Established in 1996, ADC Young Guns is a global portfolio competition that identifies today's vanguard of young creative professionals across all fields of visual media and design. This year's YG7 Winners claimed the iconic ADC Young Guns Cube on Wednesday, October 21, at the opening party for the exhibition of their winning work. The ADC Young Guns 7 Moleskine® annual, available for purchase online, was also released that night. Connect with us on Facebook to view party photos here and here. For this month's Q&A we interviewed thirteen members of the ADC Young Guns 7 jury - all past ADC Young Guns themselves - who spent six weeks this summer carefully reviewing the entries. Each shared their judging methods, shelled out tips for winners and non-winners, and looked back on their own entry into the ADC Young Guns community. Interview by Noémie Bonnet and Regan Murphy, regan@adcglobal.org.

Keetra Dean Dixon (YG6): It is still so early in my career, so I don't have full perspective yet. But already the positive light cast by the YG status has resonated - more positive attention + work opportunities. It's been great! Not to mention the nice little confidence booster.

Robin Bilardello (YG5): Well, first and foremost, I really loved the sash ADC gave us at the YG5 party. I wore it to holiday parties that year, a huge hit, and will wear it occasionally around the office for leverage if I'm dealing with a tricky editor. The value of the honor to be a YG for me was mostly personal reassurance. Like okay, I'm on the right track, I'm building a decent design foundation in my brain, other people besides my mom like my work, so I'm doing okay. The downside was the added line to my resume, it really screwed up my black and gray balance.

Greg Brunkalla (YG6): Many people in the business say awards and acknowledgments don't truly matter. I agree with this statement when creating work, you should make something you believe in without seeking validation. When it comes to the business though, getting your name out there is priceless.

dress code (YG5): It gave us a connection to a very credible and established group of creatives, as well as exposing our work to a whole new audience. Plus there are lots of parties with free booze.

Julie Hirschfeld (YG3): We felt lucky to be included in such a talented and diverse group. It's definitely important to get press when you start. It can be a real boost & there are not many chances to reach a more official ground.

Masashi Kawamura (YG6): ADC Young Guns was a chance for my work to be noticed by more creatives around the world, and to connect with amazing talents in the same generation.

Graeme Hall (YG6): It gave me global recognition in an increasingly cluttered industry.

Menno Kluin (YG6): I personally liked to be part of a group. I looked at all the other winners that year and its interesting to see that you are part of them.

floto+warner (YG5): More visibility means more work and the Art Directors Club is one of the best and most valued networks around for creatives.

Emiliano Ponzi (YG6): Browsing the work, I realized that being talented is not enough. Like a small bonsai tree, talent needs care and attention to grow up and face the market. I thought that a good way to judge was to evaluate the work on two layers. The first was the emotional one, the initial impact of the communication. The second was to go through the explanation behind the work to be able to give it a rational vote.

Hall: Difficult, but eye-opening. I essentially judged each piece on a jealousy scale. If it made me green-eyed and open-mouthed, it got in. If it left me cold, it didn't.

Kluin: Talent shows itself. Being different and innovative shows the same way in any medium. I looked for things that somehow are fresh to me; it's Young Guns after all.

dress code: It was fun to judge such diverse work. Overall great work is great work, regardless of the medium. You can tell pretty quickly when someone has it or they don't.

Bridget de Socio (YG1): Today is like the renaissance...many skill sets must be applied and mastered as we go from analog to bit and back. It's wild to see so many head-spinning turns in design styles, as the playing field is so international and every culture has its particular oeuvre. That was really interesting. Though some pieces suffer for not being "in hand" as they once used to be, which can make a difference in a piece being "loved." The world is more and more on screen and transmitted rapidly to send style, message and graphics around the globe, so the work has to survive and adapt to the new viewing window. I evaluate continuity of personal style - that means the most - and a level of originality.

dress code: Some of the 3D Animation and Live Action Direction was pretty top notch.

