Laura Pol is a creative based out of L.A. She specializes on branding, design strategy and problem solving with a design approach. Currently, she works for Apple as the Lead of the Design Department at TBWA\Media Arts Lab. She also recently funded and leads OLIO, a small creative house offering effective design solutions.
Dutch FashionTech designer Anouk Wipprecht creates designs ahead of her time; combining the latest in science and technology to make fashion an experience that transcends mere appearances. She wants her garments to facilitate and augment the interactions we have with ourselves and our surroundings. Her Spider Dress is a perfect example of this aesthetic, where sensors and moveable arms on the dress help to create a more defined boundary of personal space while employing a fierce style.
Kareem Collie is the Director of Design and Creativity at the Rick and Susan Sontag Center for Collaborative Creativity (aka The Hive) and Clinical Professor of Visual Communication at Harvey Mudd, within The Claremont Consortium of Colleges. His work explores the intersections of Design, Creativity and the Humanities. Kareem is a recent fellow of Stanford University’s d.school. He has an MA from NYU and a BFA from Pratt Institute.
Patrick Shearn is an LA-based artist specializing in larger-than-life, immersive public art installations. The artist’s signature kinetic sculptures, called Skynets, earned him international renown after the debut of “Liquid Shard” enamored the city of Los Angeles in 2016. The installation transformed an underused public square in the heart of downtown into a bustling destination overnight. Shearn has since brought Skynet installations to various locations in the U.S. and abroad where viewers are invariably compelled to slow down and take time to follow the undulating movement of the artworks, which appear to hang in thin air. Shearn’s expertise in animatronics, robotics and visual effects–gleaned from a 30-year tenure in the film industry as a creature maker and visual effects supervisor–has lent traction to a prolific career as creative director for his studio Poetic Kinetics. Under Shearn’s guiding vision, Poetic Kinetics has designed, fabricated, and implemented a wide range of projects that encourage audience participation–from interactive projection mapping and pyrotechnics to enormous mobile sculptures. Notably, Poetic Kinetics’ projects both engage the immediate public through interactivity and reach viral notoriety on social media.
Fine artist, illustrator and author Lisa Congdon is best known for her colorful, graphic illustrations and hand lettering. Over the past decade, she has worked for clients around the world including MoMA, REI, Harvard University, Chronicle Books, and Simon & Schuster Publishing, among many others. She is the author of seven books, including the starving-artist-myth-smashing Art Inc: The Essential Guide to Building Your Career as an Artist. She was named one of 40 Women Over 40 to Watch in 2015 and she is featured in the 2017 book, 200 Women Who Will Change the Way you See the World. She lives and works in Portland, Oregon.
Andrea Small is a designer, strategist, and educator. Currently, she's working with Doh Eain and SPRING on a project in Myanmar designing a girl-led co-creation process for placemaking that brings adolescent girls into the urban design process. She's also working on a book with Stanford about ambiguity.
In her last corporate role, she was Director of Product and Portfolio Strategy on Herman Miller's "Living Office Point of View" Team. Her job was to understand the future of work and connect it to the products they make, ultimately leading her to pursue a different path... in social justice. Before Herman Miller, she was a Teaching Fellow at Stanford’s d. school, where she was one of the first professionals (and non-Stanford grads) hired to the role. Prior to her fellowship at the d.school, Andrea was Strategy Lead at Yves Béhar’s design firm fuseproject in San Francisco for 5 years, where she led strategic efforts for Nivea, Starbucks, Herman Miller, iRobot, British Gas, GE, the Nike Foundation, Samsung, and more.
Andrea has a BA in Architecture (Miami University) and Master of Design in Human-Centered Product Design (IIT’s Institute of Design). She holds multiple design awards and patents, she pays rent in SF, and in her spare time, she’s hiking.
