The Show, hosted annually by AIGA Nebraska, exhibits the best in graphic design, photography, and illustration produced in the region, and includes entries from design professionals and students, featuring both published and unpublished work. Our judges were:

Eric Heiman
www.volumesf.com
“I think as designers we often get so enamored of our work’s surface qualities we forget that it’s usually a compelling idea that makes a project memorable. As someone remarked to me recently, “Beauty can be duplicated, but genius can only be envied.” The work I liked most challenged my preconceived design notions—about physical or surface form, about how certain kinds of projects could be approached, and even about what kind of audiences could be targeted with inventive, challenging solutions. We should emphasize first and foremost to our budding design students that it’s not enough simply to create something—you must do it with intelligence, wit, precision craft, and a strong point of view.”

Yang Kim
www.bbkstudio.com
“I know something’s really exceptional when I say to myself “Wow, I wish I did that.” There were definitely some pieces that I felt that way about. The posters for One Percent Productions were fantastic. That kind of quality and finish done by a student is pretty rare. I wanted to take them home.”

“There wasn’t much “corporate” work submitted. Hmm... Is it too hard to make corporate work great? Being a fellow designer from the Midwest, I certainly understand how hard it is to make the corporate stuff great, but it is possible. It’s hard to make spec sheets sexy. Work for the arts better be great, because it’s often easier to do something more interesting. I would have liked the opportunity to review it. Seeing the extremes would have given me a better sense of Nebraska.”

“In general, there was solid work from to-the-point social commentary, elegant invitations, campy brochures, unique music posters, meaningful identity campaigns, and a whole lot of fun. The seriousness of the work was very much tempered with a casual style. It was fun to be around. Maybe it’s the influence of the disco ball at Piccolo’s.”

Terry Marks
www.tmarksdesign.com
“I want to thank you for not only the invitation but also the genuine hospitality I received on my trip to Omaha. People tend to generalize about people from particular regions, but that isn’t enough. It’s not the region, it’s the people who are kind, warm, genuinely hospitable, strong enough to be themselves and to make where ever we were a great experience. From Piccolo’s with the disco ball, great beef and canned corn to that smoke-filled dive with a great jukebox where I drank approximately 3 pitchers of Bud on my own.”

“People tend to want to think that because someone isn’t in New York or Chicago or some other place, the work can’t be that good. I say thee nay! Just as one’s humor and tastes are not bound by geography, neither are one’s ideas. While not as populace or dense as other areas, the top quality of work from the show could stand up just about anywhere. Regardless of where we reside, that which is excellent is simply so. We are all striving for that; to outdo ourselves, to find that gem of an idea and not just a cool execution.”

“As a judge, it was refreshing to see this in Omaha. More, it was challenging to me in my own work. The walls we face creatively are of our own construction whether they be of scope, time or belief. We give ourselves ‘outs’; we qualify, we equivocate. In the Show, it was evident that in the best instances, people didn’t allow that. They simply chose to do something great.”

Special thanks goes out to all the sponsors.