Kluin: What I really liked about judging was that people stood out, not single pieces. People who showed that whatever they touched somehow has that something extra (talent). They didn't get lucky with one project that somehow worked out, but they consistently showed their skill, ideas and imagination at a higher level.

Julien Vallée (YG6): I remember the work of Karim Zariffa which was very colorful and different from the other participants. His aesthetic in printed and motion pieces was constant and striking.

Bilardello: I was really taken with Yoko Furusho's portfolio. The pieces were dream-like, captivating, and so detailed that I would just stare into them thinking, how the hell did she do this?

Kawamura: I remember the work of Stewart Smith. Simple ideas and clever designs.

floto+warner: We might have voted for you...keep trying. At times your work may not fit the prevailing aesthetic, but don't stop.

Jennifer Lew (YG5): Failure is a great motivator for newness.

Dixon: Making the work & getting it out there are huge hurdles. CONGRATS on having the initiative to make it happen. Things to consider in the future: Good documentation counts almost as much as good work. Investing in good tools & time for documentation will pay off in the end. Don't forget to credit your self. There is room to be both humble & proud.

Hirschfeld: Trust your own judgment even if the market does not react to it right away.

Sarah Wilmer (YG6): Keep making work.

Ponzi: Being voted out does not mean "not good enough." "In" or "out" is not synonymous with "good" or "bad." Many factors go into the winners' selection: the jury, the selection of works submitted, etc...I think the most important thing is to keep working and to keep improving what you already know and keep up your curiosity to discover new things.

de Socio: LOOK at more work. See what makes great work and great artists by absorbing a body of work and not one piece alone. Go to gallery shows. Increase your sphere of influence. Be around people that are BETTER than you because you rise when you reach...up.

Bilardello: Send a copy of the press release to any naysayers you may have encountered. I sent a copy of mine to my 10th grade English teacher, Mr. Bellafiore. Deeply satisfying.

Brunkalla: Make sure you can define VALUE in each and every project you create. Stick to your morals and creative rules, they define you.

Vallée: Make sure to work for organizations, events, clients and causes that you really believe in. Your words will speak through the visual. Make yourself loud and clear.

de Socio: Fight for beauty. Keep integrity and ethos in your message as a subliminal core value. Tag and hashtag your work with something the makes the style of your message YOURS. So when people look you up in the future, you stand for something.

dress code: Never sleep and keep up the hard work, because there is always new talent nipping at your heels and another class of Young Guns coming up.

Led by Catharine Taylor, this hands-on workshop will show you how to blog, and use other social networking platforms to further your personal brand. It is strongly suggested that you bring your laptop (but not required). Wireless internet access will be available. Catharine will be assisted by Greg Christman, Creative Recruiter at Sam & Lori Associates. The event will continue with one hour of networking and complimentary cocktails.

Catharine started covering digital media and advertising in the mid-1990s for Adweek, and went onto found the magazine's AdFreak blog. Currently she writes the "Social Media Insider" column for Mediapost, is a daily contributor to the BNET Media blog and has her own blog, Adverganza.

Catharine moderated ADC's Reboot:Advertising event which took place last June. ADC proudly welcomes Catharine back to ADC's stage!

Monday, November 9, 2009
@ ADC Gallery
106 West 29th St, NYC

5:00-7:30pm Workshop
7:30 - 8:30pm Networking Hour

Tickets:
$45 non-members
$36 ADC members

Limited tickets left. Buy your ticket today here!

Founded on the basis of the original exhibition in 1920, the ADC Annual Awards is among the most prestigious in visual communications, honoring the best work of the year from around the world in advertising, design, interactive media, photography and illustration. Today the 88th exhibition is comprised of Gold, Silver and Bronze winners, selected by international juries from thousands of entries received worldwide. Categories of distinction include advertising, broadcast, design, photography, illustration, and interactive, as well as the new ADC Hybrid and ADC Design Sphere.

