel of the Lost Generation, and considered a literary masterpiece. Each panel of the book jacket was first composed physically with real-life objects. Using sewing pins, thread, and cut out red and yellow paper, I aimed to highlight the fragility, interconnection, and travel that frames the novel.



Staging the SetWhen constructing the photography sets, I focused on creating a consistently warm color scheme of sharp reds and yellows. Since the novel takes place largely in Spain, the typeface and color choices were inspired by Spanish posters of the 1920s. 

The Lazy River

Poster + Booklet DesignSpring 2024

This series illustrates and celebrates a fiction piece by Zadie Smith called “The Lazy River.” Each booklet unfolds to become an 11” by 17” poster on the back. With an emphasis on typography and color relationships, each booklet communicates different themes and visuals from the story. 



Poster One






Poster Two


Poster Three