Why are you involved with AIGA Raleigh?
I was a member of the Knoxville chapter prior to moving to Fayetteville. I feel AIGA is the best way to stay connected with area peers and a chance to meet other design professionals. (I would also recommend SOTA for a very interesting group of type designers and graphic designers.) AIGA Raleigh provides opportunities to bring my own design students to presentations, senior portfolio day, etc., to expand their educations beyond what we offer at Methodist University.
What is your overriding professional goal?
To continually learn, teach, and design (with occasional intervals of sleeping and eating).
How do you explain what you do to “regular people?”
I combine type, image and space in a way that will gain the attention of my desired audience, compelling them to react as I intended.
What professional accomplishment are you proudest of?
Helping others achieve success: first with clients, now with students, and hopefully both as my career continues.
What is your non-work creative outlet?
Illustrating.
What’s your biggest design-related pet peeve?
Double hyphens instead of em dashes, inch marks instead of proper quotes, two spaces after a period, and other old typewriter habits that many accept these days as typography. For more of my rants, check out my site on quality typography: peatah.org.
What is the last thing that made you laugh out loud?
Probably one of Deutsch LA’s spots for Volkswagen. Here’s one of my recent favorites.
If you could wake up tomorrow having gained one ability or quality, what would it be?
To systematically remove all copies of Papyrus and Comic Sans (and now with TypeKit, I’d have to add Lobster to the list) from every font menu.
Who is your favorite cartoon character?
Wally (from Dilbert), or Foghorn Leghorn, or Droopy, or Michigan J. Frog. Sorry, hard to narrow ’em down.
What have you gained or what do you hope to gain through your involvement with AIGA Raleigh?
An AIGA Medal would be great, thank you.
What led you to volunteer or join the board?
The Senior Portfolio Day. What an excellent resource for the aspiring students! I have been honored to be associated with this event multiple years as a reviewer.
What have you done as a board member or volunteer that you are most proud of?
Ditto with the last question: reviewer for the Senior Portfolio Day.
What goals do you have for the future of the chapter?
Maintain the energy, vibrancy, and variety of the presentations and events! More evening events, please, rather than mid-day for us out-of-towners. 😉
What have you seen other chapters do that was really cool?
Instructional workshops … BYOM (Bring your own Mac).
