RE:MEMBER .Issue 40

WELCOME

Welcome to the June issue of Re:Member!

“The details are not the details. They make the design.”
—Charles Eames

Much like design is nothing without the details, AIGA Chicago is nothing without its members. So this month we are celebrating each and every one of you at our Annual Member Meeting.

It’s not just a celebration of that membership card you have in your pocket. It’s a celebration of your passion for, and commitment to, design. It’s a celebration of our collective belief that design is an immeasurable, powerful force in changing and shaping the world we live in now, as well as the future.

And it’s a celebration you definitely don’t want to miss. So register now for our biggest and best event of the year!

Those of you who weren’t able to make it to Business of Design II or Small Talk III last month can read below for a summary of that event.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Clear Space III
Thursday, June 5
The Fifty/50
2047 W. Division Street
Chicago, IL 60622
6pm

Clear Spaces are agenda-free opportunities to mix with fellow members of the design community.

The Fifty/50,
located on W. Division Street near Damen, is an accommodating, up-and-coming tri-level spot that is great for an after-work cocktail or a tasty dinner. A large outdoor patio area is the highlight of spring and summer evenings, and a great place to relax with a group of friends. The menu is composed of comfort-food favorites and, along with a full bar, the Fifty/50 features a weekly rotating 40-ounce bottle served in its natural habitat—a brown paper bag. The versatile atmosphere makes this a great place to mingle with peers and make new connections.

Registration is FREE, but necessary.

2008 Annual Member Meeting
Thursday, June 12
MCA
220 E. Chicago Avenue
Chicago, IL 60611
6pm doors open
6:45-8pm presentation
8-10pm reception

The 2008 Annual Member Meeting will once again be held at the MCA, where we will introduce new board members, honor esteemed members of the community, and celebrate past and future achievements. This year we are pleased to honor two Fellows, Jilly Simons of Concrete and Art Paul of Playboy.

Jilly Simons
As the name Concrete suggests, Jilly Simons’ work is consistently strong, hardworking and grounded in its clients' needs. An emphasis on total design, not merely decoration, has allowed her to thrive. Her diverse scope of clients is reflective of her global approach and ranges from architecture firms and museums to financial institutions. Her work is widely published and included in design exhibitions in the U.S. and abroad. The Cooper Hewitt National Design Museum contains a permanent collection of Concrete’s projects. Jilly received the Chicago chapter AIGA Above and Beyond Award in 2000 and continues to extend her passion for design by teaching and mentoring young designers.

Art Paul
Art Paul’s once-stated motto “good design principles should apply to bubble gum wrappers as well as museum posters” offers a glimpse into his values as a designer. His career commenced as an illustrator in a “frustrating ’50s climate of bland commercialism” where he advanced from a freelance illustrator to art director of Playboy magazine. Known for experimentation and leading what Print magazine called the “Illustration Liberation Movement,” Paul spent 30 successful years at Playboy and is famously known for the creation of the iconic Playboy bunny. He has been honored with awards both globally and nationally for his illustration, photography and design, from places including the Society of Typographic Arts and the Art Directors Clubs of Boston and Philadelphia. In 1986 Paul was elected to the Hall of Fame of the Art Directors Club of New York.

Register Now!

The Annual Member Meeting is sponsored by Lake County Press and Getty Images.

THIS PAST MONTH

Business of Design II Summary
Jake Nickell and Jeffrey Kalmikoff of Threadless were the featured guests for Business of Design II, held on May 13 at the Alliance Française. Joseph Michael Essex was the moderator.

Threadless is a locally operated, community-based t-shirt company. “Without you baby, there ain’t no us!” reads the Web site, where designs are submitted and scored by the public. The highest scores are then voted on by all Threadless staff members and evaluated by a brand-maintenance committee (to check for copyright infringement and keep the selections fresh). The final say for any given submission comes from Jake, CSO, and Jeffrey, CCO. Winners are paid a nice stipend. Nine new t-shirts come out weekly.

The company began eight years ago when Jake began doing it as hobby. “I didn’t start Threadless as a business” he said, “but it’s great to see how it has snowballed into a pathway for artists.” What began as a sideproject is now a full-time job for 60 employees, with 90,000 shirts sold each month. Recently, the duo hired a CEO. “We don’t fool ourselves into thinking that we’re the smartest people alive,” said Kalmikoff.

