In a town of transplants like Washington, DC, Eric Johnsen is a proud DMV native. A digital experience designer for the University of Maryland, his family moved to Maryland from Miami when he was young for his father’s role as a graphic designer with the CIA.

Eric earned his Bachelor’s degree in Graphic Design from Virginia Commonwealth University, where this baseball fan interned as a graphic designer for the Washington Nationals. After his initial involvement with AIGA through VCU’s school chapter, he joined the board six years ago on the Communications team. He has since served DMV designers in several board roles, including Secretary and his current position as our Email Chair.

After several years of sending our chapter’s weekly emails, Eric will conclude his board service in June ’24. We sat down with him to hear more about his early inspirations, MLB internship, and how AIGA showed him designers can thrive beyond New York and LA.

Tell me about yourself! More specifically, tell me about the first time you considered pursuing design as a career for yourself.

Sure! I was born in Miami, raised in Germantown, Maryland, and got my design degree at Virginia Commonwealth University. My dad was a graphic designer for the CIA, so that was what prompted the move up to Maryland. He had a pretty decorated career with the CIA, first as a graphic designer and then as a polygrapher, special investigator, and historian.

As a kid, I always loved drawing, illustrations, graphic novels – Spiderman comics were big inspiration for me. Then in high school, I took a digital arts class and had a really wonderful teacher, Leonard Cave, who was also an accomplished sculptor. He encouraged me to pursue graphic design or communication arts as a profession.

What’s very sad about this is that Leonard ended up passing away later the next year. He and one of the band teachers were engaged to be married, but he was killed by a drunk driver. So in a way, it feels like my [pursuit of] graphic design is not just following my dad’s footsteps: I’m also honoring the memory of a really wonderful teacher and instructor who saw that I had talent and said I should pursue it.

Wow, that’s an amazing story, from both a mentorship standpoint and being able to share your graphic design skills with your dad. 

Yeah, actually somewhere in storage, I have a coffee cup with a seal and insignia that [Dad made] for a special reconnaissance division within the CIA for actual spy planes. And there is an actual design that he made somewhere on display at the Spy Museum in DC. So, I’m very proud of my dad. He’s very accomplished in his own right.

We talked about your creative origin story. Now, let’s talk about your AIGA origin story! How did you first join AIGA and then pivot to joining the DC community?

I got involved during my junior and senior year with VCU’s college chapter of AIGA. A bunch of my classmates got to go on a road trip to New York City and visit Tumblr, The New York Times, all of these other notable design studios in DC and New York City. That encouraged me to get involved with the chapter, and once I joined, we made a separate field trip to visit design teams in DC.

That was my first introduction to the DC design community. Meeting people who were involved in the DC design scene and answered all my questions gave me a good feeling that I could lay the groundwork for a strong career in this city. 

Usually, when it comes to design, it’s like, “You’ve gotta go to New York, you’ve gotta go to LA.” I started to realize that you really can have a really great design career anywhere.

After graduating from VCU in the class of 2013 with my degree in Graphic Design, I got an internship with the Washington Nationals as a design intern in their marketing and broadcasting departments. And that year, 2013, was also my first DC Design Week.

Five years later, in 2018, I joined the info. session to apply to be part of [AIGA DC’s] board. That’s where I became a communications coordinator, and I officially joined the Board five years after I started wanting to do it.

Tell us about your trajectory on AIGA DC’s board. You’ve served on our Board’s Communications team leading our email marketing for years. How will your tenure on the chapter’s board end relative to where it began?

I think it’s ending with a lot of really wonderful memories. I started as a comms coordinator, so I was the official notetaker for board meetings and big retreats. Getting to be the person responsible for documenting every retreat and board meeting was insightful. [I got] to see the growth of the chapter, our initiatives, and all of these different people who have come and gone.

And then, over time, I began slowly taking the reins from just being available for any type of communications work — social, editing, or copywriting — to being responsible for building out our weekly emails and creating our newsletters. I have a lot of email marketing experience from my own job as a senior digital designer with the University of Maryland. So, it made taking on the email newsletter a lot [easier].

I love being that cog in the machine that helps make everything work. I love playing my small part to help make AIGA DC what it is, so I never really had the big aspirations to be President or Vice President. I wanted to make sure that I have balance in my own personal life, and [this] was a role that I could commit to while maintaining work/life balance.

