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Title: Creative director
Organization: OIC Design
Previous position: Owner of Royal Street Studio in Washington, D.C.
Education: Bachelor of Fine Arts degree and graphic design and illustration, Baylor University.
Early on: “My mother has drawings from when I was two, and she said that she pretty much knew I was an artist then. At age 16 I was designing ads for some of the local department stores in Texas and I got a job with the Williamson County Sun. I knew that I was definitely going into graphic design after having that experience. It cemented my desire to do it. I think that was when I realized that you could really make a living with art. I don’t think of it as selling out at all. I love what I do. It’s enabled me to travel, meet people and work on some exciting jobs.
Joining OIC Design: “My business was in Washington, D.C., and I moved to Richmond for a change after Sept. 11, and started doing freelance with Kelly [Adams, owner of OIC Design]. We had a really good rapport, and I did a lot of work with her. After I met Kelly and had done some work for her, I was granted an artist visa by the British government. I worked on my personal projects. I freelanced. I did murals and I spent a month in Italy studying art at the Santa Reparata in Florence, Italy. It was the experience of a lifetime. My visa was almost up, so I decided to come back to be near my family. “Kelly contacted me to see if I was interested in working with her full time because they had been looking for an art director. I’ve spent the last 10 years working at a lot of agencies and traveling. I’ve been looking for an agency that has the synergy we have here.

Role at OIC: “I am an account manager, so I work with clients directly. I concept and produce the artwork for a variety of different assignments. I don’t really think that there is a typical project. Every client has different needs, and every client is an individual. I get a lot of requests for logo identities and promotion work. I’ve been in the same line of business since I graduated from school. As an artist, there’s a new challenge presented every time I meet a client. I like answering the challenge with the most-creative solution I can devise. It’s extremely rewarding when you know that your client is pleased.”

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