AIGA HOUSTON | the channel newsletter | February 2007
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CONTENTS
AIGA Houston Design Gala Information
Announcements
Upcoming Events Calendar
Advice Column: Dear AIGAbby
Regional Conference: Design Ranch 2007 : The Magnificent Seven
National Design Competitions: 365: AIGA Annual Design Competitions 28, AIGA 50 Books/50 Covers
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AIGA HOUSTON DESIGN GALA :
On May 5th, 2007 AIGA Houston will celebrate Houston’s design legacy with the AIGA Houston Design Gala at the Houstonian Hotel and Resort.

This year, we will honor our first ever Fellows, Cheryl Beckett of Minor Design Group, the University of Houston and Chris Hill of Hill, Texas State University and the Creative Summit. Both AIGA members will be honored that evening by the Houston chapter for their many years of continued service to our creative community and their commitment to design education. Fellows are selected based on their significant contribution to AIGA and their positive impact on both the local and national design communities. Honorees work will be on display at the event and more information will be available mid-February on the AIGA Houston Web site about ticket availability and event details.

The Gala will be chaired by Bo Bothe of BrandExtract and Robin Tooms of Savage Design Group. We would like to thank Thomas Hull of Rigsby Hull for developing the identity and materials for this year’s event. AIGA Houston will also recognize Walter P Moore with the first ever AIGA Houston Corporate Design Leadership Award. Walter P Moore will be recognized at the Design Gala as an organization that has helped to advance design and the profession of designing in our city. In addition to their commitment to design in our community, Walter P Moore has created outstanding Houston landmarks such as the Astrodome, Jones Hall and Reliant.

AIGA Houston is currently looking for event sponsors and is pre-registering tables for the event. Please contact Bo Bothe 713-942-7959 or Robin Tooms at 713-522-1555 for details and sponsorship information about the event, or visit www.aigahouston.org for more information. All proceeds will support AIGA Houston education initiatives and local programming.

Preliminary Event Information:
Saturday, May 5, 2007
6:00 Cocktail Reception
7:00 Presentation

The Houstonian Hotel and Resort
Houston, Texas

Ticket Information:
Corporate Partner Table of 10 – $ 1,750
Individual – $ 125
Student – $ 90

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ANNOUNCEMENTS :
You can still be 100% mine!!
OK, so Valentine’s day has already past, but maybe you had too many deadlines and totally forgot about it. You know what that means... a daunting task still looms. You must still find just the right gift for the finicky media maven close to your heart. It’s ok, there’s no need to worry, with AIGA, there’s still hope my friend. AIGA Houston has the gear to make your overly savvy sweetheart swoon. Get him or her one (perhaps all) of our special edition t-shirts. Your ‘honey bun’ will wear each and every one of them with heartfelt pride knowing you thought of them in their plight to inform and beautify the world. They’re low in calories, they’re not bad for your teeth, and they’re highly romantic. One shirt even says, “I heart key commands.” If that doesn’t stir tears, we don’t know what will. Email us for more information info@houston.aiga.org

Save up to $100 on your HOW Design Conference registration!
You’re invited to join HOW magazine in Atlanta June 10-13 for the 2007 HOW Design Conference. You’ll spend 3-1/2 days filling up on creative inspiration, bottom-line business tactics and in-depth technology training—all the juice you need to fuel another year of stellar graphic design.

And best of all, you’re eligible for a discounted rate! As a member of AIGA Houston, you can register at our special organization rate just $895 for your single full-conference registration when you register by the April 13 Early-Bird deadline. That’s a savings of $100 off the regular rate!* To redeem your discount, choose the group rate option and enter Organization Code AG3 when you register online at HOWconference.com.

Don’t miss this chance to refresh yourself with:
  • 11 pre-Conference workshops on type, photography, integrating Illustrator and Photoshop with Flash, and more
  • 49 sessions covering everything from working through burnout, web design for print designers, managing creatives for the first time and more
  • free technology training from Adobe, Enfocus Software, Quark and others in the HOW Learning Center
  • armloads of samples, information and other goodies from the hottest paper mills, stock photo companies, type foundries and others in the Design Resource Center
There’s a lot to learn, hear, see and do at a HOW Design Conference. To find out more, or start your registration now, visit HOWconference.com.

See you in Atlanta!

* Organization rate may not be used in combination with any other discount offers, including student rates, combo rates and past attendee coupons.

