AIGA LA to Honor Top Design Innovators

Errol Gerson, one of the honorees at the upcoming gala. – Courtesy photo

On June 22, AIGA LA will celebrate its 2017 Fellows and second-ever Visionary award winners at the 2017 AIGA LA Awards. After a 5-year hiatus, the gala is making a comeback with a who’s who of the design world to honor three winners handpicked from a number of locally nominated contenders. This year’s nominating committee was chaired by the very first Fellow Award recipient, Toni Hollander-Morse, and included other Fellows, current and past board members, AIGA Advisers, and influencers of the LA design scene.

“This is the event people will be talking about,” said Jason Adam, AIGA LA chapter president. “It’s a celebration for the design community, and this year we pushed some boundaries to showcase what it truly means to be a creative and a contributor to society.”

The Fellows Award, a national initiative, recognizes designers who have significantly raised the standards of excellence in practice and conduct within their regional design community, as well as in their local AIGA chapter in education, writing, leadership, reputation, and design. This year’s honorees are:

• Errol Gerson, who has taught management, strategy, and entrepreneurship to some 6,300 students at ArtCenter College of Design for the past 45 years. He co-founded cow-interactive, one of the first web development firms in LA, and has served AIGA LA for many years as a board member, treasurer, and is now a Senior Adviser.
• Wayne Hunt, an international leader in environmental graphics and wayfinding. He put his stamp on more than 200 assignments domestically and worldwide including the Statue of Liberty, Golden Gate Bridge, and the Walt Disney Company. Hunt is an ArtCenter adjunct professor, an author, and a Fellow of the Society of Experiential Graphic Design.

The Visionary Award recognizes an individual or an organization whose leadership and innovation have significantly advanced the design profession in Los Angeles. Their contributions have generated new opportunities for designers, strengthened the connection between design and business, society and culture, and increased the value of design in the community-at-large.

• GOOD Wordwide, a media group behind the “free press for the critical idealist” that helps brands apply creativity to purpose, producing breakthrough programs and powerful stories that resonate with influential audiences. With bold and unconventional graphics, design is at the heart of GOOD’s storytelling. Data, facts, and statistics come to life with purposeful visuals that inspire taking action.

Ticket sales are now live at http://losangeles.aiga.org/event/2017-aiga-la-awards.

For more information, contact Sheharazad Fleming, sheharazad.fleming@usc.edu or Flavia Arsenault, flavia@mathys-potestio.com.

More from Arts