The Art Directors Club 88th Annual Awards Traveling Exhibition will be making its next stop at the:

Averill and Bernard Leviton A+D Gallery
Columbia College Chicago 619 S. Wabash Avenue
Chicago, IL 60605
312.344.8686
Exhibition runs November 15-December 15, 2009.

Under the banner of "from one came many," ADC GrandMasters, now in its second year, honors four distinguished educators who have inspired generations of creatives and whose legacies are a far-reaching network of industry leaders and professionals..

The 2009 ADC GrandMasters:

Deborah Morrison, University of Oregon School of Journalism and Communications
Tom Ockerse, Rhode Island School of Design
Hank Richardson, The Portfolio Center
Ron Seichrist, Miami Ad School

The awards will be presented against the backdrop of an exhibition featuring work by both the honorees and a cross section of their outstanding students from over the years. The work will be on exhibit in the ADC Gallery from November 17-December 4, 2009.

Awards and Opening Reception
Monday, November 16, 2009
6-8 PM
@ADC Gallery
106 West 29th Street, NYC

ADC Members: Free
Non-Members: $30
All proceeds go to funding student scholarships in the honorees' names for their respective institutions.

RSVP online here.

Join the festivities with a night of food, drinks and gift-giving.

Thursday, December 10, 2009
@ ADC Gallery
106 West 29th Street NYC

Save the Date! More info to come.

In its sixth year already, this years annual World Graphic Design Foosball Championships will take place at the Art Directors Club. On Friday, November 13th, 70 doubles-teams from New York and elsewhere will spend an evening hunched over foosball tables hoping to take home the coveted one-legged challenge cup trophy.

Think "design conference" without all the boring lectures...

For more info and to register, check out http://www.wgdfc.org.

The annual ADC Forum exploring the responsibility and experiences of designers and creatives to drive social and political change through their work and career focus.

This year we explore business models that drive social change - effectively providing careers and incomes while changing the world featuring:

Blake Mycoskie, CEO, Toms Shoes
Bill Drenttel, Partner, Winterhouse Studio and Design Observer
Paula Scher, Partner, Pentagram
Mark Randall, Principal, World Studio

Moderated by Helen Walters, Business Week Innovation & Design Channel and contributing editor to Creative Review.

An online auction will take place before Designism 4.0 to fund ADC Scholarships. You are able to bid on a pair of "Walk the Walk" Toms Shoes right now created by your favorite designer. Go here here to view the "Walk the Walk" Toms Shoes on eBay. Shoes by Jessica Helfand, John Maeda, Christoph Niemann and Ellen Lupton are up on auction now and more are to come. All proceeds go directly to the ADC Scholarship Fund.

Final bids for "Walk the Walk" Auction will be taken during Designism 4.0 and winners announced at the end of this event!

Wednesday, November 18, 2009
@ ADC Gallery
106 West 29th Street, NYC

ADC Members FREE
Non-Members $25 online, $35 at the door
Students $10 online, $15 at the door

Sponsored by Sappi.

RSVP / BUY TICKETS.

On the fourth Monday of every month, select ADC Young Guns winners present their work at the Apple Store in SoHo. November's speaker: Justin Gignac.

Justin Gignac is an artist, entrepreneur and freelance art director living in New York. After holding jobs at Ogilvy, Fallon NY and Toy, Justin left full-time agency life in 2007 to focus on his artistic endeavors, among them NYC Garbage, an ongoing series of carefully packaged urban trash, and Wants For Sale, in which he and his wife paint things that they want and sell the paintings for the actual price of each object. He currently still dabbles in the ad world as a freelancer.
Justin was part of the ADC Young Guns 5 class of winners, honored in 2006.

Monday, November 23, 2009
6:30 - 8 PM
Apple Store SoHo
103 Prince Street, NYC

Free, no reservation required.

This new collectible limited edition book, produced by the Art Directors Club and Moleskine®, showcases groundbreaking visual media and design from the 50 winners of the ADC Young Guns 7 competition. The annual has a matte black hardcover with deboss, a ribbon bookmark, elastic closure, and an expandable inner pocket. Shrink-wrapped for shipping, the annual is 3.5 inches x 5.5 inches and makes a great pocket-sized gift for a friend.

