Like thousands of school pupils each year, two years ago Kai Baldwin chose to join MidKent College as the best place to prepare for his future career. In his case, it was to pursue his passion for graphic design.
Now he is going to study Visual Communication at the University of Creative Arts in Canterbury in September, with the prestige of having his design chosen for the logo for the new Medway School of Arts, which opens next month.
Kai was one of nearly 70 students who submitted designs for the new art school. He said: ‘Eight of us were chosen to go forward and then we were down to the last four and I was called into the classroom and told mine was the one they had picked. It was big feeling of relief, gratitude and happiness, and a great opportunity for me.
“With the design I tried to incorporate a modern colour palette with a sleek design resembling what Medway School of Arts is aiming to achieve. The ‘M’ resembles progression through higher education - having a start and an end, representing the journey to reach goals and achieve.’
From an early age Kai knew he wanted to take a vocational path following his GCSEs. ‘My dad was a builder and used to take me to the O2 when he was working there and I started drawing buildings from the age of seven. When I was in school I knew design and artwork was what I wanted to do in full time education, and I saw MidKent offered it so I didn’t think twice. It was what I was doing with all of my spare time anyway, so I didn’t hesitate and it has been so much easier to have that freedom to work on the subject I really enjoy.’
Clare Roach, Creative Arts HE Centre Lead, Medway School of Arts, who was one of the judges for the logo competition said: ‘Kai demonstrated creativity and professionalism throughout the project, and responded well to his client’s requirements and requests to experiment with the design and create logo variations for a variety of purposes. He was a pleasure to work with and we are very proud that the visual identity of Medway School of Arts was created and developed by a student at the start of their professional journey.’
MidKent College Principal Simon Cook said: ‘Every day we get to see the amazing, professional-standard work that our students produce, and Kai is a great example of how our students can generate brilliant ideas and produce something as important as a logo for a new venture. Kai is a brilliant example of the potential for teenagers considering technical skills training. If that’s you, come and have a chat and see if MidKent College could be the first step on the ladder of your future career.’
Medway School of Arts opens its doors in September 2023 with a Foundation Diploma in Art and Design, and a full programme of university-level programmes will launch from September 2024.
