Freelance Graphic Designer
1987–Present

Design Director, Walker Art Center
1998–2010

Select Design Projects

I led the award-winning design department at the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis for more than a decade, developing and managing its brand identity across multiple media platforms. The design department at the Walker is unique among peers, integrating editorial, publishing, and visual communication strategies and is considered the leading model among museums worldwide. Design is conceived and supported in all aspects of the museum, with careful attention paid to all of its manifestations: in advertising, interior design, exhibition design, publication design, retail design, landscape design, and architecture. In 2009, the Walker became the first non-profit organization to win the prestigious National Design Award for Corporate and Institutional Achievement from the Cooper Hewitt National Design Museum of the Smithsonian Institution, joining an elite group of design-led companies such as Apple, Nike, and Target.

A communications designer with more than thirty years of experience, I specialize in publication design and branding and communications strategy for non-profit institutions. I have had the pleasure of collaborating with talented professionals—photographers, videographers, illustrators, type designers, copywriters, and graphic designers—to realize a range of projects, from printed books and websites to videos and advertising campaigns.

House of Oracles was the first retrospective of Huang Yong Ping in the United States. A double-book contains the plate section of artworks, while the other half contains essays and writings by the artist. A poster mapping the artist's work was included in the bound catalogue. Exhibition curated by Philippe Vergne with Doryun Chong. Catalogue designed with Chad Kloepfer.

Superlight documents the 2008 01SJ Biennial of digital media curated by Steve Dietz. The design utilizes a multitude of "light" effects, from the lasercut typographic cover printed on pearlescent paper and the translucent rainbow-printed gradient section divider pages and black-on-black ink "shadow" typographic treatments. Designed with Matt Rezac.

Brian Eno: Visual Music examines the artist's work in the visual arts. The printed cloth cover is a sampling of images from Eno's 77 Million Paintings. The ribbon contains suggestions from the artist's famous Oblique Strategies. Designed with Matthew Rezac for Chronicle Books. Authored by Christopher Scoates.

Identity and brand for the Design Criticism master's program at the School of Visual Arts. Developed the moniker (D-Crit) for the program as well as its logotype, which is an ever-changing array of designed artifacts placed in the crosshairs of critical appraisal: x marks the spot. Designed with Emmet Byrne.

The D-Crit mark could change on demand by inserting a new image—a symbol, a piece of furniture or clothing, etc.—as the subject of critical examination.

Walker Expanded is a dynamic identity system for the Walker Art Center that generates words and textures, instead of letters, by typing individual characters on a keyboard. Like a roll of tape, the resulting linear treatment can be applied to any surface at any scale. (We even produced rolls of tape to brand generic merchandise for sale in the gift shop.) Software engineering by Process Type Foundry.

While the museum building was closed for expansion, a city-wide series of public programs called Walker Without Walls was launched. Manifested across various media, from the museum's website and event signage to advertisements and a free ice cream truck that roamed the city. The identity system is based on a subway map structure, mapping places around the city highlighting off-site events hosted by the Walker.

A campaign for the reinstallation of the Walker's permanent collection. Taking inspiration from a salon-style hanging of figurative and abstract paintings, the compositional strategy fits together a variety of artworks. Housed in a double-height gallery, viewers could use binoculars to view second-story works. Seating design with David Dick. Campaign design with Emmet Byrne. Exhibition curated by Darsie Alexander.

Question Everything was a multimedia campaign to celebrate the Walker Art Center's 75th anniversary as a public institution. 75 questions were culled from a variety of archival sources and staff members to underscore the Walker's ethos, which is not predicated on providing answers, but rather provoking questions. Anthem video produced by The D4D. Designed with Emmet Byrne.

Minnesota by Design is a virtual design collection for the state. More than 100 objects, spaces, and places were selected representing a range of design practices and objects that originated in and for the state, from masking tape for 3M and lost ancient indigenous burial mounds along the Mississippi River to the artist-formerly-known-as-Prince's symbol and the Aeron Chair for Herman Miller. Website design by Eric Price.