Born and raised in a rural area of western North Carolina surrounded by woods with a lake as a backyard, I spent a lot of my childhood developing a vivid imagination. I’ll never regret being forced to create my own entertainment as a child because it has helped shape the creative person that I am today. It also didn’t hurt to have an art teacher for a mother, who put a crayon in my hand at birth and introduced me to graphic design as a teenager.
I received a Bachelors of Graphic Design from the College of Design at NC State University in 2006, graduating Magna Cum Laude. Since graduating I’ve been a key member of the creative team at Kelly MarCom, a full-service marketing communications firm. As Senior Graphic Designer, I’ve had the privilege of leading or being involved in the entire creative process for many interactive and print projects. This experience has enabled me to develop strong problem solving abilities as well as a deep knowledge of business strategies complimentary to the creative process. I’ve also won a number of awards along the way!
Through my involvement in all aspects of the creative process, from brand discovery sessions with clients to copywriting and press checks, I’ve become fully aware of where my passion for graphic design lives. I believe that graphic design should be purposeful. My passion is to use design to educate, inform and entertain – as opposed to merely creating a more visually pleasing layout. From my perspective, graphic design has the capability to make information more visually understandable. It’s also capable of peaking interest insuring that information is more relatable and has a greater impact on it’s audience.
As I further my career as a professional Graphic Designer, one goal remains constant – to design with purpose.