ADC Members receive $10 off the price! Visit ADC's Online Store.

The Fall Saturday Career Workshop is going strong! As part of ADC's partnership with the Design Ignites Change initiative Create! Don't Hate, students are exploring the tools and concepts of design while learning to visually communicate tolerance. The workshops have been a tremendous success given the great leadership and wonderful quality of work the students are producing! So far the students have explored the use of collage with Elisa Halperin and Karen Cohn. Lucie Eder, of My Orange Box, introduced them to stenciling and Fernanda Cohen, a New York based illustrator, focused on using the principles of illustration to deliver a message effectively and make a difference through drawing.

The Worldwide Logo Design Annual 2009 is still open for entries! Graphic designers, studios, agencies and students worldwide are invited to participate. Wolda '09 collects and awards any logo designed, printed, published or visible online between January 1, 2008 and December 31, 2009. Entry fee includes a free copy of the '09 printed annual on SAPPI papers, including delivery costs.

Winners will be selected by our innovative three-tier jury consisting of 10 top designers, 10 top marketing managers and finally 10 people judges, nominated respectively by ICOGRADA, AQUENT and CONSUMERS INTERNATIONAL. Deadline and more info at www.wolda.org.

You, your colleagues, friends and family are cordially invited to celebrate the publication of American Photography 25 and American Illustration 28.

Thursday, November 12
7-11PM
Angel Orensanz Foundation
172 Norfolk Street, NYC

Cover charge includes light buffet and open bar.
$50 per person, $25 for students.
Free for AP25 and AI28 selected winners!
Click here for tickets.

Alicia Keys' annual star-studded Black Ball charity event raises money for her Keep a Child Alive HIV/AIDS philanthropy, and celebrates the work of the world's most influential humanitarians - Bill Clinton, Richard Branson, Youssou N'dour - for their help in the fight against the deadly pandemic. But the hallmark of the Black Ball is the performances. This year the producers went to Chermayeff & Geismar to create motion graphics to play in the background during the centerpiece performance of the hit song 7 Seconds by Keys and N'dour.

Elevating the concept from merely enhancing the entertainment value of the duet to advancing the true cause of the night - raising money to help stop HIV/AIDS in Africa - principal partner and ADC member Sagi Haviv conceptualized a motion graphics piece that animated the names of donors in the audience. It was a dazzling effect of gratitude, inspiration and inclusion in the form of the innovative motion graphics piece helped to elevate donations to some of the highest the Black Ball has ever earned. To learn more about the project go here.

To learn more about Keep A Child Alive, go to here.

ADC would like to thank Photo Illusion, LLC for their generous donation of a digital photo booth at the ADC Young Guns 7 Opening Party on October 21. It was a huge hit! View photos taken inside the booth here.

Thanks also to Luke and Zach Go Boating, our DJs for the evening. Luke is also creator of the Pluto Pluto Sound Toy iPhone application, which allows you to create endless beats and rhythms by throwing around three reversing pluto balls. Check it out here!

Something new ADC thinks you should know about: a fantastic way of getting new inspirations and ideas from outside the mainstream.

Stack America is the subscription service that brings the best in hard-to-find independent magazines directly to your home or office. Based in New England and created in response to the huge demand for Stack from American subscribers, it exists to offer a targeted selection of independent magazines for anyone subscribing in the USA and beyond. Think of it as a private magazine club that brings a fresh perspective on the world every two months. It's the perfect gift for anyone who works in editorial, graphic design or advertising - or even a doctor or dentist looking for something fresh to put in their waiting room. If you live in the USA and you're at all interested in modern storytelling, Stack America is for you. To learn more go here.

Thank you for supporting the Art Directors Club!

