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