It is only fitting that I start my first design blog about the person who helped convince me to become a designer. Matt Barnes has been a great influence and a major part of why I became a designer. I decided to become a designer in the summer of 2004, and attended Auburn University’s Industrial Design Summer Option. Summer Op was a weed out program that selected only the truly dedicated students to become designers. Once the students made it through summer option, everyone could officially consider themselves designers. However, That does not make them successful designers. I have been fortunate enough to design products that are sold by many fortune 500 companies, and used in many households worldwide. Matt has been a packaging designer that has also designed many of the innovative packages that you receive when purchasing a product. These packages are to adults, as cereal boxes are to kids. He has done a great job at making the consumer want to buy the product inside the box. A simple piece of cardboard or plastic that is turned into an elegant centerpiece on a store shelf will often sell a customer quicker than a plain boring package. But this story is not about Matt or Myself, it is about a family that has roots deeper than football, deeper than blood, and deeper than roots of a tree can go, it is a way of life that one can only experience by living it.
A man who claims he is an Alabama fan decided that he was not happy with Auburn, and that he wanted to poison the very spirit that we so strongly believe in. After the 2010 Iron Bowl between Auburn University and The University of Alabama football teams, this so called Alabama Fan being placed a high amount of herbicide onto our beloved Toomer’s Corner Oak Trees. These oaks are a symbol of tradition; after any win that Auburn receives, the students and fans will travel to Toomer’s Corner and roll the trees with toilet paper, this has been an Auburn Family tradition for many years before I attended Auburn, and will hopefully continue to remain the tradition for years to come.
Auburn has roots that are deeper than these oak trees, These trees have survived two fires by disgruntled fans, and a life threatening car crash that was thought to have killed the tree. The Auburn family has come together to celebrate the life of this tree of tradition, supporters have created Facebook pages and started fundraising to help with saving these trees. This is where Matt had the great idea to use his talent to create an amazing image that has been passed around the internet more times than a chain letter promising wealth$$$. Below is the image he created for the Auburn family, in hopes that he could make a difference. Matt is not looking for a profit, nor is he looking for personal gain. He is looking to keep our tradition alive and well. He has only asked to be recognized as the author of this artwork, and that any monetary transactions be sent to help the oaks at Toomer’s corner.
A few hours after posting the first image for Auburn, Matt posts on his Facebook account that he has created a new image. This image is for those Alabama fans who are disgusted by the actions of a man who claimed he was an Alabama fan. Fans of all teams are disgusted by this mans selfish actions that they have disowned him as a fan. It is a great honor that our greatest rival has collected over $36,000 in less than a week to help correct the wrong doing by one sour fan. Money is still pouring in along with support from alma maters all over the country. Fans across the country are in shock and disbelief, because they can not image the extremes that people will go to take away joy from others. This mans actions can be closely compared to the day after September 11th, when the country united because terrorist tried to force us into hiding. This so called Alabama fan showed the rest of the country, that rivalries are not worth killing over. He showed the country that even if your team loses, “There is always next year. ”
Matt has created the image below to show that Toomer’s is not only about Auburn, but it is more about tradition. Our roots are deeper than football; they are about Traditions, Family, and a Spirit that is not afraid.
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I am fortunate to know Matt and I am honored to blog about his great work. He has developed an image that says more than 1000 words; it says that no matter what school you cheer for on Saturday, that we are all family, and that we should all respect each others traditions no matter how large or small.
Thank you to all the supporters who have helped keep our tradition alive.
Please visit Matts original images at the link below or make a small donation to help out the Toomer’s corner Oaks.
Click Here to view original images on Matt Barnes Page
Click Here to make a donation
