Summary

Highly accomplished designer and creative strategist with the unique perspective of a trained fine artist with over 20 years of experience helping effectively communicate visual stories in service of a diverse set of brands through the successful management of large teams of art professionals as well as in my own capacity as a sole entrepreneur. 

Creative Director, Itzy Ritzy, May 2022-Present

Leads cross-disciplinary team in creating photography and branded packaging for a high-end, on-trend retail baby brand. 

  • Choreographed the comprehensive brand redesign of our entire portfolio of hundreds of active SKUs and new innovations

  • Selected and engineered the implementation of a new, scalable digital asset management system in order to drive consistency and efficiency

  • Collaborates effectively with C-level executives, sales, and marketing teams to set strategy, goals, and schedules

  • Plans, executes, and produces all on-package photography as well as additional e-commerce lifestyle photography

  • Promotes the use of AI for art-production workflows to accelerate speed to market

  • Recruits, trains, and manages a team of third-party designers, photographers, and copywriters in the development of cohesive creative assets

  • Manages overseas printers and packaging engineers to ensure on-time and in-specification delivery of production-ready packaging 

  • Mentors designers, editors, photographers, stylists, and external partners with actionable feedback that supports and inspires a collaborative, high-performance culture

Principal, Ana Davis, Ltd.

Pioneered an independent design agency that licensed my original designs to large companies including; 3M, York Wall Coverings, Boston Warehouse, and also provided end-to-end creative support to independent companies with multi-faceted design needs.

  • Architected the visual identity and guidelines for a cookbook and kitchenware brand from the ground up

  • Executed original tabletop, houseware, fabric, and children’s book products for retail sale

  • Produced video introductions to promote new art collections for licensees

  • Designed products, logos, style guides, social media templates, websites, PowerPoint presentations, and packaging for clients

  • Conceived of omni-channel campaigns across a range of brands

  • Directed teams of photographers and stylists to produce multimedia assets

Creative Director

New Seasons, Publications International, Ltd.

Aug. 2002–Nov. 2012

Spearheaded initiatives in highly competitive social expressions category that led to white space expansion at big-box and mass-market retailers.

  • Directly managed a team of 12 art professionals to ensure an innovative and consistent in-store presence 

  • Collaborated with sales, marketing, and business leaders to understand business goals and translated them into actionable creative plans and visual executions

  • Developed private-label products for mass-market retail buyers

  • Inaugurated design and manufacturing processes with creative staff

Managing Art Director

PI Kids

March 2001–Aug. 2002:

Oversaw all art direction for children’s books department at wholesale publisher.

  • Managed and mentored a team of nearly a dozen art directors and art assistants

  • Reviewed and approved story development, illustrations, and ensured editorial continuity

  • Verified compliance with licensee brand specifications and style guide for multi-billion-dollar assets including Disney Princess®, Barbie®, Sesame Street®, Winnie-the-Pooh®, and more

Art Director, Associate Art Director, Art Assistant

PI Kids

Brainstormed, proposed, and thumb-nailed book concepts for publisher that specialized in publishing licensed brands.

  • Brainstormed, thumb-nailed, and laid out children’s books

  • Directed freelance illustrators in execution of book art

  • Worked with editors to develop and hone book copy

  • Set-up production files, created die-cuts, and made art corrections to meet licensor approvals and prepare files for production

  • Directed photography for packaging, catalogs, and various book titles

  • Designed and built product mock-ups and prototypes

Education

Carnegie Mellon University, BFA with Honors

Instituto Profesional Arcos, Santiago, Chile

Rhode Island School of Design, Art & Design summer program

School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Art & Design summer program