I am a freelance designer who creates the kind of work that will inspire, educate and entertain your customers. I like to offer my clients a comfortable working relationship built on trust, affordability and satisfaction. You can trust that I will work obsessively to make sure your message is elegant and clear in it's finished form. I keep my hourly rate competitive and always respect a reasonable budget. Satisfaction is a by-product of these things, topped off by honest communication and quick response.
How I got here may be a little unconventional — it started with a love for architecture, and the design of all things that are planned or organic. I had a desire to work in a medium that would allow me the pleasure of thoroughly investigating all aspects of space and light. I'll admit, I was impatient with the slow process of making structure. I moved towards graphic design in a bid to see projects move quickly and fluently across my desk. But I am getting ahead of myself even now. You see, it all started when...
I spent four years at the University of Colorado in Boulder learning how to think critically about conceptual design, architecture, planning, and appropriate technology. I was awarded a bachelor degree in Environmental Design in 1981, emphasizing architecture and fine arts.
Back in the day, a genuine apprenticeship came with a stipend of $60 a month plus room and board at the home and office of one of the world's greatest thinkers. Just out of college, from 1981 until 1984, I worked for architect Elizabeth Wright Ingraham in Colorado Springs. We practiced design as an investigation of all the ways that art and the natural sciences can integrate to benefit the social and physical needs of a community.
At Peter Dominick Architects in Denver, my first salaried position was brief, but exciting. Working in 1984 with a brilliant designer in his boutique firm, I learned about every aspect of design and construction management of residential and corporate office projects.
For two years beginning in 1985, I worked as an architectural designer at Murphy/Jahn Architects in downtown Chicago. It was a dream come true, working for a reknowned designer at a venerable firm on the tenth floor of an historic building once occupied by Al Capone. In an office of 150 people my art and rendering skills were appreciated, and so I worked directly with Helmut Jahn to translate scribble on airplane napkins into fully-realized drawings of the next big high-rise office building, city center, and airline terminal.
In a complete change of career, I worked as a public art project manager for the City of Phoenix's Art Commission from 1989 until 1996, I was a member of the original team that pioneered funding artists to work as equal design partners on the city's infrastructure projects. In eight years I managed more than $3 million worth of public art projects. Although I loved this job because it was fresh and fun to fully fund artists, I ultimately decided to leave so that I could spend more time making art.
I was a founder of Ideahouse in 1996, a graphic design studio best described as a collaborative factory for hyperbolically creative design. My business partner and I enjoyed working with clients who wanted to stretch their corporate enthusiasm muscles and have fun with identity and communication. Clients included City of Scottsdale, Arizona Humanities Council, Maryvale Hospital, Lisa Sette Gallery, and Ten Eyck Landscape Architects.
In 2003 I began to work freelance. I would be honored to talk to you about your project if you like what you see in this portfolio. Call me at 480.242.1632, or send a message to delahunt at gmail dot com.
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