Art direction & design

I desperately wanted to earn the right to use the shiny new Schaeffer Cartridge pen that was awarded to the student who was able to pass the Palmer penmanship test for writing in “cursive.” I was incredibly proud that I was among the first.

I chose black ink; bucking the popularly favored ‘blue’. Handwriting became my obsession as my mother recounts tearful evenings at the kitchen table trying to finish a math assignment, shaking her head in disbelief as I erased my answers and started over for the 3rd time because my “5’s’ were too sloppy.” A calligraphy class in 8th grade taught me roman lettering with a flat brush on big sheets of newsprint. My love for letter forms was sealed. The thicks and thins, the negative shapes, the proportion of a perfect s curve lead me to a graphic design major at UW-Eau Claire. Design stimulated my visual orientation to the world. But when I realized I could apply concept and strategy to inform my design decisions, I abandoned the studios and eagerly joined the ranks of Art Directors at Milwaukee’s top ad agencies. I’ve never stopped looking at type with all its' distinct personalities: witty or snobbish, calm or frenetic, nerdy and technical. Each one destined to bring understanding to the audience of the brands I would work on. I learned to speak and translate marketing in powerful terms that used color and texture as well as words.

With years of freelance work for everything from consultants to corporations, 
I’ve successfully teamed up with companies and experts in their field; discover what they love
about their work and teach them a little of mine. As a result, the feelings a business owner 
has for their product now have form, style and color; IDENTITY THAT COMMUNICATES. 
​Their very own custom-made tool to use and help their business grow. 
I'd like to do the same for your business. 
Email or call, I'm ready.