Nathan Goldman initially joined artistic forces with future DKNG partner Dan Kuhlken in high school where they designed album artwork and collateral for the rock band in which they both performed. Nathan graduated from the University of Southern California’s School of Film & Television and went on to work in the art department at Warner Bros. Television. Prior to joining DKNG as a full-time Creative Director, Nathan served as Director of Design at the USC Design Studio, during which time, Nathan and Dan began collaborating on rock posters for the legendary Troubadour in Los Angeles. DKNG has found a niche in linking a personal and unique aesthetic to the world’s most talented and iconic musical artists, brands, and businesses including Eric Clapton, Van Morrison, The National, SXSW, Wired Magazine, Bank of America, Lucasfilm, Disney, Paramount Pictures, and HBO.
Doug Powell is an award-winning designer and thought leader with more than 30 years of experience in a wide range of design disciplines. A lecturer and commentator on design issues, Doug is the past national president of AIGA, the professional association for design in the US. He is a Distinguished Designer at IBM, directing the program to scale design and design thinking across the global tech company.
Dan Kuhlken learned to illustrate as a child observing wildlife at the San Diego Zoo. He met future business partner Nathan Goldman in high school where the team’s first collaboration included playing in a band for which the pair designed album artwork and promotional materials. Dan holds a graphic design degree from Cal State Long Beach. He began his freelance design career collaborating with Nathan Goldman on posters for the legendary Troubadour. Dan was a designer for Disney’s Consumer Products Division and various fashion labels before joining DKNG Studios full-time in 2009 where he currently serves as Creative Director and Senior Illustrator.
Roberto de Vicq de Cumptich is fat! (I would not say exactly fat, a bit overweight, due to the research part of the design process of branding restaurants and perhaps his slow metabolism). This is the bad part, the good part is he is currently principal at his own design firm in San Francisco, specializing in publications, restaurant design and branding. He has an MFA by Pratt Institute and he recently graduated from Type@Cooper. He is also the author of several books featuring his own work. His most recent book To All Men of Letters and People of Substance, was selected as one of the AIGA’s 50 best books of 2008. He has received numerous awards from the Art Directors Club, AIGA, D&AD, Communication Arts, Eye, Graphis, How,Print, Type Directors Club and two Webby Awards. He served on the board of the Type Directors Club for 6 years, most recently as a Vice President, was a judge for the typography annual of Communication Arts in 2014 and was a guest speaker at Brand New Conference in September ‘15.
Temi Coker is a Graphic Designer & Photographer born and raised in Lagos, Nigeria. He currently resides in Dallas, Texas where he specializes in creating visceral, and surreal visuals using photoshop and illustrator. His eye for color, ability to highlight people of color, texture and composition makes him stand out. His word has been used by various large scale clients such as Estee Lauder, Adobe, and many more. As a creative, he gets the opportunity show everyone the power of creativity and how it can change the world.
San Diego, CA
The Alexandria
Join us March 8-9, 2019 as we hear from 10 prolific designers on the unexpected journeys they traversed simply by saying, "Yes!"
Hear stories of surprise successes, the learning that comes with our failures, and all of the unknowns that lie in between. We hope to inspire you to make 2019 your own Year of Yes – the Year of You. Because, if we can make a practice of opening ourselves to everything the universe has to offer, perhaps we will all be amazed by what we are able to create.
Branded spaces are becoming sensory rich journeys. Experiential graphic design (EGD) enhances the connection between users and the built environment through architecture, interior design, graphic design, and digital technology. Hear how environmental graphics in the workplace can create enriching experiences, highlight shared values and culture, and elevate brand engagement with employees. Katherine specializes in designing for the built environment and creating memorable brand experiences. She holds a degree in Graphic Design from the Rhode Island School of Design. Prior to joining Gensler's brand team as an environmental graphic designer, Katherine was Creative Director at the San Diego Museum of Man where she was in charge of designing and building exhibits.
The Earth is not flat. Human scale and spacial perspective are just two of the insights for bridging 2D to 3D design and building engaging experiences in the real world. Architects, interior designers and project managers round out our graphic design team to launch well-crafted brand stories into another dimension. Evolving technologies put the power to conceive, design and build directly in the designer’s hands like never before. Gain a process blueprint, creative insight and a deeper look into methods of our madness as we merge tenacity and ingenuity in new and unexpected ways to expand visual narratives in physical space. If you can dream it, you can build it.
