A firm believer in the transformative power of teamwork and mentorship, Karen’s goal is simply “to inspire and be inspired.” It is her objective to lead and empower others toward creative solutions that strengthen and serve our creative community, as a whole, and the broader community in which we live. After several years spent working in the legal field, a life-long love of the arts led her to boldly pursue her goal of obtaining a degree in graphic design. Her relentless drive to improve herself and those around her quickly established her as a catalyst for excellence within the creative team at Victorinox Swiss Army and helped to propel her into her current role of Senior Art Director with Prudential Retirement. Karen also serves as a member of the AIGA National In-house INitiative Steering Committee. In her free time, she prefers traveling as much as possible, scuba diving and taking pictures along the way.

Keisha is a Web Designer at Finalsite in Glastonbury, and a graduate from Central Connecticut State University with a BA in Graphic/Information Design. She has a passion for helping others achieve their goals and loves to be involved in projects that help motivate others. Diversity and inclusion will be a major focus in Keisha’s leadership of our membership initiatives.

Anna is a tech geek, animal mom, and cupcake enthusiast. Born and raised in Connecticut, she studied English and Studio Art at Georgetown University before earning her MS in Interactive Media from Quinnipiac University. Before her current role as a web designer, Anna taught creative writing and media arts at the high school level.

Brendan joined AIGA to engage with other professionals from across the creative spectrum, to learn, gain insights, and abilities, and to explore new avenues to channel inspiration. Brendan received his BA in Communications at Marist College in Poughkeepsie, NY. After spending many years in the digital music industry, Brendan moved back to his home state of Connecticut and rooted himself deeper in creative work, working in-house for the Creative and Media Services for Travelers. Currently, Brendan serves as a key strategic member of the creative team for Prudential Retirement as a Senior Art Director. Brendan thrives on team experiences, sharing  ideas, building skills, trying new things, and expanding networks.

Monique is the Associate Creative Director at TicketNetwork and an award-winning designer. She has been with TicketNetwork for over six years, and leads the in-house design team, which executes design solutions for more than twelve brands. She has a lifelong passion for design and currently serves on the Board of Directors focusing on In-House Initiatives. Before TicketNetwork, she worked at Winstanley Associates and Bidwell ID. Monique holds a BFA in both Graphic Design and Photography from UMass Dartmouth.

Randy is a recognized brand strategist and creative director with over 25 years of marketing and innovation experience. Randy’s experience includes roles as a corporate facilitator and consumer insight specialist, and as an accomplished creative director where he has played a key role in a number of product innovations and corporate transformations. Randy has worked in the client, agency, and media worlds in environments both entrepreneurial and corporate. He has worked with a diverse range of companies and industries that include retail, finance, professional services, technology, fashion and beauty, entertainment, pharmaceutical, automotive, and consumer-packaged goods. He has spoken on numerous industry panels, and is a corporate mentor to a number of emerging companies and young professionals. Randy’s past employers include the WPP and Omnicom agency networks, where he was a senior creative strategist for Jeep and other Chrysler brands, The Coca-Cola Company, Masterfoods, Sun Microsystems, McDonalds, and Glaxo-Smith Kline. Randy co-founded and later sold Seesaw, a full-service NYC-based branding studio. At Seesaw, Randy worked with companies that include Kraft, Singer, Diageo, Nike, K2, Verizon, Yale, Mediavest, Logitech, Croscill, Stila Cosmetics, and Deutsche Bank, among others. As Executive Director of Experience Design and Strategy for The Concept Farm, his clients included SC Johnson, Aruba Tourism, Century 21 and Heineken. Returning to the entrepreneurial world, Randy launched "The Visual Brand," serving clients Heineken, Pernod Ricard, Authentic Apparel, and others.

Meghan is a Graphic Designer at Skyline Exhibits and Graphics in Middletown, CT working in three- and two-dimensional design to create trade show environments, branding and marketing materials. She earned a BA in Graphic/Information Design from Central Connecticut State University. Meghan is excited to share her passion for design while encouraging fellow designers to follow their own passion.

Born in Ottawa, Canada, he lived in Montreal, Quebec during his youth and for 25 years made Brooklyn, NY his home. He holds a BA in photography from Brooklyn College, NY and an MFA in communication design from New Jersey City University, NJ. His design focus in on communication design for social change, he truly believes design has the power to create a positive change. He has been teaching digital design at the college level since 2001; as an adjunct assistant professor at Pratt Institute for 7 years, as well as at F.I.T, NYU, and Bloomfield College. In 2015, he was a visiting assistant professor in graphic design at Oakland University in Rochester, MI. Since Fall 2016 he has been an assistant professor and the graphic design program coordinator at the University of New Haven, CT. Guy-Serge now lives in New Haven, CT.

