On a beautiful recent Saturday in Tenleytown, a group of designers and some of their family members with energy to spare came together to kick some ball. They laid down their MacBooks, mouses, and (xacto) blades with one goal in mind: have some fun. This co-sponsored gathering “kicked off” AIGA’s Design Week, a week of design inspired events for the whole community.
Mike Matera, program co-chair for ADCMW, said it really was a great time, and that the group was able to mesh teams and kickball strengths. While a score was never actually kept, and the game lasted two long innings, the point was clear: regardless of affiliation, we’re all just hard-working designers looking to kick back and enjoy some down time.
The Iron Horse Taproom was the place to be on October 25, for the much-anticipated revival of the ADCMW’s famous Art of Beer event. A bustling, lively crowd listened to the presentations and tasted several great beers, while enjoying a gourmet chili buffet.
On hand to talk about their logos, label art, packaging and beer philosophy were Penny Muire from Rogue Ales, and Adam McGinnis from Flying Dog Brewery. The audience was treated to a fascinating history of the breweries, their logos, designers and products, from the colorful characters of Newport, Oregon that gave Rogue the inspiration for its early ales, to the story of a climb to K2 that led to the birth of Flying Dog at a bar in Pakistan. Continue reading…
On a steamy June Saturday night, DC’s hottest designers assembled atop Artisphere in Rosslyn for the ADCMW’s 62nd Annual Show Gala. After an intense judging months before by an illustrious panel (see below), work from 19 top DC-area firms was selected to be on exhibit in the show. The chosen creatives were then lured to the soiree with promises of food, liquor and lightbulbs.
Attendees milled and mingled in the spacious Terrace Gallery, where the winning work was showcased (along with winners of The Real Show student competition). Annual reports to posters, illustrations to interactive — the show had it all. The best of it all. And at Artisphere, creativity is around every corner and on every wall — so this was the perfect space to house DC design’s best.
After a good measure of hob-knobbing and catching up, all were ushered into the iconic Dome Theatre for the awards presentation. Gold and Silver (the aforementioned lightbulbs) were bestowed upon six firms, most liberally upon Design Army. The award show stalwarts used their multiple trips to the stage to thank their tireless employees as well as spread the gospel of raising the level of design in DC. Preach on! Also bringing home bulbs were AU Publications, Freer Sackler Galleries, Fuszion, University of MD University Publications, and Viget Labs.
Recognition was also given to AARP for the Design Leadership Award, Westland Printers for the Design Partner Award, and Robert Wiser for the Lifetime Membership Award.
Congrats to all the winners, and thanks to everyone involved for continuing to make the DC design community the hot place to be!
Last Tuesday, the good folks at nclud hosted a packed event, “Designing for Mobile,” which was organized by ADCMW. The event, which was free for ADCMW members, brought together a standing-room-only number of art directors and web designers who braved the cold and, in turn, got an interactive hour of insight, discussion, and inspiration.
The design studio’s Co-Founder and Senior Consultant, Martin Ringlein, started the evening off with an essential question: What is Mobile? The answer falls into one of three categories: WAP devices, smart phones, and tablets. Ringlein continued with an overview of each category including canvas size. He outlined some of the limitations to designing for each and pausing for questions from the group.
Ringlein continued on with the importance of knowing your audience, encouraging attendees to prioritize their ideal users and consider questions like:
How are users going to interact with each device?
What information of yours are users looking for from a mobile site?
What actions do users want to take with your mobile app or site?
What’s it like to be an award-winning designer *and* an accomplished artist? Well, local creative Matthew Curry knows, and he spoke about his experiences to a captivated audience during an ADCMW-hosted event last week at Fathom Gallery in DC.
Didn’t make it out? Lucky for you, Carolyn Sewell, Jessica Eldridge, and Erin McHardy were there — with sketchpads in hand — to capture Matthew’s wisdom in their own unique visual styles.