Neither one of them went to business school, but grew Threadless using “a lot of common sense,” said Nickell. “Although,” added Kalmikoff, “that’s not to say there weren’t failures.” While learning along the way, they remained benevolent in their approach. The two talked about being responsible to their customers and their employees while stressing the importance of community feedback, knowing their audience and being true to the project.

Notably, the company does no outward marketing and the R&D aspect of their business is built right in. What’s more, Web-savviness has served them well: the key to their success is proprietary software that keeps the process streamlined. However, an intuitive sense for what’s cool surely doesn’t hurt.

To learn more about Threadless, shop for t-shirts or submit a t-shirt design, visit the Threadless Web site.

This event was sponsored by Appleton Coated, The Curious Collection, JohnsByrne Company and Getty Images.

Small Talk III Summary
Small Talk III took place on May 20 at Thirst , the four-person design firm headed up by Rick Valicenti. Three designers, including Rick, presented selections from Thirst’s archive of projects in which process and artistry were of the utmost importance.

“We make things that are often not requested,” said Valicenti as he emphasized that not all design needs to be directed by a client. Some of Thirst’s projects are self-initiated, like their Book of Genesis written in Binary code with the ones and zeros represented by Pepsi One and Coke Zero cans.

Notably, Thirst is an environment where its designers are encouraged to explore their own curiosities. Valicenti likes to influence nearly all aspects of a project, from conceptualization and strategic thinking to creating custom typography, illustration, photography and even soundtracks. Thirst balances their artistic cunning with cutting-edge technology.

A quote from their Web site summarizes the group nicely: “Thirst aims to push the envelope without having to resort to cliches like ‘pushing the envelope’.”

This event was sponsored by Artisan, Dupli-Graphic and Getty Images.

EDUCATION

Nominations for the Design Educators Community Steering Committee Now Being Accepted

AIGA seeks active, dedicated educators and practitioners to provide service and leadership on its Design Educators Community Steering Committee. Nominations for the two-year committee positions will be accepted until June 8. For more information or to apply for a committee position, visit the AIGA Educators Community Web site.

MEMBERSHIP

Membership Benefit Reminder
AIGA has created a new task force to address the distinctive needs of in-house designers who work within corporations and organizations. Composed of accomplished and dedicated in-house design leaders, the task force has proposed an impressive plan of action that will provide resources, support and advocacy for this unique group of design professionals.

To read the first in a series of articles by in-house expert Andy Epstein, visit the AIGA Web site.

AIGA Chicago Welcomes New Members to the Chapter

Welcome to AIGA Chicago!

FROM NATIONAL

Election Design Top Ten

In April, representatives from AIGA Design for Democracy were the featured speakers at an Election Center workshop, where they presented ballot and election design reform to 125 local election officials from across the country. The presenters shared design samples and best practices for paper and electronic ballots and polling place signage, developed by AIGA, which were based on nationwide research and endorsed by the U.S. Election Assistance Commission. They also unveiled a new collection of Election Design top-ten guidelines that applies to all voter materials. These tools enable election officials and local designers to create materials that are clear and easy to use. To read more about the Design for Democracy initiative or the election design tools and guidelines, visit the AIGA Design for Democracy Web site.

DESIGN COMMUNITY EVENTS

Integrating Design, Technology and Business for Rapid, People-driven Innovation Seminar

Everyone now recognizes that insight is necessary for innovation. But understanding your customer is only the first step. How does such knowledge become active within an organization and retain its impact across the cycles of research, engineering, design and marketing? On
July 17 and 18, DMI will be hosting a seminar in Chicago that will show how organizations need to align the way they innovate across disciplines to address the increasingly complex web in which products, services, technologies and user needs are interwoven.

For more information and registration visit the DMI Web site.

SAVE THE DATE

July 16—Business of Design III: Eva Maddox of Perkins+Will
July 22—Small Talk IV: VSA
August 7—Clear Space IV: VSA

Getty Images Official Imagery Sponsor of AIGA Chicago