Professional Jurors

Jörg Becker, typenraum
Peter Bella, University of Central Arkansas
Kevin Bethune, dreams • design + life
Grishma Bhanderi
Erik Brandt, Typografika
Michael Branigan, Sandbox Studio
Sharon Burdett
Michael Carabetta, Chronicle Books (emeritus)
Karma Dabaghi, Lebanese American University, SArD
Jenny El-Shamy, Indiana University, Bloomington
Joseph Michael Essex, Essex Two International / J.M.Essex, Lid.
Laura Rossi Garcia, Society of Typographic Arts/Downstairs
Jess Giffin, SAIC
Iker Gil, MAS Studio
Patrick Gosnell, Austin Peay State University
Renda Helin Çizer, Renda Helin Design Studio
Chris Lee, Pratt Institute
Latrina Lee, Studio/lab
Katie leech, vary studio
Michael Paradise, Motorola
Zach Pino, Institute of Design
Nat Pyper
Nick Savidge, Wabtec
Ted Shin, Metropolitan State University of Denver
Hector Silva, Advanced Design
Perrin Stamatis, Northern Illinois University
Thomas Starr, Northeastern University
John Stevens, Royal College of Art
Daniel Streng, Rubrik LLC
Swoo K Suh, SMWU seoul
Ramon Tejada, Rhode Island School of Design / Estudio Ramon
Jim TerMeer, SAIC Designed Objects Program
Martin Thaler, Institute of Design
Guy Villa, Jr., Columbia College Chicago
Mark Weiser, Microsoft

Faculty

Pouya Ahmadi, BDes Thesis Faculty
Brian Anderson
Veronica Belsuzarri
Don Bergh
Linda Bracamontes
Ted Burdett, MDes Thesis Faculty
Philip Burton
Ted Davis
Meghan Ferrill, BDes/MDes Thesis Faculty
Felicia Ferrone, BDes Thesis Faculty
Jack Henrie Fisher
Shiraz Abdullahi Gallab
Sung Jang, BDes Thesis Faculty
Michal Janicki
Dawn Joseph
Marcia Lausen
Mischa Leiner
Vernon Lockhart
John Massey
Jonathan Mekinda, BA Thesis Faculty
Stephen Melamed
Adam Middleton
Pedro Neves
Lauren Manning Nichols
Sharon Oiga, BDes Thesis Faculty
TJ O’Keefe
Peter Pfanner
Michael Renner
Oliver Roeger
Zoë Ryan
Daniel Schaumann
Michael Seskauskas
Rotimi Solola
Alex Sommerville
Susan Stirling
Marco Susani
Norman Teague
Cheryl Towler Weese, MDes Thesis Faculty
Daria Tsoupikova-Preuss
Jason Vaccarello
Jennifer Wandro
Noah Wangerin
Kimberlee Wilkens
Robert Zolna

“Impressive work this year; collectively one of the best thesis showings I've seen. Thoughtful, practical, empathetic, and well-crafted. You should all be really proud of what you were able to accomplish. Enjoy your summers!! Excited to have you all joining the professional world!”

— TJ O’Keefe, UIC School of Design

“Considering the challenges of the pandemic and remote learning, this cohort has not only performed admirably, but has excelled and exceeded expectations. This is an outstanding compilation of work that well represents the effort and intellectual rigor of these students.”

— Stephen Melamed, UIC School of Design

“I was incredibly moved by each submission. You've successfully leveraged your design capabilities against deeply relevant human and ecological challenges that give me hope for what you will do as you help society shape a better future.”

— Kevin Bethune, dreams • design + life

“These challenging times and your perseverance are evidenced in the startling beauty and exceeding depth of this collective work. This work is now a document of our lived experiences; its significance will resonate for years to come. My warmest congratulations to the Class of 2021!”

— Sharon Oiga, UIC School of Design

“Congratulations to all the graduates! Be well.”

— Marty Thaler, Institute of Design

“The projects are generous, mindful and caring. Great work everyone.”

— Jim TerMeer, School of the Art Institute of Chicago

“Heartfelt congratulations to all, we will be better for your collective emergence into the larger world of graphic design.”

— Erik Brandt, Typografika

“As is true every year, remarkable points-of-view and work from UIC's industrial design student body — challenging the assumptions and expectations of our discipline, serving historically unacknowledged audiences, and opening up new opportunities through interactive data, technologies, and materiality. Congrats on finishing your degree and accomplishing so much in such a difficult year, and continue pushing your work and our field forward!”

— Zach Pino, Institute of Design

“These industrial design explorations succinctly conveyed desirability, technical feasibility and business viability in their proposals. Not only that, I sensed a deep respect for the greater ecology surrounding each idea. I also enjoyed that you leveraged UIC ID capabilities beyond typical notions of the industrial design of hard goods, but into digital and service-based affordances as well.”

— Kevin Bethune, dreams • design + life

“Each and every project had merit and illustrated dimensions of solid thinking, strong skills or meaningful topics. The diversity of these works created a challenge with regards to judging, as each had interesting and redeeming qualities. Congratulations, Great Job.

What I would like to call to the attention of each nominee is that they should understand, from here after, all of their activities will be judged by a broader world through a lens of culture.

This means the culture of the organizations they work for or with, as well as the individuals and regions the interact with. This can be shocking brutal, confounding and, on occasion, wildly rewarding. If you learn to read and captivate the culture, it will provide you with a means for directing it. Change, however important or valuable it might be, can only come when enough resources and participants provide you with the power to make it happen.

We live in a challenging time where each of you has shown an ability to succeed and to rise above the fog, to improve the human condition. Do not be disheartened by this time. The future is yours to own. Good luck to each and every one of you.”

— Daniel Streng, Rubrik LLC