Back to School with Michelle Hopgood RGD

In this edition of Back to School, Michelle Hopgood RGD shares her thesis project, "The Kreb’s Cycle," an information re-design project that combined her science-curious side with design pragmatism.

Where did you go to school, and when? Describe the program and the context for the project you are presenting.

My undergraduate degree, a Bachelor of Design in Graphic Design, was at the Ontario College of Art and Design (now OCAD University) from 2005 to 2009. In my third year graphic design core class in the winter semester, our professor created a “choose your own adventure” project selection. We were given 10 projects to choose from, of which we selected three. The intention was to explore areas of graphic design that weren’t in the core curriculum. And, while we had a number of electives to choose from, there wasn’t an information design course in 2008. 

Describe the assignment given that was the basis for this project.

The “choose your own adventure” projects allowed us to curate our own path and deep-dive into what we wanted. Before this class, most of us, including myself, hadn’t been exposed to information design, so naturally, the information re-design project piqued my curiosity. It appealed to my science-curious side as well as my design pragmatism. The project's main goal was to find an information-focused graphic, diagram or map and complete a redesign while considering its purpose and audience. 

Describe your process for coming up with and executing your concept. (Were there any obstacles that you had to overcome or unexpected learnings?)

How could I choose only one diagram to redesign? I thought back to my high school biology and science classes, where many diagrams were confusing, hard to read and difficult to understand. I started flipping through the pages of a biology textbook when I saw the dreaded Krebs cycle, aka the citric acid cycle, part of cellular respiration. I was instantly drawn to this diagram with its many inputs and outputs, saying to myself, “I can make this clearer and easier to understand.”

After selecting the Krebs cycle, I researched and refreshed myself about the process. I gathered other Krebs cycle diagrams, finally choosing one as my focus. I critiqued its approach and sketched alternate ways of displaying the information. Each of my solutions attempted to clarify the layout, but the information was still cramped and hard to read. One day, after struggling for a couple of weeks to figure out my approach, I had a revelation that led me to my final solution: does a cycle have to be a circle? Can I improve understanding and readability by organizing a cycle’s steps linearly?

How was the project received at school? (Were there any unexpected outcomes or ways that your project lived beyond school?)

I do not remember the grade I received, but I do remember that the project was very well received. My professor was impressed with the end result, especially with how I reimagined a traditional format.

What would you say if you were critiquing your work today? If you were to revisit the project, what would you change or do differently?

Since I first redesigned this project, it has been revisited. In 2019, I worked with a friend of mine who was a high school biology teacher. Together, we refined the work, and I realized mistakes that I made in the original design, like not using the standard colours for atoms like hydrogen (white), carbon (gray) and oxygen (red). We also removed the extra descriptive text because the diagram was meant to be a supplemental teaching tool that accompanied the teacher’s explanation. 

Revised Kreb’s cycle (2019 version)

The Krebs cycle holds a special place in my heart and portfolio. I’m quite proud of the project. Recently, an academic client told me it was one of the most interesting projects on Hopgood Creative’s website. I am surprised that it spoke to the client so much. The project reminded me that great work can be achieved at any career stage when you believe in yourself, keep trying to grow and push boundaries.