SE: Warner, Hartman Combining Creativity and Rowing Opportunities at K-State
Feb 28, 2020 | Rowing, Sports Extra
By Corbin McGuire
Mattie Warner and Taylor Hartman's decision to join K-State rowing several years ago set off a chain reaction that led them to countless lessons, opportunities and experiences. Some of which they never imagined. Many of which you have probably seen, either on a poster, social media or T-shirts.
See, Warner and Hartman are more than standout rowers for K-State who have earned Academic All-Big 12 honors every year possible. In the spare time they have, the two also intern as graphic designers in K-State Athletics' communications office.
They have led or contributed to projects like the K-State men's basketball's Star Wars poster and the team's game day programs, K-State women's basketball's game day graphics, the volleyball team's Superhero poster, the ring box design for the men's basketball Big 12 Championship replica rings, K-State soccer's blackout T-shirts, a redesigned Cats For Cans logo and much more.
"Seeing behind the scenes here is awesome, just understanding the processes everybody goes through. Whether it's the photoshoots, the interviews, the writing, there's a lot that goes on with each team," Warner, a senior, said. "That really became apparent when I started working here, not that I didn't really understand that before, but I also keep up with the sports a lot better than before."
"This has been a really great opportunity," Hartman, a junior, added. "It's really nice, too, that it's in athletics because they understand (our schedules) and they work with us."
How the two found themselves interning on the sixth floor of the West Stadium Center, home of K-State Athletics' communications office, started with the choice to become a rower at K-State.
Warner, now a team captain, and Harman's path to K-State rowing played out like many others.
They never rowed before. They received little or no recruiting attention from the sports they did play in high school — volleyball, basketball and softball for Warner, a Halstead native; basketball for Hartman, out of Overland Park's Blue Valley High School. But they are tall — Warner stands at 6-foot, Hartman an inch shorter — which garnered interest from K-State rowing's coaching staff.
The thought of rowing at a Division I school intrigued each of them as well. Both eventually came on official visits. They left sold on coming back that next fall.
"I went to a lot of colleges to look at playing basketball, and they were a lot smaller schools. I never really got the feeling of belonging whenever I visited those schools, so when I came to K-State, everybody was smiling, people would open the door for us. When my parents and I got lost on campus, people, like strangers, would come up to us and ask if we needed help," Hartman said. "It just made me feel a sense of home."
Warner agreed. Plus, "they had graphic design," she said. It's a major she's been interested in since she took a "printshop" class in high school, taught by her mother.
"I loved layout skills and I feel like I'm pretty detail oriented. So, finding things that are aesthetically pleasing was always enjoyable," Warner said. "I really didn't take any more visits to colleges. Graphic design and rowing kind of just checked both of my boxes."
Hartman took a different path, despite her mother's urging to go into graphic design.
"My mom, all throughout high school, was, like, 'You should go into graphic design, blah, blah, blah,'" Hartman said, laughing. "I was always, like, 'No, I think I want to be a teacher.'"
So, Hartman started at K-State as an art education major. In time, she discovered she wanted to express her creativity more. She leaned on her mother and Warner for advice of what to do next. Both pushed Hartman toward graphic design. After taking one class, Introduction to Design, she was hooked.
"I was excited to do the homework and was actually really engaged in it, which I hadn't been in any of my classes prior to that," she said. "That was kind of a turning point for me."
Warner's turning point to land an internship within the athletic department she competes for took place during a conversation with another teammate, Madison Rebel. Rebel told Warner about a friend she knows who helps make graphics in a different athletics department. The idea piqued Warner's interest. So much so that she reached out to K-State's compliance office to see if something like that was possible for her.
Soon enough, in the fall of 2018, Warner was bringing her laptop up to the West Stadium Center to work a few hours a week. Last summer, she helped bring Hartman on board. Together, they've added valuable skills and creativity to K-State Athletics' communications department.
"We rely on and take pride in our student staff - it's part of our mission as an athletic department and our purpose as an affiliate of a university," Director of Creative Services Kevin McCarty said. "As rowers, Mattie and Taylor are obviously extremely hard workers and dedicated to anything they do. They've been huge assets as we churn out visual content, not only as production artists and designers, but as sounding boards and contributors to the creative process, from start to finish."
Warner and Hartman said working alongside K-State's talented creative team, like McCarty, his predecessor Chris Kutz – now-Associate AD for Strategic Communications at the University of San Diego – and Publications Coordinator Ella Henton, among others, has been a constant learning experience.
"Just seeing the interactions with the coaching staff has kind of helped me prepare professionally with how to work with clients. Seeing the creativity between Chris, Ella and Kevin has been awesome," Warner said. "The freedom up here of just off-the-wall projects, like a Star Wars poster for the men's basketball team…doing those off-the-wall projects is really fun."
Hartman said her technical skills have grown exponentially since she started interning. It's also taught her to "think more structurally" about her work. Even more, she's found new avenues for inspiration, including Instagram.
