My design awareness started early, influenced by my ad man/filmmaker/artist dad, LEGO, and a friend’s architecturally significant house. Good design has always been something that I noticed and admired. Now, I strive for hitting that mark in my work.
I was born and raised in Dallas, then moved to Austin and Phoenix for school. After school I bought a Mac and my life hasn’t been the same since. A job moved me Colorado where I (barely) survived an aerial photography stint to try my hand as a proposal writer for a major Denver architect. Computer graphics were still nascent, but when they saw what I could do, I became their proposal writer/presentation designer.
In the 90s an opportunity knocked, sending me back home to Dallas. Within a few months, creating colorways for a sportswear consultant evolved into becoming the de facto in-house marketing communications/ad agency for a luxury Italian menswear startup, William Reid. The company’s operations moved from Dallas to New York in 2000, but 9/11 shut it down (now reborn as Billy Reid). From there I started a freelance business, Pixelthink Creative, creating marketing communications for clients in the DFW metro area.
In 2020, a life transition resulted in a search for full-time employment, resulting in a Senior Graphic Designer position at a Fortune 8 pharmaceutical supplier, AmerisourceBergen/Cencora. There, I got be part of a major rebrand with a multinational consultancy while collaborating with a talented team of marketers and copywriters. The job was probably the best learning experience of my life, helping me to become the designer I am today more than any other experience.
In 2023 I started working with the internal communications team at Pinion, a multinational accounting firm. In two short years I generated hundreds of graphic design projects ranging from print collateral to intranet assets to presentations. As I was a luxury item in a new era of austerity, I have found myself considering new opportunities.
My spare time is occupied by ongoing public art commissions, various creative outlets (photography, digital illustration, mixed media art, laser art, 3D printing), an energetic adopted lab mix, and my amazing teenage daughter who influences me as much as I influence her.
One of the most important things I’ve learned in my professional life is that it’s easy to identify problems and a lot harder to solve them. I strive to be part of the solution. Accordingly, the aspect of design that I find most gratifying is problem-solving — identifying a need and fulfilling it.
