Last evening, and by way of AIGA Portland's new quarterly Designspeaks series, we had the pleasure of hosting our friends from Modern Dog Design in Seattle. As is their custom, Robynne and Mike provided a heapin' helping of engaging commentary—and, of course, no shortage of visual inspirationals—for the gathering of eighty-five. Among the highlights, there was talk of mullets, naked men, pet posteriors and icebox magnets. On hand to share their work and to sign (and illustrate) their new book, Modern Dog: 20 Years of Poster Art, the event was an ideal initial installment for this series, which has been developed to showcase the work of designers right here in the Pacific Northwest. The Cleaners at Portland's Ace Hotel served as a fitting venue with sponsors FILTER, Mohawk, and West Coast Paper providing the financial means to keep the dream alive. Special thanks to Erik Ratcliffe, Lisa Holmes and Jeremiah Raidt for their assistance.
Obligatory shouts-out: Lloyd Eugene Winter IV, Jeff Pollard, Dave Selden, Johnny Levenson, Tiffany (Miss Jackson, if you're nasty) Jackson, Laura Luethje, Debra Haines, Kelly Chrey, and of course, the Modern Dog studio mates and alumni who either made the trip or now haunt our fair city. Good to see you all about.