“I love being a designer. Some see a mountain and have to climb it, I see bad design and want to redesign it. When most people look at takeout menus, they’re trying to decide what to order. I’m thinking of ways to make it look and read better. I’ve been doing this sort of thing professionaly for over thirteeen years.”

The genesis of my career as a designer and artist can be traced back to my first grade teacher Mrs. Biel. She was so impressed with one of my drawings she insisted on laminating it. From that day forward I wanted to be an artist. Years later I learned you didn't have to be a starving artist, labouring away in a studio waiting for your big break. You could become what was then called a commercial artist.

After taking every art class I could at Highland High School and winning several awards, I enrolled in the graphic design program at Carthage College in Kenosha, Wisconsin. I spent the first several semesters working in screenprinting, sculpting, etching, painting and other media. Then, during my junior year, a senior mentioned she would soon be leaving a job with the school’s PR department. It was a graphic design job working on a Mac creating brochures, postcards and other materials for students and alumni. It sounded like a great opportunity, there was only one problem, I had almost zero experience with the software and hadn't used a Mac since high school. But I couldn't pass it up so I interviewed and got the job (Thank you, Shari). When I couldn’t figure something out I looked in the manual and learned on the fly. It was a great experience that helped me tremendously in my later classes and when looking for a job before graduating Magna Cum Laude in May of 1996 with a BA in graphic design.

Before graduation, I landed a job with McKnight Medical Communications in Northfield, Illinois. They were in the trade publishing business, which I soon found out was like consumer publishing but with a tiny fraction of the budget. I quickly learned how to stretch a small stock photo library and create my own illustrations using Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop. In the years that followed I also picked up valuable skills in management, Web design and Flash animation. For a more detailed account of my professional career, check out my resume.