Christopher Abrams: Brooklyn, NY
Rahmatullah Akbar: Jakarta, Indonesia
Kan Akita: Tokyo, Japan
Michelle Arrowood: Brooklyn, NY
Ethan Baldwin: Brooklyn, NY
Tibor Barci: Vienna, Austria
D. Saije, Bashaw: NY, NY
Eric Baum: NY, NY
Florian Beck: Switzerland
Felix Beltran: Miami, FL
Jerome Berard: NY, NY
Danilo Boer: NY, NY
Janina Boesch: NY, NY
Peter Bosilkovski: Sydney, Australia
Jeroen Bours: Great Neck, NY
Pam Bratcher:Detroit, Michigan
Elisa Breuer-Penello: NY, NY
Ivan Brewster: Brooklyn, NY
Marsha Camera: White Plains, NY
Julie Ann Cannizzo: Staten Island, NY
Chris Carlberg: NY, NY
MC Casal: Geneva, Switzerland
Jesse Casey: NY, NY
Karim Charlebois-Zariffa: Montreal, Canada
Zong Yue Chen: Brooklyn, NY
Jack Chen: NY, NY
Yong Choe: NY, NY
David Chow: Hong Kong, Hong Kong
Sheila Cobb: NY, NY
Andrew Coppa: NY, NY
Dailey Crafton: Brooklyn, NY
Dulcinea Cuprill: NY, NY
Luke Derivan: Wappingers Falls, NY
Siggi Eggertsson: Berlin, Germany
Christina Freyss: NY, NY
Diana Frurip: Midland, MI
Yoko Furusho: NY, NY
Danielle Gallo: NY, NY
Roz Goldfarb: NY, NY
Timothy Goodman: NY, NY
Raul Goñi: Barcelona, Spain
Laurent Hainaut: NY, NY
Sangyun Han: NY, NY
Michelle Higa: NY, NY
Jessica Hische: Brooklyn, NY
Grace Ilori: Bronx, NY
Takumi Inubushi: Tokyo, Japan
Christina Irving-Bell: Miami, FL
Darshan Jasani: Jersey City, NJ
Takeshi Kagawa: Kobe, Japan
David Kamp: Essen, Germany
Callie Kant: NY, NY
Neslihan Kaplan: NY, NY
Johnny Kelly: London, United Kingdom
Min Kim: NY, NY
Christoph Kirst: Berlin, Germany
Andrius Kirvela: Vilnius, Lithuania
Ros Knopov: NY, NY
Claus Koch: Duesseldorf, Germany
Ryohei Kojima: Tokyo, Japan
Ian Kraus: Brooklyn, NY
James Kuczynski: NY, NY
Ola Kudu: NY, NY
Elizabeth Kuehnen: NY, NY
Michael Kushner: Brooklyn, NY
Brian LaRossa: Brooklyn, NY
Viviana Leveghi: Milan, Italy
Lihi Lothan: Brooklyn, NY
Dana Lynn: NY, NY
Debora Manetti: Firenze, Italy
Ivana Martinovic: Sydney, Australia
Lance Marxen: Oak Ridge, NJ
Joseph Masci: Montrose, NY
Kevin Melahn: Reno, NV
Chie Mitsayuma: Tokyo, Japan
Ekta Mody: Jersey City, NJ
Angel Montero Barro: Naron A Coruna, Spain
Ben Morahan: Malibu, CA
Louie Moses: Phoenix, AZ
Oliver Munday: Baltimore, MD
Roger Norris: NY, NY
Frankie Norstad: Corte Madera, CA
Rahul Odedra: Brooklyn, NY
Kelly OKeefe: Richmond, VA
Bhavika Parekh:Jersey City, NJ
John Passafiume: Brooklyn, NY
Sean Pecknold: Seattle, WA
Harold A. Perry: East Northport NY
Mike Perry: Brooklyn, NY
Riccardo Pisani: Milan, Italy
Carlos Pisco: NY, NY
Keren Richter: Brooklyn, NY
Raul Rodiles: Elmhurst, NY
Ana Paula Rodrigues: Newark, NJ
Edel Rodriguez: Mt. Tabor, NJ
Joel Rosado: Washington, DC
Andrew Rosenthal:Los Angeles, CA
Dan Saelinger: NY, NY
Kate Sanders: NY, NY
Tuuli Sauren: Brussels, Belgium
Yusuke Sawairi:NY, NY
Michael Schachtner: NY, NY
Robb Scharetg: Bethesda, MD
Lucio Schiabel: Toronto, Canada
Michael Schrom: Long Island City, NY
Jennifer Schubert: Brooklyn, NY
Bari Schwartz: New City, NY
Kanan Shah: Hoboken, NJ
Vladislav Shargorodsky: Westfield, NJ
Hilly Sharon: NY,NY
Hye Won Shim: NY, NY
Todd Simmons: NY, NY CUBE
Carlo Simonetti: Torino, Italy
Adam Simpson: London, United Kingdom
Jake Smallman: St. Kilda East, Australia
Christopher Smith: Brooklyn , NY
Stewart Smith: Brooklyn, NY
Joshua Souter: Richmond, VA
Mindy Phelps Stanton: Long Island City, NY
Fernanda Steinmann: Brooklyn, NY
Colleen Stokes: NY, NY
Gerhard Stubi: NY, NY
Michelle Sukle: Aurora, CO
Yutaka Takahama: Kyoto, Japan
Junko Takano: NY, NY
Nicole Tenbieg: Frankfurt am Main, Germany
Beau Thebault: Jersey City, NJ
Valerie Trucchia: NY, NY
Andreas Unteidig: Mount Vernon, NY
Diana Uvaydova: Forest Hills, NY
Diane Painter Velletri: NY, NY
Richard Vijgen: Netherlands
Dejan Vukelic: Belgrade, Serbia
Dave Wallace: Brooklyn, NY
Yifan Wang: Elmhurst, NY
Bianca Wendt: London, United Kingdom
Robert Shaw West: Durham, NC
Greg White: London, United Kingdom
Christopher Williams: Brooklyn, NY
Detlef Wintzen: Berlin, Germany
Yoji Yamamoto: Tokyo, Japan
Ron Zisman: Pearl River, NY