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UPCOMING EVENTS
March
Thurs 1
AIGA Houston presents :
BUZZ Social Series
Wed 7
AIGA Houston presents :
Nitty Gritty Teleforum (more info below) **FREE for Everyone **
TBA
AIGA Houston presents :
REACH Student Series : 3rd Annual Speed Dating for Interns
Fri 30 - Sat 31
Regional Event :
Creative Summit Design Conference www.creativesummit.com
April
Thurs 12
AIGA Houston presents :
IGNITE Speaker Series : Helvetica Documentary
Wed 18
AIGA Houston presents :
Nitty Gritty Teleforum **FREE for Everyone **
Thurs 19 – Sun. 22
AIGA Austin presents :
Design Ranch 2007 Design Conference. SEVEN years of creative re-inspiration with SEVEN workshops from SEVEN dynamite speakers. (more info below) or visit http://aigaaustin.org/events/2007/04/detail/276 for more details.
TBA
AIGA Houston presents :
REACH Student Series : Portfolio Preparation Seminar
TBA
AIGA Houston presents :
BUZZ Social Series: Meet, Greet, Movie, & BINGO
Fri 20
AIGA Houston presents :
REACH Student Series : 9th Annual Student Portfolio Review
May
Sat 5
AIGA Houston Design Gala, The Houstonian Hotel and Resort
Fri 18 - June 16
Rice Design Alliance presents:
Snapshot 2007 : Houston Design on View Exhibition
TBA
University of Houston Graphic Communications Student Exhibition
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SIX PROVEN WAYS TO GET NEW CLIENTS : Nitty-Gritty Teleforum with Pam Bryan

OK, so now you have a pretty good idea of who your ideal client is and what’s so special about how you can help them. Now what? Where and how do you actually find new clients? The answer is “Lot’s of different ways, and at least one will be right for you.”

Come join us at the March 7th at 9:30 am for our AIGA Nitty-Gritty TeleForum and learn more about “Six Proven Ways To Get New Clients.” Join your fellow AIGA members and Pam Bryan to discuss:
  • Why rust matters, and how to build it
  • 6 marketing tactics that work
  • How to choose the ones that are best for you.
Follow this link for more information or to get your RSVP registration code.
** It’s FREE for Everyone **

http://www.aigahouston.org/public/BRHMK534424324.aspx

What is a Nitty-Gritty TeleForum?
The Nitty-Gritty TeleForum series is a great learning opportunity brought to you by your AIGA chapter. A TeleForum is a form of distance learning where you use your telephone to call a pre-assigned phone number in order to participate in an interactive educational seminar. TeleForums provide a great learning experience with your design industry colleagues, without the time, expense and hassle of travel. Just close your door, pick up the phone and join us. You can choose to actively participate or just listen and learn. The choice is yours. Several chapters participate in the Nitty-Gritty series so you can exchange views with design professionals across town and across the country. All without leaving your own office. Oh, and did we mention? They are free! The Nitty-Gritty series is sponsored and delivered by Pam Bryan of Future Results Now. Pam is a business coach dedicated to making life as a design professional more fun and more profitable. www.futureresultsnow.com


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ADVICE COLUMN : Dear AIGAbby
Dear AIGAbby,
I am a graphic designer with a couple years of solid design and production experience, but now I am looking for a new job opportunity. I have printed samples of projects from my last job, but they don’t really represent my best work. My question is, should I use those printed samples of work for my portfolio, or should I use other layouts and concepts of print and web related projects I feel are stronger and represent my thinking process better.

- Portfolio Pickle

Dear Portfolio Pickle,
I understand your dilemma as most designers would. Early in your career you don’t always get a lot of exciting projects and frequently other factors make some projects turn out less than portfolio quality. A design instructor back when I was first starting out said “Roughly 75% - 85% of what we produce on a day-to-day basis is unfit for our portfolio”. That is not necessarily saying it was poorly designed. Factors like client input and demands, printing complications, brand standards and tight deadlines can affect the end result.

The biggest battle you currently face is lack of long-term experience. Employers will be looking for experience both in your resume and your portfolio and good “real world” projects are the best way to show that. Generally speaking, design schools produce designers with student portfolios (not a lot, if any, real client work). These portfolios are good for showing your eye for design, color and composition. What they are lacking is they don’t show what you are capable of producing during an average day at an agency, design firm or in-house department.

