Rick Valicenti (born November 20, 1951) is an American

graphic designer A graphic designer is a professional within the graphic design and graphic arts industry who assembles together images, typography, or motion graphics to create a piece of design. A graphic designer creates the graphics primarily for publishe ...

based in Chicago.

Early life and education

Rick Valicenti was born in 1951 in

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; (Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, Ma ...

. He graduated from

Bowling Green State University Bowling Green State University (BGSU) is a Public university, public research university in Bowling Green, Ohio. The main academic and residential campus is south of Toledo, Ohio. The university has nationally recognized programs and research ...

in 1973, and later went on to the

University of Iowa The University of Iowa (UI, U of I, UIowa, or simply Iowa) is a public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is organized into 12 coll ...

to obtain an MA and MFA in Photography in 1975.

Career

Following graduation, Valicenti found the photography scene in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

boring, so he worked to create a commercial design portfolio, securing a position at Bruce Beck Design. After Beck retired, he opened his studio, R. Valicenti Design, in 1981. In 1989, looking to change direction of his studio practice, he founded Thirst, a Chicago-based design collaborative devoted to art, function, and authentic human presence. The studio is known for taking risks, and doing conventional jobs unconventionally.

Service and distinctions

Valicenti is a former president of the Society of Typographic Arts and is a member of the

Alliance Graphique Internationale Alliance Graphique Internationale (AGI) is a club of the world's leading graphic artists and designers. There are 527 members from 43 countries. Its members have been collectively responsible for the identity design of most of the world's top co ...

since being invited to join in 1996. In 2006, Valicenti won the

AIGA Medal Following is a list of AIGA medalists who have been awarded the American Institute of Graphic Arts medal. On its website, AIGA says "The medal of the AIGA, the most distinguished in the field, is awarded to individuals in recognition of their exc ...

for "the passion and intelligence of his influential work, inspiration to his colleagues and mentorship to a generation of students." In 2011,

The White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest, Washington, D.C., NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. preside ...

honored Valicenti with the Smithsonian Cooper Hewitt,

National Design Award The American National Design Awards, founded in 2000, are funded and awarded by Cooper-Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum is a design museum housed within the Andrew Carnegie Mansion in Manhattan, New ...

for Communication Design.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Valicenti, Rick American graphic designers 1951 births AIGA medalists Design writers Logo designers Living people Bowling Green State University alumni