Great Wall of China 2016
I like a good cup of coffee, dark beer, making marks, pushing around ink (and pixels), planning user experiences, backpacking a good trail in the woods (or mountains if I can get away to them), and throwing a leg over my old motorcycle.
I can't remember a time I wasn't drawing images, or at least scribbling on pieces of paper, and I firmly believe this is where all projects should start, despite all the “revolutionary” and “magical” technology at our disposal. I love my iPad and have been fortunate to make a living at my Mac, but I never leave home without a good notebook and a pen.
I have been a printmaker, coach, instructor, designer, collaborator, team leader, project manager, “point of contact” and “subject matter expert,” in my professional career(s). But the work I'm most proud of always comes back to solving problems, planning, thinking outside the box, and collaborating with others.
Coming from printmaking, I inherently think in layers and separations. This is how I’ve always approached my work, regardless of if it’s analog, digital, visual or administrative.
I’m old enough to remember life before the internet, and cell phones. I first went to college when labs were filled with PowerMac G3 towers, giant CRT displays and were generally 20º warmer than anywhere else in the building.
I’m young enough to embrace new technology, get excited about new techniques, and to roll up my sleeves and do any activity my youngest niece (6yrs) wants to do with her uncle.
highlights:
1978 Born in the great state of Iowa to my loving parents. Go Hawkeyes! (Old)
1983 Graduated kindergarten and moved with my family to North Mankato, Minnesota. Go Twins!
1996 Graduated Mankato West High School. Go Scarlets (Whew...)
1998 Studied art for a semester abroad at The Burren College of Art in Ballyvaughan, Co. Clare, Ireland.
2000 Graduated from the Minneapolis College of Art and Design, earning a BFA in Advanced Printmaking. (Lithography)
2001 Joined Lifeworks Services Inc. as a consultant on a new art program for adults with disabilities. Later that year the Lifeworks Visual Arts Studio was born. It was one of the first “Art as Vocation” programs in Minnesota for individuals with disabilities, at a time when customized services hadn’t yet taken shape. (20 years later and I’m still so grateful for this experience and extremely proud of the work that went into it.)
2003 Moved to New Mexico. Bummed around Tamarind Institute and UNM but wasn’t a student or an apprentice. Graduated from the New Mexico Mountain Club’s six-week outdoor rock-climbing course. Put a lot of miles on the motorcycle. (Outside is the best side)
2005 Moved back to North Mankato to go back to school.
2007 Graduated South Central College in North Mankato, with a customized AAS in Commercial & Technical Art.
2008 Joined BuyFun.com to take over Graphic Design & Development duties
2009 Joined 3plains.com - a small marketing startup and rebooted their overall design and client relations. Moved to the Twin Cities.
2012 Took a trip back to Ireland with my girlfriend, and proposed to her in Ballyvaughan, a magical place I mentioned above. (She said yes!)
2013 Joined Walters Publishing (Taylor Corporation) to head up their design department focusing on Web Design, UX / UI, Visual Design, and Production. Married my beautiful wife and made a commitment to my amazing stepson. We moved back to North Mankato, and moved into our new home together. (Busy year)
2016 Took on a new title at Walter’s Publishing and started managing the development of a new all-html version of their online yearbook design software. Continued to work on user experience and began travelling to China twice a year to work with some fabulous engineers.
2021 Joined Minnesota State Colleges and Universities to begin teaching and collaborating in the Graphic Communications Program at South Central College.