About me:
I enjoy the process of graphic design; from the initial bombardment of creative ideas that spill into a sketchbook,through the sifting and organizing of these ideas into one clear, distilled composition. Few people are aware of the energy and talent that goes into a single one of the billboards they see on their daily commute.
I believe that creativity cannot be taught. That it stems from experience and from confidence. One must have exposure to influences outside your own personal realm, and one must have belief in these experiences. The belief that if I find something interesting, maybe others will too. I draw creative experience from the world that was here before, and from trying to imagine the world as it could be. I have an active interest in antiques, in Roman architecture, in the decor of things past. I gain experiences from other people’s realities, the writings of Simmons, Tolkien and McKiernan, the art of Brom, Barlowe and Christenson. I gain knowledge and get inspiration equally from walking through the edgy Dutch design of 21st century Amsterdam, as I do from taking a nature walk out on my farm. I have filled books with my sketches and lists of ideas for graphic design, industrial design and paintings. I don’t mean to sound too high hat; I also believe in the teachings of Play-Doh!
The contrast of the otherworldly and the mundane, antique and futuristic, of nature opposed to artifice, of structure in chaos is what I find to being interesting design, not only in graphics, but in my life.
Experience:
Jan, 2005 - June, 2009
Freckle Creative• Art Director
Aug, 2003 - Jan, 2005
Grant MacEwan Community College• Term Instructor
May, 2003 - Aug, 2003
TopDraw Inc.• Freelance Designer
Jan 2003 - Present
Marc Nipp Design• Creative Director/Owner
Aug, 2002 - April, 2003
Grant MacEwan Community College• Term Instructor
Jan, 2001 - May, 2002
Sightline Design• Senior Graphic Designer
Aug, 2001 - Jan, 2002
Grant MacEwan Community College• Term Instructor
May, 1996 - Dec, 2000
Calder Bateman Communications • Graphic Designer
Software:
Quark Express, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Photoshop, Indesign, Microsoft Office
Education:
1996 Grant MacEwan Audiovisual Communications
-shooting and editing video, mixing and dubbing audio, computer photo manipulation, and advanced studio photography were covered.
1994/95 Grant MacEwan Graphic Design & Illustration
- trained in cutting edge design, editorial illustration, development informal typographic approach, black & white photography, as well asfiction and non-fiction writing.
Awards:
2008 ACE of Distinction: Annual Report • Lakeland Credit Union
2008 Best of Show: Annual Report • Marketing Association for Credit Unions,
Achievement in Marketing Excellence, Lakeland Credit Union
2006 ACE of Distinction: Identity Design • Divinity Within
2006 Premiers Award of Excellence, AED Promo materials