For decades, people have moved to Kansas City from all over the world to work at Hallmark. Hallmark was founded in Kansas City in 1910. ![]() I think Kansas City’s creative strength is due in large part to housing the world headquarters to Hallmark Cards. If you were to fail, the fall is not that far and you can pick yourself up and take another swing. Having a much lower cost of living in Kansas City, allows us to take big risks. We are not a largely populated city like New York or Los Angeles but our creative community is so involved, so engaged and so strong. The creative community in Kansas City has always impressed me. WHAT TYPES OF PROJECTS ARE YOU WORKING ON NOW? ![]() Play was a big part of Gordon’s overall philosophy. He wrote the book, “ Orbiting the Giant Hairball” in which he discusses how to survive as a creative in the corporate world. Gordon was one of my Dad’s best friends at Hallmark. I learned this philosophy from the late, great Gordon Mackenzie. We all really do our best work when we are enjoying ourselves and engaging in play. I try to keep it light, encourage everyone to experiment, try something totally new and play. Not that we just sit around goofing off all day, but I have recognized that I do my best work when I am fully engaged in the project and frankly, having fun. Our studio is collaborative, hard working and we try to put a strong emphasis on play. I’m also married to the very talented art director/designer, Jessica who’s always involved in some capacity. Our studio currently is comprised of myself and two part-time designers. ![]() It really changes all the time based on the clients needs. Other times, we might be creating a packaging campaign or an illustration collection. Often a client needs a full brand identity. Our studio specializes in brand identities and creating memorable brand experiences. (Feb.WE ARE BASED IN WEST PLAZA, in a newly built live/work space that my wife, Jessica and I recently built with our Architects and friends at Kem Studio. Visual sound effect cues abound in dynamic display type: “rumble! rumble! rattle-rattle-roll!” As much fun as flooring it-and a lot safer. Carpenter’s (Sad Santa) carefree scenes, digitally rendered and saturated in primary colors, are the very picture of urban hustle and bustle, with a jaunty look of 1960s animation. Roll it./ Take the lead./ School’s out city!” reads one of Burleigh’s clipped couplets. Mid-afternoon finds school kids on a public bus eager to get home and hit the streets on wheels of their own: “Step on it, Driver./ Show some speed./ Rock it. Each spread is snapshot of people happily in motion at a particular time of day, from the early morning garbage pickup to the time when late-night revelers call it quits (“Tired dancers/ slowly walking./ Subway riders/ softly talking”). “Wake up, city!” booms Burleigh in this companion to 2009’s Clang! Clang! Beep! Beep! In an imaginary metropolis (where coffee is still just five cents a cup), all the vehicles-from bikes to subways-spring to life, most of them with eager smiles and bright headlight eyes. ![]() Young vehicle-lovers will rev their engines for more. Done in a simple palette primarily of yellow, blue and red, with a base tone reminiscent of newsprint, the cheery artwork also captures the activity and grit of the city. Each spread offers something of interest, whether in pattern, composition or character. Carpenter’s retro-styled computer illustrations have a simple charm. The frenetic pace finally slows at day’s end, as stores close, parties come to an end, and revelers walk home. Rhyming text, jam-packed with action, propels the day forward, as each refrain announces the inhabitants’ intentions: “Work time,” “Lunch time,” “Play time,” “Party time.” Exuberant onomatopoeia incorporated into the artwork follows the refrains, as trucks vroom, vans dash, and firetrucks flash. An energetic, multivehicle ride through a bustling city day.Ī cheerful sun awakens a sleeping metropolis, and garbage trucks and joggers take to the streets.
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