All of it helped Hartman and Warner combine two of their biggest passions: Graphic design and rowing. The pair helped design the look for the rowing team's race day graphics this season.
"Ella showed me some really cool sports design Instagram accounts. So, it was cool to kind of broaden my view of what's going on and to have a hands-on approach with it was really cool," Hartman said. "And it's cool that it's your teammates, to be directly involved in it. You kind of know the aspects of the sport that maybe that you wouldn't otherwise."
Rowing, in its own way, has also shaped Hartman and Warner into better graphic designers. To be fair, learning a sport from scratch has boundless benefits. Both Wildcats said the two are definitely connected.
"Just seeing everybody working really hard. That was one thing I think I struggled with in high school, being disciplined and wanting to work hard to get better. I was pretty OK with being OK," Warner said. "So, that was something that really changed for me in my five years here."
Hartman echoed her teammate.
"Rowing helps with your work ethic and your drive to succeed, I think, because sometimes I'm a perfectionist about the stuff that I make in my classes…I feel like we push ourselves to a higher standard," she said. "That comes from rowing, having to work so hard every day and pushing yourself to be better."
The benefits go on and on, too.
Hartman said rowing's allowed her to find little wins in situations that can be looked at as failures. Again, when starting a sport from nothing, this is a must.
"In rowing you might have had a really crappy day or a bad practice but you had one good piece in that practice and you have to fulfill yourself in those ways," she said. "So, if the whole project sucked but you were really proud of this part of it, you find ways to bring yourself up and not tear yourself down completely."
Playing off that, Warner said rowing gave her thicker skin when taking criticism. Feedback that used to bother her, with time and maturity, became a way to improve.
"You just need to figure out what you need to change and then move on," she said. "I feel like that's something that's similar with graphic design, you're always trying to please somebody else without knocking yourself down each time and you just need to find that balance of the fact that you are proud of what you're turning in or showing to a client but you're also OK with them wanting changes or not being OK with it."
Warner listed time management as another benefit. She said this improved skill has paid dividends, especially during her first semester in the graphic design program, which started during her junior year. Her first two years at K-State and with the rowing team prepared her to handle the load of multiple time-consuming studio classes, workouts and practices, among other daily life items.
"That was a huge challenge for me. I was still figuring out how to be a successful designer, managing my other classes, practice times and not staying up too late so I was still successful with rowing," she said. "My freshman and sophomore year of rowing kind of helped me figure out a schedule that worked for me and understand that if I'm up past midnight, I'm not going to be worth anything the next day. So, really focusing on, 'How can I manage this hour of time that I have and what can I get knocked out that'll help me a little bit later?'"
Mattie Warner and Taylor Hartman's decision to join K-State rowing several years ago set off a chain reaction that led them to countless lessons, opportunities and experiences. Some of which they never imagined. Many of which you have probably seen, either on a poster, social media or T-shirts.
See, Warner and Hartman are more than standout rowers for K-State who have earned Academic All-Big 12 honors every year possible. In the spare time they have, the two also intern as graphic designers in K-State Athletics' communications office.
They have led or contributed to projects like the K-State men's basketball's Star Wars poster and the team's game day programs, K-State women's basketball's game day graphics, the volleyball team's Superhero poster, the ring box design for the men's basketball Big 12 Championship replica rings, K-State soccer's blackout T-shirts, a redesigned Cats For Cans logo and much more.
"Seeing behind the scenes here is awesome, just understanding the processes everybody goes through. Whether it's the photoshoots, the interviews, the writing, there's a lot that goes on with each team," Warner, a senior, said. "That really became apparent when I started working here, not that I didn't really understand that before, but I also keep up with the sports a lot better than before."
"This has been a really great opportunity," Hartman, a junior, added. "It's really nice, too, that it's in athletics because they understand (our schedules) and they work with us."
How the two found themselves interning on the sixth floor of the West Stadium Center, home of K-State Athletics' communications office, started with the choice to become a rower at K-State.
Warner, now a team captain, and Harman's path to K-State rowing played out like many others.
They never rowed before. They received little or no recruiting attention from the sports they did play in high school — volleyball, basketball and softball for Warner, a Halstead native; basketball for Hartman, out of Overland Park's Blue Valley High School. But they are tall — Warner stands at 6-foot, Hartman an inch shorter — which garnered interest from K-State rowing's coaching staff.
The thought of rowing at a Division I school intrigued each of them as well. Both eventually came on official visits. They left sold on coming back that next fall.
"I went to a lot of colleges to look at playing basketball, and they were a lot smaller schools. I never really got the feeling of belonging whenever I visited those schools, so when I came to K-State, everybody was smiling, people would open the door for us. When my parents and I got lost on campus, people, like strangers, would come up to us and ask if we needed help," Hartman said. "It just made me feel a sense of home."
Warner agreed. Plus, "they had graphic design," she said. It's a major she's been interested in since she took a "printshop" class in high school, taught by her mother.
