AIGA Los Angeles is excited to announce the new individuals who will assume positions on the local board of directors beginning in June of 2014.
AIGA LA’s board is elected by its members and plays a crucial role in determining the mission of AIGA LA, ensuring that the organization continues to operate in the best interest of past, present and future members.
The new AIGA LA board members who will serve two-year terms beginning June 1, 2014 are:
Jason Adam, President
Rachel Elnar, Secretary
Cyrus H. Butler, Treasurer
Matthew Manos, Programming Director
Shannon Gabor, Communications Director
Amanda Hovest, Membership Director
Daniel Norman, Development Director
Advisory Board Members who will begin a two-year term on June 1, 2014:
Noreen Morioka
Lawrence Azerrad
Crystal Ehrlich
Sheharazad Fleming
Andrew Gibbs
Kevin E. Kelley
David Mayes
ABOUT THE BOARD
Jason Adam, President
Jason Adam is a designer, artist, brand strategist, and the co-founder of Hexanine, a brand design firm helping build passionate audiences for organizations. Hexanine’s work has been featured in such publications as HOW, Los Logos, LogoLounge, and he himself has spoken for HOW Design Live and AAF. Jason’s commitment to excellent design and imaginative aesthetics is rivaled only by his think-outside-the-rhombus outlook, and he currently serves as the chapter President of AIGA Los Angeles.
Rachel Elnar, Secretary
Rachel Elnar is a designer, writer and founding partner at design firm Ramp Creative, and a passionate builder of creative communities. In 2008, she was named as one of Graphic Design USA’s “People to Watch.” She’s served as an adjunct professor of interactive design at Art Center College of Design, Cal State LA and Cal Poly Pomona. In 2012 she co-founded TypeEd, a typography education program dedicated to bringing the craft of typography back to graphic design education.
Cyrus H. Butler, Treasurer
Cyrus H. Butler owns an LA-based accounting firm, built with a base of over 100 clients solely through referrals, and provide bookkeeping, consulting, and management services nationwide. After graduating from San Francisco State with a Bachelor’s degree in Radio and Television in 2003, he held the Corporate Secretary position for the American Drilling Company. At Michael L. Witte, CPA, he prepared for audits for multi-million dollar oil companies before becoming an Enrolled Agent in 2009 and going out on his own.
Matthew Manos, Programming Director
Matthew Manos is a neo-philanthropist, creative director, and author that is dedicated to disrupting the economic models of service-oriented business. He founded verynice, a global design and innovation consultancy that dedicates over 50% of its efforts toward free services for non-profit organizations. He is also the author of “How to Give Half of Your Work Away for Free,” an internationally distributed documentation of verynice’s 50% pro-bono business model and the subsequent “Give Half Movement.”
Shannon Gabor, Communications Director
Shannon Gabor is CEO and founder of Venice-based agency, Clever Creative. With 15+ years of design and branding leadership, she has had the opportunity to engage on multiple brand touch points for a diverse portfolio of clients like Mattel, Warner Bros., Ritz Carlton, Burger King and Jamie Oliver. Her belief in bringing authentic storytelling and compelling imagery to brands has led the agency to provide solutions for the many Fortune 500 companies that call Clever their creative home.
Amanda Hovest, Membership Director
Amanda Hovest is an energetic force of nature. Whether it be creating hardworking identity systems or learning how to hip-hop dance, her positive outlook and cheery disposition drive her to take on new challenges with spirit and enthusiasm. Currently a designer at KBDA, Amanda believes in meaningful, idea-driven design. She graduated from Bowling Green State University with a BFA in Graphic Design and a minor in Marketing.
Daniel Norman, Development Director
Daniel Norman leads Design Helm to strategize, create, and implement dynamic brand experiences. He founded Design Helm in 2010 upon relocating to LA from Washington, D.C. where he worked for over a decade with award-winning multidisciplinary architecture, interior, and graphic design firms providing brand strategy and interior design solutions for sustainable commercial architectural projects, as well as graphic and exhibition design services.
Noreen Morioka (Advisory Board Chair) is a co-founder of AdamsMorioka, leading the team in client interface, and business development. In 2006, Noreen was named as a Fellow of the American Institute of Graphic Arts, and in 2014, named as an AIGA Medalist. Noreen is a past president of Los Angeles Chapter, chair of the AIGA National President’s Council, Fellow of the International Design Conference at Aspen, and a board member of the James Beard Foundation. She is a frequent competition judge and lecturer.
Kevin E. Kelley, AIA, is the co-founder of Shook Kelley, a strategy and design firm. Kevin is based in Los Angeles, but his clients such as Whole Foods, Harley-Davidson, Ayala Land, Santa Monica Seafood, CODA Automotive and many others are located around the world. Shook Kelley has developed a unique approach to design that joins together a number of disciplines, including architecture, interiors, communications, marketing, consumer behavior, psychology, social sciences and, of course, graphic design.
Andrew Gibbs founded The Dieline in 2007 and has tended to its growth since then. He shares his passion with millions of designers through TheDieline.com, the world’s #1 package design website. Formerly the Creative Director for the leading beverage development company in the nation, Andrew now serves as CEO of Dieline Media LLC, where he oversees The Dieline, The Dieline Package Design Awards, and The Dieline Package Design Conference. He is also author of Box Bottle Bag – The world’s best package designs from The Dieline.
Lawrence Azzerad founded the independent graphic design studio LADdesign in 2001. Creating graphic design and comprehensive visual identity systems for clients such as The Clinton Foundation, The Beach Boys, Oliver Peoples Eyewear, and House of Waris for Forevermark Diamonds. Prior to opening his studio, he worked as an art director at Warner Bros Records, creating packaging and artwork for artists ranging from Miles Davis, to Adam Sandler and Clint Eastwood. He has taught Graphic Design at Art Center College of Design, and The Academy of Art University, San Francisco.
Sheharazad Fleming has 14 years of combined in-house design management and creative agency experience focusing on brands in the academic, healthcare and non-profit sectors. In her current role as University Art Director, Sheharazad oversees design and brand strategy for the University of Southern California. In 2011, she partnered with Pentagram to lead the redesign, launch and implementation of a university-wide graphic identity system. Most recently, she lead the redesign of the university’s flagship publication, USC Trojan Family Magazine.
David Mayes began his career before Typecraft Lithography working as General Manager at Westside Print Works where he managed the daily operations of a five-color printing plant and at Embrey Press where he focused on marketing, estimating, customer service and project coordination. He has taught print production workshops at Art Center College of Design and lectured at USC, UCLA Extension, Loyola Marymount University and the AIGA Schools of Thoughts Conferences. He has been involved with the chapter since 1997 and honored as an AIGA Los Angeles Fellow in 2012.
Crystal Ehrlich is an award-winning designer and expert in the field of user experience (UX) specializing in creating elegant, intuitive environments for mobile apps, websites, enterprise software applications and beyond. Her clients have included AT&T, Coca Cola, Guinness, Honda, Lee Jeans, Levi’s, Lucky Brand Dungarees, Pacific Sunwear, Microsoft, MTV.com, MySpace, Pepsi, Priceline.com, Verizon, and VH1.com. Ehrlich also organizes skills enhancement and networking opportunities for fellow professionals through a bi-monthly UX Breakfast Club series and a 2,700-person-strong Los Angeles User Experience Meetup group.
