Meena Khalili is a professor of design and interaction who makes daily drawings of things. She is a recipient of consecutive International Design Awards and the National Award for Outstanding Professional Achievement in Graphic Design by the Southeastern College Art Conference. She holds a BFA in Illustration and an MFA in Graphic Design from VCUarts. Meena maintains an international speaking and exhibition schedule with work shown at the Type Directors Club, Chicago Design Museum, and galleries throughout Italy, North America, Asia, and Europe. Meena’s work is in permanent collections around the world and the Library of Congress. She is featured in Issue 05 of The Great Discontent. Her research is driven by her experience as an Iranian-American and daughter of a small business owner. Her work explores cultural identity and generational storytelling.

Designer, educator talk. I walk through the rules I use in my creative practice showing innovative and inspiring work from my studio and classroom with the next generation of designers.

George F. Baker III, also known as GFB3, is a Nebraska-born, Detroit Grown, and Atlanta-Raised Creator. Using his instruments of design, illustration, and production, he employs a playful childlike spirit to engage the inner-child we all have. Currently, he is the Creative Director of Foster, a brand striving to make people unafraid to play.

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Ever wonder what it's like drawing rocket ships when you're 7 years old, and then turning that into a career in your mid 30s!? I hope not, lol. It can happen in a much shorter time span, and I'm here to tell you everything I know to make that happen for you. If you want it.I've worked with some of the largest space/aerospace clients out there: NASA, Blue Origin, Ariane Group (James Webb Telescope), Boeing, and more. My talk will show you how to get there straight from design school, how exactly to target these clients, and also how to make the most optimal illustrative content for this industry.I will also talk about my highest highs, lowest lows, the things I believe you should look out for, and ultimately how to put your stamp in this industry and make it your own. Check out @fugstrator on Instagram for reference on all this work!

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You don't have to be successful in your 20's to have a great career. Jimmy Bryant will talk to us about his journey and the importance of constantly working on his craft and building an audience to achieve real-world success.

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Alex has over 15 years in the design industry and has played a pivotal role in some of the largest brands and campaigns. He has worked with the likes of: Adobe, Balenciaga, Epic Games, Fortnite, Unreal Engine, Twitch, Hilton, Pfizer, Louisville Slugger, and Linktree as well as many more. He heads up the brand design studio Lazaris. The studio’s focus is on building unapologetically bold brands that drive results for their clients.

Landing your dream job, project or client can seem like a daunting task. In this talk that’s purposely built for all industries, skill sets and seniority levels, Alex will break down how you can turn your dreams into reality.

As a kid, he drew everything and anything he could think of, hung out with the designers at the advertising agency where his mom worked, and constantly took things apart to better understand them.Always looking for new ways to solve problems, Jeremy was the kid, and later the adult, whom people turned to when they needed help expressing themselves and their ideas graphically.Today, as the principal of his own firm, Jeremy puts his insatiable curiosity to work every day as he gets into the heads of his clients to really understand what it is they want and—perhaps more importantly—need in order to develop a memorable brand presence. With a firm belief that he is the master of his computer (and not the other way around), he works everything out on paper first to ensure that the logos he designs and the brands he creates are as thoughtful, effective and original as the clients they represent.

5 years after starting my studio, I took a month-long international trip. Upon return, I saw my business with a clarity I hadn’t seen before. The pivot I made at that point changed the way we do business as a design studio as well as our approach to finding clients who best fit our culture and values. It helped us to define the real meaning of fulfilling creative work and how, when we do what is best for our clients, we can help them achieve their goals and find the same level of joy and fulfillment.

Steven Wakabayashi (he/him) is a creative director, changemaker, and founder of mission-driven organizations empowering historically marginalized communities within design, tech, and mindfulness industries. After leading creative teams at many notable brands and agencies, he is now creating pathways for queer BIPOC creatives into the design industry through QTBIPOC Design, creating safe spaces for BIPOC communities within mindfulness through Mindful Sights, and designing equitable products and experiences for clients with his creative agency Stranger Creative.

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