You are early enough in your career that you may still get away with purely conceptual or student pieces in your portfolio. An alternate direction might be to redesign or improve some of your better client projects so that they more accurately reflect your design philosophy, skills and style.

CONGRATS “Portfolio Pickle,” YOU WON A M.O. GIFT BASKET!

Readers remember the best letter gets (for a limited time) a cool gift basket from M.O. What’s M.O.? Go to www.yourmo.com/index.html and find out. Send your hard-hitting design related questions to aigabby@houston.aiga.org

We promise your identity will be kept completely anonymous!

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THE AUSTIN CHAPTER OF AIGA PROUDLY PRESENTS : Design Ranch 2007 : The Magnificent Seven

What??
There were brides kidnapped by brothers, a ball player named mickey, even magnificent cowboys and magical dwarfs. From whiskey to world wonders to sin, seven is what legends are made of, and now its our turn. Announcing Design Ranch 2007. Were celebrating SEVEN years of re-inspiration with SEVENTY-TWO hours of creatity from no less than SEVEN dynamite workshop leaders. Beyond workshops, Design Ranch offers the kind of entertainment you can only find in Texas. You can’t beat the live music, and requisite dancing each night (and some mornings), swimming and canoeing on the Guadalupe River just 100 yards or so from our workshops, golfing, hiking, tennis, jam sessions around the campfire (bring your guitar, drums, harmonica, or other musical fare), roping demonstrations, horseback riding, massage, facials, and good old fashioned jaw-jackin with the best bunch of folks youll ever want to share a weekend with. Not to mention all the great stuff we’re still cooking up behind the scenes!

When??
April 19-22, 2007

Who??
Marc Burckhardt | Austin | Illustrator (www.marcart.net) Decoder Ring | Austin | Designers (www.thedecoderring.com) Michael Osborne | San Francisco | Designer (www.mobsf.com) Tim Hale | Dallas | Designer (www.fossil.com) Stefan Bucher | Los Angeles | Illustrator (www.344design.com) Petrula Vrontikus | Los Angeles | Designer (www.35k.com) Dan Winters | Los Angeles / Austin | Photographer (www.danwintersphoto.com) Yee Haw! | Knoxville | Designers (www.yehawindustries.com)

Where??
Somewhere between Austin and Ciudad Acuńa, Mexico lies the Waldemar Guest Ranch (www.waldemar.com), the site of Design Ranch 2007. Boasting 7 acres short of 700, you could say it’s as big as hell and half of Texas. Established in 1927, this spread is now the site of one of the oldest continuously operated girls’ camps in the nation and surely one of the most beautiful. Deep in the rugged Texas Hill Country, its air-conditioned cabins built of stone, cedar and saltillo tile overlook the banks of the Guadalupe River. The handmade furniture and front porches of each cabin herald the very spirit of the wild frontier. Waldemar offers a wide variety of rooms and cabins along with an oversized dining hall that features family- style meals by a gourmet staff. Guests can go swimming, play tennis or take to the trails on foot or by horse.

Website: www.designranch.org

More Info: http://designranch2006.blogspot.com

Register: www.aiga.org/secure/austin/EventRegistration/aust_designranch_07

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365: AIGA ANNUAL DESIGN COMPETITIONS 28 AND AIGA 50 BOOkS/50 COVERS
Round up your finest design—AIGA’s annual competitions close March 3
For nearly a century, AIGA’s competitions have been among the most prestigious in the design world. This year, we’ve added two new features to make it even more compelling to enter your work. First, entry forms and payment can now be submitted online, streamlining the process and saving you a lot of time and paperwork. More importantly, all selected entries will be placed in the AIGA Design Archives, a growing collection of exemplary design work, and archived at the Denver Art Museum.

Why enter the AIGA design competitions? They are tough, they are authoritative and if your work is selected, it becomes history. By means of the competitions, AIGA creates an authoritative chronicle of outstanding design solutions, each demonstrating the process of designing, the role of the designer and the value of design.

Details for “365” and “50 Books/50 Covers”—which both close March 3—can be found at http://competitions.aiga.org . Don’t miss your chance to show off your best work—and become a part of design history while you’re at it.

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Special thanks to: Jeff Stark, Charles Houser, Michael Castro, Ken Bullock and Edmee Micheli