What is CUBE?

CUBE is a prestigious, honorary membership group established for all ADC Cube winners - past and present. All ADC Annual Awards cube winners with a personalized Cube are automatically qualified to join ADC's award-winning member group: CUBE.

The formation of this unique group will lead up to a CUBE members' reunion at our 90th Anniversary Gala in 2011 - CUBE members will be invited to attend as our guests and enjoy other special benefits. To learn more go here.

ADC members - this is your place to share. The newsletter is published monthly. The deadline for submissions for the December newsletter is November 13. Send news or inquiries to regan@adcglobal.org with the subject line Newsletter.

ADC Gallery, situated in the heart of the Chelsea Flower District, is a white-wall gallery space located on the ground floor with street access and large windows. The gallery has a full catering kitchen, guest bathrooms, a coat check room, one additional ground-floor room with sliding doors, a second floor meeting room and a small landing space leading to a viewing balcony. ADC Gallery can accommodate up to 430 guests and is handicap accessible.

Location: 106 West 29th Street
(Just West of 6th Avenue)
Closest subway stops are 1/9 or R/W to 28th St.

To view event photos visit ADC's online photo albums.

For more information click here.
For further questions or to make an appointment, please contact Olga Grisaitis at olga@adcglobal.org.

The Art Directors Club is the premier organization for integrated media and the first international creative collective of its kind. Founded in New York in 1920, ADC is a not-for-profit membership organization whose mission is to Connect, Provoke and Elevate world changing ideas. It focuses on the highest standards of excellence and integrity in visual communications for the industry, and encourages students and young professionals entering the field. ADC provides a forum for creatives in Advertising, Design, Interactive Media and Communications to explore the direction of these rapidly converging industries.

Not Yet A Member? Join Now.
The Art Directors Club 106 West 29th Street New York, NY 10001 212.643.1440 www.adcglobal.org