Sketchnotes are doodles and words created in real time that translate simple and complex ideas into easily recalled bits of information. Learn how to use visual metaphors and host visual conversations for more clarity in your work and communications. Bring your iPad with your favorite drawing program loaded if you want. Pen and paper will be provided. Anne McColl is a copywriter and sketchnoter who works at AnneMcColl.com.
Reality Check: Get the basics on Virtual and Augmented RealityUnlock the mysteries of VR. If you are new to it, the process of designing for virtual reality (VR) can be intimidating and complex. However, the core principles of design always hold true. This Thinkshop will help provide the basics of both augmented reality and virtual reality (AR/VR) and give a few key points to consider before diving into some hands-on exercises. By the end, you'll be ready to create engaging AR/VR experiences of your own.
This one is for the bold and the brave; the ones who love their work and impact on the creative industry enough to step out on the ledge, hang your own shingle (of any size), and build a beautiful creative business. The art of creating your own business begins with diving deep into why you’re bold enough to do it, how you do it with your “non-negotiables” and deeply held beliefs, and what you ultimately promise your clients. A beautiful business is one that’s has integrity at its center—where all elements are in harmony and you operate with the strength of conviction. This thinkshop will help and guide creative leaders to deepen their business principles. Steven Morris is on a mission to help organizations and their leaders realize their potential and make a positive impact on the world of their customers.Over the past 24 years he has worked as an agency leader, brand evolution expert, business strategist, writer and speaker on brand evolution, innovation, and organizational life. He’s been honored to work with more than 250+ global and national brands, that include Samsung, Sony, NFL, MLB, Habitat for Humanity, New Balance, and the Port of San Diego.In addition to his brand evolution work, Steve is also a frequent speaker at events that include TEDx, Creative Mornings, CES, HOW Design Live, MYOB Conference, Social Venture Network, American Marketing Association, and AIGA conferences.With the design to work with leaders who want to live and work more wholehearted, Steve is Co-Founder of The Studio, an organizational change-consultancy that works with the foundations of leadership artistry and wholehearted leadership.Websites: theMthDegree.com; StudioLeadership.com
Join us as we talk to Intuit's Principal Visual Product Designer; Kristen Haas & Principal Design Technologist; Heather Daggett along with Mingei's Creative Director; Alexis O’Banion and Ballast Point Brewing's Senior Graphic Designer, Katie Chambers about the design process & the operation of their internal design departments. We will learn about their size, structure, titles & responsibilities as well as their design scope and how they interact with other in-house teams or outside agencies.• Kristen Haas Principal Visual Product Designer at Intuit has also worked for several design & advertising firms before joining Intuit. Kristen has a BA in Graphic Design from SDSU & was a past AIGA board member.
• Heather Daggett - Principal Design Technologist at IntuitWith over 10 years of experience in design and software engineering Heather has a BS & MS in Computer Science from Oregon State University. Her specialties include; High-fidelity prototyping, rapid prototyping, user experience, motion design, usability studies, web development, user interface design, web design, graphic design, software development, software documentation, design documentation.
• Alexis O’Banion - Creative Director and Technology Strategist MingeiAlexis O'Banion is a creative professional with over 15 years of experience in marketing, graphic design and tech strategy. Weaving design and tech to solve a wide range of problems, she runs a lean, transparent marketing and design department with a heavy and diverse workload at Mingei International Museum in Balboa Park.
• Katie Chambers - Senior Graphic Designer at Ballast Point Brewing and Spirits Katie graduated from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and started her career at Murray Brand Communications, a San Francisco agency specializing in consumer packaging for national food and beverage clients. She also worked as an in-house designer at Petco and FTD in San Diego. For the past five years, she’s worked as a senior designer at Ballast Point.
Hosted lunch for all attendees - no cost
RSVP for Leaders Lunch $35 per person or lunch on your own off site
The Alexandria at Torrey Pines
Farmer & The Seahorse
10996 Torreyana Road
San Diego, CA 92121
Full Conference Passes: March 8 & 9, 2018
Convince your boss to send you to Y Conference: Use This Letter
Full Rate
Jan. 19, 2019 — March 8, 2019
Member $575 | Non-Member $675
Group Rate / 5+
$425 per person
Student
$250 per person