"I loved layout skills and I feel like I'm pretty detail oriented. So, finding things that are aesthetically pleasing was always enjoyable," Warner said. "I really didn't take any more visits to colleges. Graphic design and rowing kind of just checked both of my boxes."
Hartman took a different path, despite her mother's urging to go into graphic design.
"My mom, all throughout high school, was, like, 'You should go into graphic design, blah, blah, blah,'" Hartman said, laughing. "I was always, like, 'No, I think I want to be a teacher.'"
So, Hartman started at K-State as an art education major. In time, she discovered she wanted to express her creativity more. She leaned on her mother and Warner for advice of what to do next. Both pushed Hartman toward graphic design. After taking one class, Introduction to Design, she was hooked.
"I was excited to do the homework and was actually really engaged in it, which I hadn't been in any of my classes prior to that," she said. "That was kind of a turning point for me."
Warner's turning point to land an internship within the athletic department she competes for took place during a conversation with another teammate, Madison Rebel. Rebel told Warner about a friend she knows who helps make graphics in a different athletics department. The idea piqued Warner's interest. So much so that she reached out to K-State's compliance office to see if something like that was possible for her.
Soon enough, in the fall of 2018, Warner was bringing her laptop up to the West Stadium Center to work a few hours a week. Last summer, she helped bring Hartman on board. Together, they've added valuable skills and creativity to K-State Athletics' communications department.
"We rely on and take pride in our student staff - it's part of our mission as an athletic department and our purpose as an affiliate of a university," Director of Creative Services Kevin McCarty said. "As rowers, Mattie and Taylor are obviously extremely hard workers and dedicated to anything they do. They've been huge assets as we churn out visual content, not only as production artists and designers, but as sounding boards and contributors to the creative process, from start to finish."
Warner and Hartman said working alongside K-State's talented creative team, like McCarty, his predecessor Chris Kutz – now-Associate AD for Strategic Communications at the University of San Diego – and Publications Coordinator Ella Henton, among others, has been a constant learning experience.
"Just seeing the interactions with the coaching staff has kind of helped me prepare professionally with how to work with clients. Seeing the creativity between Chris, Ella and Kevin has been awesome," Warner said. "The freedom up here of just off-the-wall projects, like a Star Wars poster for the men's basketball team…doing those off-the-wall projects is really fun."
Hartman said her technical skills have grown exponentially since she started interning. It's also taught her to "think more structurally" about her work. Even more, she's found new avenues for inspiration, including Instagram.
All of it helped Hartman and Warner combine two of their biggest passions: Graphic design and rowing. The pair helped design the look for the rowing team's race day graphics this season.
"Ella showed me some really cool sports design Instagram accounts. So, it was cool to kind of broaden my view of what's going on and to have a hands-on approach with it was really cool," Hartman said. "And it's cool that it's your teammates, to be directly involved in it. You kind of know the aspects of the sport that maybe that you wouldn't otherwise."
Rowing, in its own way, has also shaped Hartman and Warner into better graphic designers. To be fair, learning a sport from scratch has boundless benefits. Both Wildcats said the two are definitely connected.
"Just seeing everybody working really hard. That was one thing I think I struggled with in high school, being disciplined and wanting to work hard to get better. I was pretty OK with being OK," Warner said. "So, that was something that really changed for me in my five years here."
Hartman echoed her teammate.
"Rowing helps with your work ethic and your drive to succeed, I think, because sometimes I'm a perfectionist about the stuff that I make in my classes…I feel like we push ourselves to a higher standard," she said. "That comes from rowing, having to work so hard every day and pushing yourself to be better."
The benefits go on and on, too.
Hartman said rowing's allowed her to find little wins in situations that can be looked at as failures. Again, when starting a sport from nothing, this is a must.
"In rowing you might have had a really crappy day or a bad practice but you had one good piece in that practice and you have to fulfill yourself in those ways," she said. "So, if the whole project sucked but you were really proud of this part of it, you find ways to bring yourself up and not tear yourself down completely."
Playing off that, Warner said rowing gave her thicker skin when taking criticism. Feedback that used to bother her, with time and maturity, became a way to improve.
"You just need to figure out what you need to change and then move on," she said. "I feel like that's something that's similar with graphic design, you're always trying to please somebody else without knocking yourself down each time and you just need to find that balance of the fact that you are proud of what you're turning in or showing to a client but you're also OK with them wanting changes or not being OK with it."
Warner listed time management as another benefit. She said this improved skill has paid dividends, especially during her first semester in the graphic design program, which started during her junior year. Her first two years at K-State and with the rowing team prepared her to handle the load of multiple time-consuming studio classes, workouts and practices, among other daily life items.
"That was a huge challenge for me. I was still figuring out how to be a successful designer, managing my other classes, practice times and not staying up too late so I was still successful with rowing," she said. "My freshman and sophomore year of rowing kind of helped me figure out a schedule that worked for me and understand that if I'm up past midnight, I'm not going to be worth anything the next day. So, really focusing on, 'How can I manage this hour of time that I have and what can I get knocked out that'll help me a little bit later?'"
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