"All the money in the world can't
buy taste" which is the philosophy behind my blog as well as pointing
out well designed, well made and well-worth-the-money items on social shopping networks like thisnext.com.
I have always admired art, design and craftsmanship. I'm a fan of
all forms of expression and design from architecture to visual
merchandising.
Who am I and what gives me the right to claim I know wha...
"All the money in the world can't
buy taste" which is the philosophy behind my blog as well as pointing
out well designed, well made and well-worth-the-money items on social shopping networks like thisnext.com.
I have always admired art, design and craftsmanship. I'm a fan of
all forms of expression and design from architecture to visual
merchandising.
Who am I and what gives me the right to claim I know what 'good design' or 'art' is?
When it comes to formal education, I have an undergraduate degree
from the University of California at Berkeley in a double major of both
Fine Art and Art History. In the fine art program at Cal, I specialized
in print-making and intaglio. I was taught by some of the most
respected contemporary artists today. Christopher Brown, George
Miyasaki and others.
Regarding my art history degree, I was schooled in the everything
from the cave paintings at Lascaux to the critical art theorists of
today.
But that's not where my 'art' education ends. I then went on to
receive yet another bachelors degree in Advertising Design at one of
the most prestigious art/business schools in the country, the Pasadena
Art Center College of Design. Here I studied alongside some of the
greatest talents in automotive design to film direction. Several of the
most respected still photographers, package designers, fine artists and
transportation designers are graduates from ACCD. I was flattered and
honored that as an alum, I also taught advertising design there for 8
years.
That explains my 'formal' education.
Many people believe the 'school of life' is the way for one to
learn and I do not disagree. Formal educational institutions aside,
being exposed to different people, different ideas and different
experiences open our minds and our hearts. Which is why I have been
blessed in that regard as well.
My grandmother was an advertising illustrator for department store
fashions in her early twenties and continued to draw and paint and even
taught watercolor painting in her eighties. At 95 she is still a
practicing watercolorist.
My parents are avid art enthusiasts. In addition to collecting art
and opaline glass, my mother was a docent at SF MOMA and is very
knowledgable herself. My father has always seen the beauty in design
and his surroundings.
My older sister is married to one of today's most respected
figurative painters in the SF Bay Area. Their house has been featured
in magazines because of its unusual and outstanding design.
My younger sister, an incredibly bright and creative Doctor in San
Francisco, has redesigned her own Kensington home with her husband.
I have lived and worked in the following cities: San Francisco,
Los Angeles, Chicago, New York, Detroit and Seattle exposing me to
different attitudes, styles and values. I have shopped EVERYWHERE from
the Mall of the Americas to Shanghai Tang's luxury store in hong kong.
For the past 21 years I have been on the creative side of the tv
and print advertising business. I have produced work on several major
accounts from luxury cars to IKEA. This time consuming, competitive
field is something I absolutely love and I am blessed that my job is
also my hobby. It is the reason I have lived in many places and am
knowledgeable about many products from popular consumer goods to niche
brands.
**Please visit my personal website to see my portfolio. www.laurasweet.com
www.fastcompany.com/user/103407
Advertising Creative Director & Consultant,
Private, Sole Proprietor employees, Marketing / PR / Advertising industryI'm a freelance advertising art director as well as a consultant for new business pitches and marketing strategies.
To see a portfolio of my advertising and design work, please visit www.laurasweet.com.
Founder/Writer/Editor, If It's Hip, It's Here
Private, Sole Proprietor employees, Internet / New Media / Ecommerce industryIn addition to my work as a freelance Creative/Art Director, I am the Founder/writer/editor for If It's Hip, It's Here, a rapidly growing blog that informs the public about the latest and greatest in all design disciplines as well as luxury, marketing, trends and shopping, both globally and locally.
I write about everything from new product design to architecture to advertising and new media.
I presently receive hundreds of requests a month to write about or add links to my blog. I choose to focus on well designed, functional items one can appreciate and admire.
University of California at Berkeley, California, United States
Bachelor’s degree, 1986.
Areas of study: Fine Art and Art History
Art Center College of Design, California, United States
Bachelor’s degree, 1989.
Areas of study: advertising