Parsons School of Design
BFA Communication Design
Thesis 2013

Parsons School of Design
BFA Communication Design
Thesis 2013

Life on a Leash
Jess Hutchison

When the time came to conceive my thesis proposal an overwhelming weight descended upon me. Viewing this as an appropriate time for reflection, I began to trace back to the roots of my deep attraction for the arts and design. This prompted me to reminisce about my childhood and the large amount of time I spent with my mom. Arts and crafts define my formative years. My mom and I spent hours making trinkets out of papier-mâché, glue gunning, and covering macaroni in glitter. Many of my weekends were consumed by trips to museums and concerts. I feel a deep gratitude towards my mother for exposing me to all that she could manage to cram into my prepubescent brain. The thought that some children are not as privileged as I was, to have someone so invested in fostering their education and creativity, is disheartening. My thesis aims to show a snippet of the boredom that ensues when the freedom to explore is not given. Nelson, a young boy, wants to discover the world around him, but cannot because a kiddie leash binds him. The leash is a visual symbol of the restriction and emotional disconnection imposed by his mother. Throughout the story Nelson’s mother prohibits him from investigating his surroundings. Nelson appears to be downcast and bored. These are the negative, emotional repercussions created by his mother’s interference. I want those who walk away from Life on a Leash to gain a new sense of gratitude for their daily interactions and an urge to explore their surroundings.

Jonathan Abbo

Nick Abreu

Silao AJ Afano

Amel Afzal

Jeongkyun Ahn

Frederico Afrange de Andrade

Cynthia Bacall

Piper Black

Shravika Bothra

Zipporah Burman

John Bussiere

Noelle Campbell

Susana Castro

Nate Cepis

Yi-Shan Chang

Lisa Seoyeon Cho

Paul Jay Choe

Sara Chou

Saiq'a S. Chowdhury

Iee Deun Eden Chung

Caitlin Clingman

Evon Coleman

Rachel Cutler

James Czyz

Mae Decena

Stephanie De Jesús

Jonathan De La Rosa

Carlos De León

Kristie DeLouise

Dawa Dolma

Erica Efstratoudakis

Alexis Dawn Ely

Beril Esin

Sofia Falcon

Francisco Flores

Erik Freer

Ying Joyce Fu

Carina Giacomelli

Ermioni Giakou

Isabel Castillo Guijarro

Alex Hack

Shaobo Han

Paulina Ho

Lauren Hodges

Jenny Holt

Vicky Huang

Jess Hutchison

Joanna Izzo

Hasita Kamlesh

Elizabeth Kenney

SoJung Kim

Jihae Kim

Michelle H. Kim

MJ Minjung Kwon

Alleson Lai

Alfred Lam

Yejin Lee

Michael Leng

Christina Lu

Chris Lunney

Maketa Mabane

Amanda Maduri

Sara Maier

Tara Mann

Jenn Martins

Caroline Mathews

Andrew McCausland

Anna McKendrick

Bryan Meador

Melanie Mencarelli

Julio Montás

Jenni Mällinen

Burak Nehbit

My Nguyen

Jacqueline Oh

Melisa Ozkan

Boram Park

Caroline Partridge

Xing Hai Piao

Brenna Pladsen

Stephanie Porzio

Rocco Rada

Jay Ramirez

Joelle Riffle

Elizabeth Rodriguez

Yvonne Romano

Juan Carlos Santos Andrade

Ariel Scala-Perykasz

Shelly Seroussi

Betty Shang

Leslie Shapiro

Jennifer Haesoo Shim

Jeemin Shim

Amos Shin

Ben Shotwell

Robyn Silev

Nika Simovich

Axel Hammarskiöld Spendrup

Lesley Sakinah Steele

Naomi Sundberg

Britt Tapsall

Sabina Telagis

Daniel Bogre Udell

Azalea Vaseghi

Will Warner

Courtney Wells

Belinda Whiteman

Bryce Williams

Anita Wong

Chu-yi Wu

Giselle Nari Wynn

Katherine Yaksich

Kyungwon Yang

Emily Zhong

Michael Zoppo