Anchorage, AK – In November, Mad Dog joined a throng of other designers and agencies at a reception for The BIG One, AIGA Alaska’s fifth annual design competition. The event was held for the first time at The Boardroom in downtown Anchorage.
There were a record number of entries in this year’s competition, and some truly outstanding work was on display during the event. Kudos to AIGA Alaska for putting together an evening that brought together the statewide design community – from students to freelancers to agencies, celebrated work that elevates the level of all design in Alaska, and still managed to be a lot of fun.
The quality of work in this year’s show was higher than ever.
Entries this year were judged by a panel of design heavyweights – Drew Davies, founder and design director of Oxide Design Co. and past national president for AIGA; Cinthia Wen, founder and creative director of NOON in San Francisco; and Carlos Zamora, creative director at Express Scripts in St. Louis and current president of AIGA St. Louis.
Carlos was on-hand for a lecture at Ginger the night before the event, and gave a great presentation that included a brief history of Cuban poster art and his own career as a designer and illustrator. At The BIG One, Carlos helped AIGA Alaska President Colleen Shannon present the evening’s awards. In addition, Carlos brought many of his own poster prints and even designed a custom graphic for a chair that was the object of a silent auction benefitting AIGA Alaska.
[L] Courtny Brooks, in-house designer for AlaskaUSA, and Debbie Hahn from PIP Printing Alaska review the entries. [R] Michael Ardaiz of Mad Dog Graphx with The BIG One judge Carlos Zamora.
More entries and more attendees this year than ever before!
This year, the event was held at The Boardroom in downtown Anchorage – and the venue was just about perfect. The Boardroom is a major local sponsor for AIGA Alaska.
Congratulations to all the winners, and a special tip of the hat to Best of Show winner Craig Updegrove for his brilliant poster work this year.
Founded in 1914, AIGA is the oldest and largest professional association for design. AIGA works nationally through local chapters to advance design as a professional craft, strategic advantage, and vital cultural force. Mad Dog is proud to be a founding member of AIGA Alaska.