I work closely with the Five By Fifty team to develop collateral for their client presentations. This often takes the form of ideation/inspiration posters, worksheets, digital presentation files, and workbooks. This workbook was designed to help explain the workings of the Japanese economy for an American client.

I have work in a new show starting next month in Portland, Oregon called WORK | PROGRESS that benefits the Dill Pickle Club.

WORK | PROGRESS features 24 Portland-based socially-engaged artists creating replicated works of art. Participating artists: Icky A, Brad Adkins, Moe Bowstern, Carye Bye, Bill Daniel, Dyslexxis, Harrell Fletcher, Sarah Gottesdiener, Sam Gould, Anna Gray, MK Guth, Ariana Jacob, Kendra Larson, Ian Lynam, Eric Mast, Justin Scrappers Morrison, Michael Parich, Ryan Wilson Paulsen, Brittany Powell, Khris Soden, Bwana Spoons, Matthew Stadler, Nim Wunnan and Pete Yahnke. Many have exhibited nationally and internationally, including Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, Boise Art Museum, Portland Art Museum, Seattle Art Museum and the Whitney Biennial.

While I am not based in Portland, I touch down there twice a year minimum and have a wonderful community there. It’s my other home and I love it dearly, as well as a number of other artists involved in the show.

WORK | PROGRESS Opening
Thursday, December 3 | 6PM | FREE
Join us for the opening of the exhibition during the First Thursday art walk, with beer donated by Ninkasi and live music by Cape Perpetua and Niekrasz/ Jenkins Duet (of Why I Must Be Careful).

WORK | PROGRESS Dinner & Show Closing
Sunday, January 3 | 6PM | $20 General / $18 Picklers
An intimate evening, with dinner prepared by Lucy Rockwell and presentations by people who have helped the Dill Pickle Club, including: Vontundra, Eberhardt Press and Matthew Stadler. I will be in attendance at the Dinner & Show Closing.

Show info:
The Eyeful Gallery | 625 NW Everett #104 | Portland, Oregon
Wednesday – Sunday 12PM – 6PM

In other news…..
I just finished a lecture and workshop with Myung Jin Song Cruz’s Graphic Design class at Temple University yesterday. Decent one hour lecture about my body of work to date followed by a manually intensive project exploring identity through graphic expression.

I updated Portland, Oregon artist Anna Fidler’s website this week with a chunk of new images.

Additionally, I will be teaching a new class (as well as an old one) at Temple University Japan in January.

Image Making (IMA101)
In the contemporary world of graphic design, designers must be able to not only convey information, but do so in ways that are engaging and entertaining. Image Making teaches strategies for creating unique visual form to incorporate into graphic design projects. A hybrid of manual, analog, and digital processes including drawing, collage, manipulating found imagery, pattern-making, and typographic assemblage will be utilized to help students with the goal of the class: for each student to create a 100-page book of a range of form-making styles that will greatly benefit their professional portfolios.

The class will work together to explore different formal and conceptual strategies for creating new and exciting visual illustration. This class will appeal to graphic designers interested in both print and web, illustrators, fine artists, and students with an interest in editorial illustration. It will also appeal to designers and illustrators working within a signature style, as the strategies utilized will help loosen up professionals, push boundaries, and create new work.

This class is a studio class but will require a bit of homework for visual research (collecting source material and light reading).

All About Typography (TYP101)
An in-depth look at typography (designing with fonts) for both beginners and experienced practitioners. This class is a working examination of Western typography including lectures on type history, type classification, and contemporary practice.

Practical exercises, as well as in-class critiques will help broaden students’ understanding of typography practically and critically

The class will conduct projects to explore typographic styles, learn correct typesetting practices, and increase design acumen. The class will host guest lectures by some of Japan’s top graphic designers. The class is Mac-based, but will apply equally to PC-based environments.

Fan Letter: 26 Artists and Designers Present Their Favorite Letter or Typographic Character

Twenty-six local, national, and internationally-based designers and artists give a two-minute ode to an alphabet letter or typographic character. These may range from multimedia presentations, performances, videos, stories, poems, animations, songs, stand-up comedy, rants, short plays, demonstrations, Gregorian chants, etc—however they choose to depict their letter.

My contribution to Fan Letter can be viewed here– an ode to the letter “B”.

Fan Letter: 26 Artists and Designers Present Their Favorite Letter or Typographic Character

My contribution is here– an ode to the letter “B”.

Twenty-six local, national, and internationally-based designers and artists give a two-minute ode to an alphabet letter or typographic character. These may range from multimedia presentations, performances, videos, stories, poems, animations, songs, stand-up comedy, rants, short plays, demonstrations, Gregorian chants, etc—however they choose to depict their letter.

Fan Letter is organized and emceed by Bruce Willen and Nolen Strals of Post Typography, authors of a new book from Princeton Architectural Press, Lettering & Type: Creating Letters and Designing Typefaces. This event is the launch party for the book, and also takes place in conjunction with Lubalin Now, the inaugural exhibition in the newly relocated Herb Lubalin Study Center of Design and Typography. The participants in Fan Letter include many designers whose work is featured in the exhibition as well as in Lettering & Type.

Artists, designers, illustrators, and musicians participating in Fan Letter:
Colleen Asper—New York (C); Ken Barber & Ben Kiel—Delaware, House Industries (H); Nicholas Blechman—New York, Nozone, New York Times (X); Kim Bost and Ted McGrath—New York (T); Ryan Brown—New York (,); Deanne Cheuk—New York (L); Doug Clouse & Angela Voulangas—New York (.); Andrew Byrom—Los Angeles (N); Jennifer Daniel—New York, New York Times (D); John Downer—Iowa City (J); Rowen Frazer—New York (O); Isaac Gertman—New York (R); Holly Gressley—New York (Y); Jessica Hische—New York (W); Justin Thomas Kay—New York (&); Jonathan Keller—New York (Q); Ian Lynam—Japan (B); Lisa Malone—New York (M); Kelley McIntyre—Baltimore (G); Abbott Miller—Baltimore, Pentagram (A); Ted Mineo—New York (E); Daniel Gardiner Morris—New York, The Arm (V); Adam Okrasinski—New York (K); Christopher Papasidero—New York, fwis (F); Tore Terrasi—Boston (I); Khoi Vinh—New York, New York Times (H);

New promotional postcard set for Bespoke Tokyo out now!

New promotional postcard set designed for Bespoke Tokyo.

Custom Peace Sweater pattern Pepastar moose made an appearance twice in print this week! First, in the DesignTide catalog (above), and second in the latest issue of Casa Brutus:

I’ve been creating a series of simple editorial illustrations for WIFM Magazine over the past year. The latest issue is out now and available in Tokyo.

My new band Mammal with Mari Kojima will debut next week at Tokyo Art Beat’s 5th Anniversary party at SuperDeluxe in Tokyo.

Just launched: a new website for Social Innovation Partners is a social-profit enterprise based in Portland, Oregon. We worked with SIP’s founder Elizabeth Hoffecker Moreno to expand her business’ identity, creating a unique and professional web presence that is client editable in an easy and intuitive manner.

Social Innovation Partners is a social-profit enterprise based in Portland, Oregon. We worked with SIP’s founder Elizabeth Hoffecker Moreno to expand their business identity, creating a unique and professional web presence that is client editable. Using a WordPress framework styled using CSS, we created a search engine optimized website that is easy and intuitive to update.