The mourners arrived at the Pour House in Capitol Hill on a chilly Friday evening shortly before Halloween. We gathered together with a single purpose: to bid farewell to a respected member of the DC creative community. Katie O’Brien — art director at esteemed agency Fleishman-Hillard, former ADCMW board member, member of AIGA, and active member of the DC arts scene–has decided to leave the nation’s capital and follow her heart to San Francisco. She and her husband, Tyler Morell, dressed as walking dead, were the guests of honor at the “Katie & Tyler Are Dead to Us” goodbye party on October 29.
Though the scene looked funereal, with some attendees in black veils or somber suits, the mood was undoubtedly festive. People enjoyed plentiful drinks and a delicious coffin-shaped cake provided by DC pastry shop Chouquette. Despite their macabre garb, the guests of honor were the life of the party. It was clear by the crowd of close friends, coworkers, and admirers that the couple will be sorely missed. Continue reading…
Award-winning designer and blogger, Carolyn Sewell, exhibited her yearlong project, Postcards To My Parents (PTMP) at Fathom Gallery. Every day from July 23, 2009 to July 23, 2010 Sewell sent hand-drawn postcards to her parents with messages of love and adoration, snarky quotes from friends, family and television, and the occasional drawing of a gnome. Jim Darling was there to document the opening night reception for FullBleed.
The Art Directors Club of Metropolitan Washington turns 61 years old this year. That’s an incredible amount of history and heritage, especially for a city of transients like DC. If you haven’t already, take a look at our history.
What you might already know is that, since the 50’s, ADCMW has put on a great variety of events and competitions for the local creative community. But have you ever wondered who makes this all happen?
The ADCMW Board of Directors comprises a group of passionate creatives who volunteer their time to organize events and work behind the scenes ensuring that DC creatives have the opportunity to network, compete, and hear great presentations from some of the most famous faces in design.
I’m just finishing up my first term as VP of Publications and am looking forward to being involved with ADCMW for a long time to come. Serving on the Board has been an eye-opening experience when it comes to understanding how much planning and effort it takes to to organize a successful event. I’ve gained a huge appreciation for the Club’s role in our community and have worked — and become friends with — some of the most talented creatives around.
If you didn’t make it to our Talkin’ Type with House Industries event last week, I’m sorry, but you missed out on a great time. It’s understandable though, this month has been busy with back-to-back events by ADCMW and a number of other local organizations.
Rich Roat, co-founder of House Industries, shared his love for typography, the history behind House Industries, and the design process for several of their most popular type collections. On top of all that, he shared some of the new alphabet projects that we can expect to see in the very near future!
When I met Patrick Smith of Market Hardware last November at BarCamp DC, I hardly realized how inspired I’d become by just volunteering my free time to work on a project he envisioned. After all, I already very happily volunteer with FullBleed helping to solicit stories and edit articles for the ADCMW community. And, with other responsibilities on my plate outside my day job, I was a bit skeptical that I had more time to give.
But, as a fan of TED — which stands for Technology, Entertainment, and Design — I thought it could be fun to be part of a local version, which Patrick was beginning to plan, called TEDxPotomac. So, when he asked if anyone would be interested in volunteering, I stepped forward, and it’s proved to be such a fulfilling endeavor.
Now, after eight months and hundreds of hours of planning among passionate volunteers and supporters alike, we’re about to see the fruits of our labors distilled in a line-up of truly engaging presenters who embody our theme, “Beyond Politics: Innovation, Inspiration, and Insight.” With so many events in DC geared toward specific industries or issues, it’s refreshing to be an integral part of a more wide-spanning program whose talks range from environmental impact to electronic music, from architecture to the Encyclopedia of Life, and from cupcakes to Craigslist.
On a beautiful recent Saturday in Tenleytown, a group of designers and some of their family members with energy to spare came together to kick some ball. They laid down their MacBooks, mouses, and (xacto) blades with one goal in mind: have some fun. This co-sponsored gathering “kicked off” AIGA’s Design Week, a week of design inspired events for the whole community.
On a steamy June Saturday night, DC’s hottest designers assembled atop Artisphere in Rosslyn for the ADCMW’s 62nd Annual Show Gala. After an intense judging months before by an illustrious panel (see below), work from 19 top DC-area firms was selected to be on exhibit in the show. The chosen creatives were then lured to the soiree with promises of food, liquor and lightbulbs.
