Design the library’s official 2027 sticker.
Deadline: November 20, 2026
libguides.trinity.edu/stickerthing
About the Award
The humble sticker is so much more than vinyl. It’s a tiny piece of everyday art. It’s an opportunity to show the world what you love, and here at Coates Library, we love student artwork. Every year we purchase new artwork from our talented students and display those pieces proudly on our walls, and now we want to display your work proudly on our laptops and water bottles. The “Sticker Thing” prize aims to reward and support our creative students and recognize the library as a place of both research and inspiration.
How it works
Every Fall, the library accepts student submissions for the upcoming year’s sticker. The winner will be decided by the library’s Sticker Thing Committee in early December, and the winner will be announced and awarded before the semester ends. The winning design will be printed as 3-inch vinyl stickers that will be given away by the library throughout 2027. The design will be retired at the end of the calendar year, and a new design will be awarded. (We can’t wait to collect them all!)
Submission Deadline
November 20, 2026
Open to
Students
Awards
One $300 prize, certificate, and inclusion in the Sticker Thing Archive. The winning sticker will be available through the library throughout 2027.
2027 Theme
The suggested prompt for the 2027 sticker is “Book Club”. Other concepts are welcome! Read the guidelines for more info.
How does the library help us come together? Do you share your favorite books with friends? Have you ever found a sense of community at Coates Library? Show us in any abstract way what it means to be part of a “book club”. Think: community, togetherness, reading, friendship, gathering.
2026 Sticker Thing Winner
“Constantly Evolving”
Rory McCarthy
Artist Statement
They did not lie to us. When they brought us to the library on my first Trinity tour, the tour guide commented on how easy it is to notice something new each time we see this mural (“Man’s Evolving Images, Printing and Writing”). Ever since I first walked into the library as a Trinity student, I have made it a goal to do just that. In my search, I have found something much deeper. The mural itself has stayed the same, but its meaning has changed every time I notice a new part of it. I think, strangely, this is extremely similar to how we have grown and evolved as people at Trinity.
We are both the same and different people from when we first got here. Some things that have always been a part of us, especially things that we had never noticed before, we now appreciate and see. Through our exploration, whether through our studies or our engagement with others, we have discovered what makes us us. The beautiful mural that makes us who we are. That’s what my sticker is about. It is often a steep and sometimes difficult time, as shown by the steep tilted staircase and the heavy load the tiger is carrying. Our excitement and passion for learning and exploring can easily cause us to overcommit, overwork, and exhaust ourselves. Still, we eventually find a way to reach the top of the staircase where our mural continues.
Although a much simpler version of the actual mural, my sticker challenges people to be open to the new. To explore the possibilities, just as students do in their studies. It encourages people to visit the actual mural, appreciate all of its uniqueness, and carry that with them as they go through life.