Vaughn has a passion for connecting the dots and bringing people together to share knowledge and experience. Born in Kingston, Jamaica he is inspired by vibrant colors, bustling streets and music with good vibes. Working primarily in the areas of Design and Illustration, he divides his time between drawing, hand-drawn letters, humor, booming colors and going on adventures with his wife Shayla. Formally of local firms, Fathom and Taylor Design, he has had the pleasure of collaborating with clients such as American Express, Sarah Lawrence College, Pottery Barn, MailChimp, The University of Connecticut, Vox Media and MasterCard. He currently works as an Art Director at Prudential, but takes on select freelance projects that stretch his creativity.

Fostering a community through creativity and education has always been a calling for Shayla. She earned her Bachelor's Degree in Psychology from Williams College. Since then, she has worked with various non-profit and government entities to expand and improve their education and community service programming. She has a deep love of design and believes in its power to bridge connections and bring equity to any community space. In her spare time she can be found exploring art galleries around New England with her husband, Vaughn.

Passionate about design and visual communication, Olivier went back to school and graduated from RISD with a certificate in graphic design. He is currently using his own design voice and process to project ideas and experiences with visual and textual content on various platforms. His goal with AIGA is to be part of the local community of designers to share ideas, collaborate on projects and create meaningful business relationships that will ultimately grow the design industry. His main focus is to leverage his video editing and motion graphics skills to widen the world of design and its impact on our society.

Denise is the co-founder and Creative Director of Friendly Fire Paper, a stationery brand. Born and raised in Miami, Florida, Denise took her talents to Costa Rica after graduating from Metropolitan State University of Denver with a BFA in Design. Her intention to live on the beach was short lived and instead she worked as assistant to the creative director at Consumer / Saatchi & Saatchi (known today as Grupo Tribu). Later she returned to Miami where she worked as an in-house art director for a catalog-printing company. Her experience earned her a position as an art director at Herald Creative (an advertising agency at The Miami Herald) where she won an Addy for her work on the campaign promoting the re-design of The Miami Herald. In 2003 Denise moved to France where she was invited to join the design teams of notable American and French scrapbooking brands. Apt for making things with her hands, she taught workshops throughout France and Spain. During that time she was hired to contribute to two major French scrapbook magazines where she wrote quarterly articles. In 2011 she moved to Washington DC where she became an active volunteer at AIGA DC. Engaging with the local design community became a major source of inspiration. That is why when she moved to Connecticut in 2016 she immediately sought to volunteer at the AIGA chapter where her goal is to help bring Connecticut creatives together. Denise isn’t afraid of a challenge. Come to think of it, she’s only afraid of bears.

Dan Taylor started Taylor Design in the fall of 1992 and has built it into an award-winning studio that serves both businesses (Starwood, Terex, and Charter/Spectrum) and colleges (Columbia University, Northwestern University, and Sarah Lawrence College). His firm develops identity programs, websites, packaging, and marketing campaigns and their work has earned awards from Communication Arts, Graphis, Print Regional Design Annual, How Magazine, LogoLounge, CADC and others. From 1985 to 1992 Dan was the Senior Creative Director at William Snyder Design, Inc. in New York City. He was responsible for developing marketing and advertising materials for AT&T, Merrill Lynch, ABC Television, TNT, and MTV Networks. Prior to that he worked as a designer at Pushpin, Lubalin, Peckolick, NYC; Beau Gardner Associates, NYC; and Steve Burnett, Inc., NYC. He received a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Graphic Design in 1983 from the Rochester Institute of Technology.

Andy Wollner is an associate professor of Visual Communication Design at the Hartford Art School. He began his career as a painter, represented by Conner Contemporary Art, now Conner Smith, in Washington, D.C., from 1999 - 2005. He entered the graphic design industry in 2001, overlapping his studio art practice, working at start-ups in Boston, MA and eventually started Wollner Design, an independent consulting business and remains very involved with this business today. As a designer, Andy has gained recognition with awards from AIGA and CASE. He creates print collateral, digital pieces for web and mobile apps, and designs branding and identity for educational and cultural institutions and small businesses. His clients have ranged from M.I.T, Northwestern University, Suffolk University, and the American School for the Deaf. He is currently working on rebranding the Armenian Museum of America in Watertown, MA. His sabbatical research in tech startups was selected into the 2014 Valley Venture Mentors program. Andy brings a wide range of knowledge to the VCD department at the Hartford Art School from his roots as a practicing fine art painter, industry experience as a print and web designer, and current research in digital UI/UX design for web and mobile applications. With regard to teaching, prior to coming to the Hartford Art School, Andy taught drawing and printmaking at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston and visual communication studies at the New Mexico Highlands University, where he was awarded tenure and given sabbatical after seven years. While in New Mexico, Andy had a very active role on the AIGA New Mexico board as the Education Director organizing statewide portfolio reviews, speaker events, and creative workshops.