Aaron James Draplin (born October 15, 1973) 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 published, ...

, entrepreneur and author based in

Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populous co ...

Early life

Aaron Draplin was born in Detroit, Michigan on October 15, 1973, to parents Jim and Lauren Draplin. At 17, Draplin started his associate degree at

Northwestern Michigan College Northwestern Michigan College (NMC) is a public community college in Traverse City, Michigan. Founded in 1951, it enrolls nearly 4,000 students. NMC offers associate degrees and professional certificates, bachelor's degrees through the Great La ...

; he graduated in 1993. At 19 he moved to

Bend, Oregon Bend is a city in and the county seat of Deschutes County, Oregon, United States. It is the principal city of the Bend Metropolitan Statistical Area. Bend is Central Oregon's largest city, with a population of 99,178 at the time of the 2020 U.S ...

to pursue his career in graphic design. After five years, he moved to Minneapolis to finish his design degree at the

Minneapolis College of Art and Design The Minneapolis College of Art and Design (MCAD) is a private college specializing in the visual arts and located in Minneapolis, Minnesota. MCAD currently enrolls approximately 800 students. MCAD is one of just a few major art schools to offer ...

, graduating in 2000.

Career

He started his career with a snowboard graphic for Solid Snowboards. In April 2000, he accepted an art director position at ''Snowboarder'' magazine. He won Art Director of the Year for Primedia 2000. In 2002, he became a senior designer at Cinco Design Office of Portland. His clients have included

Nike Nike often refers to: * Nike (mythology), a Greek goddess who personifies victory * Nike, Inc., a major American producer of athletic shoes, apparel, and sports equipment Nike may also refer to: People * Nike (name), a surname and feminine give ...

Burton Snowboards Burton Snowboards is a privately-owned snowboard manufacturing company that was founded by Jake Burton Carpenter in 1977. The company specializes in products aimed at snowboarders, such as snowboards, bindings, boots, outerwear, and accessorie ...

Esquire Esquire (, ; abbreviated Esq.) is usually a courtesy title. In the United Kingdom, ''esquire'' historically was a title of respect accorded to men of higher social rank, particularly members of the landed gentry above the rank of gentlema ...

, Red Wing,

Ford Motor Company Ford Motor Company (commonly known as Ford) is an American multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Dearborn, Michigan, United States. It was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. The company sells automobi ...

and the

Obama Administration Barack Obama's tenure as the 44th president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 2009, and ended on January 20, 2017. A Democrat from Illinois, Obama took office following a decisive victory over Republican ...

. Draplin has been featured on

TED Talks TED Conferences, LLC (Technology, Entertainment, Design) is an American-Canadian non-profit media organization that posts international talks online for free distribution under the slogan "ideas worth spreading". TED was founded by Richard Sau ...

and talks at Google. In 2019 he designed the ''Star Ribbon'', a US postal stamp. Draplin is the co-founder of and designer for the Field Notes brand. Draplin started his own firm, the Draplin Design Company.

Awards

*Art Director of the Year, Snowboarder Magazine, EMAP Publishing, Los Angeles, California, Spring 2001

Publications

* ''Pretty Much Everything'', (2016)

Abrams Books Abrams, formerly Harry N. Abrams, Inc. (HNA), is an American publisher of art and illustrated books, children's books, and stationery. The enterprise is a subsidiary of the French publisher La Martinière Groupe. Run by President and CEO Michael ...

, is a mid-career survey that includes his work—posters, record covers and logos.

References

External links

Draplin Design Co.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Draplin, Aaron 1973 births American graphic designers Artists from Detroit Artists from Portland, Oregon Living people