PUSO’s largest annual event, SAYAW is a collegiate dance competition that regularly features student and young adult dance groups from the east coast and Tri-State area to compete and showcase modern dance. The competition originally got its start as So You Think You Can Sayaw, a parody of So You Think You Can Dance, an American reality television dance competition, but in a few years quickly grew its own reputation.
As the editor of PUSO at the time, I wanted to let the competition spread its wings and remove the parody aspect of its name with a rebranding. I dropped everything but SAYAW, a Tagalog word meaning “to dance”, and created a new logo that plays off of subtly incorporates PUSO’s heart motif while having the competition itself standout. A loud font, hard contrast, and some modern color choices generally make up the feel of the new SAYAW.
With this redesign, I was also in charge of video production and promotion. Some of those videos remain as some of PUSO’s most viewed videos. Though there have been subtle changes to make the logo unique each year, the core design has stayed the same. Now, the event has now grown into Stony Brook University’s largest dance competition attracting entrants from across the East Coast.
