I got this note from “the girls” at the AIGA conference. They seem a bit star struck, but I think they’re finding out pretty quickly about the networking that goes on here at PC and the extent of Mr. Richardson’s influence. Here, I’ll turn the post over to them:

Shiny shoes, Cocktails, Design Gurus–OH MY!

GOOD Lord, people, crazy things are happening. After a quick turnaround at the hotel, we jetted off to a champagne cocktail to rub elbows with the design elite. And trust me, we did.

Michael Signorella took us under his wing to introduce us to one of the most interesting people in the room - enter Marc English, who happened to be wearing a bouro hat… complete with vest. He launched into many a story (none of them which involved design) but gave us a great glimpse of his personality. It was at this point that Hank located us and recruited us to be his entourage. By staying close to Hank, we were able to profit from his vast knowledge of everyone in the room. Under Hank’s deft maneuvering of the room, we met Michael Bierut, Sean Adams, Steve Hartman, Noreen Morioka, George Fernandez and Mick Hodgeson – who, by the way, gave us a 24 hour time limit to detach ourselves from Hank’s side. Rick Griffith, we may be calling you for those phone numbers you promised… Thanks.

After making our exit from the cocktail party and cramming ourselves into an elevator with the hotshots of design, we headed to the Green Salon. An interesting trek, mind you, since no one seemed to know where they were going. At one point it became quite apparent that the students were the only ones listening to the street address when someone shouted out “Follow the girls with the gold shiny shoes” (FYI, that was us.) The Green Salon hosted a talk on design sustainability and the initiative Denver is taking to promote green design and reduce carbon footprints. They also had popcorn.

To finish up our night, Hank grabbed us and Pash and we set off for dinner at the Rialto Café. Pash smooth talked the host into reopening the kitchen and getting us food. Baller… We then listened to them for at least an hour discussing past conferences and their great friendships with everyone we met tonight. It was pretty amazing. Perhaps the most impressive point was the revelation that once we finish at PC, AIGA can provide a community, not just colleagues but personal friends. Seriously, guys, that was all in the first five hours.

—Ali Dick, Jenn Graham, Jessica Sutton

Pictures coming!

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