Logo by Alicia Groff ’22 debuts at Threshing Wheat Ale release party

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Friday, July 15th, 2022

A new beer collaboration between Winding Path Brewing Co. in York County and Lancaster’s Tellus360 Irish pub and community space is a nod to the traditional methods of Amish and Irish farmers, to wheat ales, and to community partnerships.

But how to represent all of that in a logo?

Add PCA&D art and design students to the equation. The result of the Winding Path / Tellus partnership, Threshing Wheat Ale, debuts this month with a logo designed by Alicia Groff ’22. The logo creation this spring was a project for senior Illustration majors in Creative Launch, taught by Laura Korzon and Jeff McComsey.

Working with a client, Korzon says, was a great opportunity for her students. In this format, she says, “Classroom critiques are an opportunity for the instructors to discuss professional practices and experiences that might push students beyond their comfort zone. This includes networking, client communication, professional presentation, time management, and money practices.”

Official launch of Threshing Wheat Ale on July 19, 6-8 pm, at Tellus360, 24 E. King St., Lancaster.

Groff’s design was the cap to a project that began more than a year ago, says Tellus’ Kevin O’Mahony. Why “Threshing Wheat Ale”?

“Threshing is to separate grain — wheat — from (the rest of the plant), typically using a flail,” explains O’Mahony, a native of Ireland. “The threshing was a popular event in Ireland and threshing festivals are still held in Ireland to this day. Being an Irish bar I wanted an Irish connection to this wheat ale.”

And the name, he says, also is a tribute to this area of Pennsylvania, too.

“It often reminds me of home and the threshing when I see the Amish working in wheat fields in Lancaster,” O’Mahony says, “so I felt there was a connection between the two areas there.”

So the ale and its background were settled months ago — but there still was no logo.

That’s where Korzon, McComsey, and their senior Illustration students stepped in.

Building the professional portfolio

In PCA&D’s Creative Launch class, Korzon says, “assigned projects give students an opportunity to build on their portfolio while also considering client needs.”

So, after going over the project brief with O’Mahony, Creative Launch students spent a few weeks creating not only original designs for the logo, but also developing simplified second versions for the taps. Work by finalists Jay Aman, Kristin Bere, Steven Colicchio, Yamilet Orengo, and Groff then went before the official panel of judges for a final verdict. “We felt (Groff’s) design best summed up the connection between Ireland and Lancaster,” O’Mahony says.

O’Mahony is pleased with the collaboration’s results and the project, Korzon says, was invaluable for her students as well.

The project, she says, “demonstrated the importance of networking and will encourage the students to think creatively and collaboratively about how they can work with some of their favorite local businesses, taking into consideration how their own skills can bring value to a client.

“It is important for students to see that their unique styles and skills can be used for projects that go outside of the industries they target in their portfolio-building classes.”