Assistant Projects
What It Was:
Wide variety of assignments
Who It Was For:
Diane Stilwell
Applications Used:
Photoshop, InDesign, Illustrator, Premiere Pro, Audition, Dimension, Lightroom, After Effects, Motion 5, Pages, Numbers, Keynote, PowerPoint, WordPress
Client Since:
2019 – Present
Letterhead and Bookplate - Diane wanted letterhead that was both timeless and modern, so I combined a subtly chisel-edged typeface with a thin curlicue underline. I love the casual, personable feeling that the line can lend to those tall, sharp letters. For the bookplate, Diane wanted to use a drawing of her childhood library that was penciled by her best friend. I scanned the sketchbook in almost-too-high resolution, paired it with a calligraphic font (using three different 'L's!), and added a traditional "ex libris" border. We had about 3,000 printed for her personal library.
Retrospective Catalog - Diane was a fervent supporter of Joseph D'Ambrosio's artist's books, accumulating dozens of them over the years of their friendship. Ahead of their donation to the Newberry Library, she wanted a retrospective catalog of her collection to be made. I took photographs of each book and laid them out into a book unto itself, along with brief descriptions and graphic details throughout that highlighted the tactile, textural elements of his creations. The third image shows a letter D'Ambrosio gave to Diane after a theater performance of hers, along with his drawn impression of her.
Film Restoration - Diane has a 35mm reel with about thirty commercials in which she starred over several decades. The film had faded over the years to an almost monotone pink color, but I was able to restore a more natural tone. This example clip wipes between the original pink version and the restored one. Notice the trees, the skin tones, and the bright red cranberry juice in the glass.
Holiday Masala Chai - Diane delivered a 300+ slide Keynote presentation covering the 6+ years (total over many trips) she spent traveling throughout India. A trio of her musician friends gave interlude performances during the presentation, while attendees savored a slate of Indian snacks and desserts. I scanned, restored, and compiled the hundreds of images included in the keynote, helped pen the script and time the slides (often down to the word), then directed the proceedings on the day.