I feel very accomplished with my time on the Board, and I hope that anybody else who wants to be involved with this wonderful community [will] make the commitment. It is fulfilling to make a commitment and reach the finish line feeling like, “ I did really good work that fulfills me and makes me happy.”

Tell us about your creative impact on the AIGA DC Board and beyond. Which project do you feel is your biggest creative endeavor?

Aside from my email responsibilities, getting to manage the social media presence for two DotGov Design conferences was really rewarding and a fun project to be part of. Stepping out of the email mindset to help out with the social aspects of promoting the event, then live tweeting the actual conference to act as its voice, is a cause I’m proud that I contributed to.

What is something you believe our DC design community would be surprised to learn about you?

As shy and reserved as I can be, I would say I am quite affectionate and I wear my heart on my sleeve. I really love and care about all of the people in my life, including the people in this community, because life is short.

This interview was edited for length and clarity.

Rebranding isn’t just about updating visuals, it’s about redefining how a story is told and who it reaches. For the Design Continuum Fund (DCF), that meant building a brand that could inspire the next generation of designers while staying grounded in purpose.

I spoke with Katie Bernard-Corbett, Senior Art Director at Teal Media, and Madie Graham, Designer at Teal Media, about their approach and process to redesigning the DCF brand, and what it means to design for impact.

Question: To start, can you introduce yourselves and your role in the project?

Katie:
I’m Katie Bernard-Corbett, Senior Art Director at Teal Media. I’m based in Durham now, but DC is still very close to me. This was a small but mighty team, primarily Madie and me, with support from a project manager and our Chief Creative Officer, Aruna Mall, who gave us high-level consultation throughout the project.

Madie:
I’m Madie Graham, a designer at Teal Media based in Nashville. I had the chance to work closely with Katie on this project, which was really exciting.

Q: What kind of work does Teal Media typically do, and how did this project come about?

Katie:
This is right in our wheelhouse. Teal almost exclusively works for nonprofits and other mission driven organizations. We’ve been doing that for the 17 years that Teal has been around. We work with clients who are aligned philosophically and values wise, which is wonderful. 

We do a wide range of creative work, so a lot of web and a lot of branding work. We also do digital marketing and campaigns, but we’ll kind of pop in and do anything that folks need us to. 

This project grew out of an existing relationship. We’ve worked with your team on DC Design Week before, and when the opportunity came up to rebrand DCF, it felt like a natural extension of that partnership.

Q: What were your first impressions of the existing DCF brand?

Katie:
The existing brand was actually solid. The tagline “Be a part of something big” was strong, and the visual identity had this grainy texture that made it interesting.

But it started to feel a bit dated and less flexible—especially when scaling or applying it across different formats. So, the goal wasn’t to start over, but to evolve it.

Q: What was the core idea driving the redesign?

Madie:
Our North Star was clear: inspire students to engage with the fund and strengthen the next generation of creative leaders.

We landed on the idea of a ripple effect—how one opportunity can expand outward and impact others. That connected directly to the idea of a “continuum.”

Visually, that became concentric circles, repetition and movement , and systems that feel like they radiate outward.

Q: The ripple visuals are striking; I see them as fingerprints. Did they take on additional meaning for you?

Katie:
We hadn’t even thought about the fingerprint, actually, so it’s nice to hear, like, other interpretations of it. But yeah, the whole idea of the continuum is like feeding back into what’s fed you. We originally thought of them as ripples, but that idea of “making your mark” became a really natural extension.

It also tied into the messaging: Make your mark on DC. Make your mark on design. Make your mark on the world.

Q: Can you walk us through your process from concept to final delivery?

Katie:
We started with discovery—learning about your goals, challenges, and audience. Then we ran collaborative sessions exploring both messaging and visuals.

If we broke it down to four parts, it would look like this:

1. Messaging: defining vision, audiences, and key pillars 
2. Visual concepts: exploring logo directions and brand systems 
3. Refinement: iterating based on feedback 
4. Collateral buildout: creating templates and tools for real-world use 

We always try to make sure the brand works beyond just presentation. It has to function day-to-day.

Q: You built a flexible brand system for DCF. Why was usability such an important focus?

Katie:
Because most organizations don’t have the resources to go back to an agency for every new asset.

We built flexible systems in Canva that the DCF team could actually use and adapt over time.

Q: The DCF mark is so bold. What was your approach to the typography?

Madie:
Absolutely! Typography became the foundation of the brand. I think the typography palette itself was kind of where we started. Katie found that beautiful Climate Crisis typeface, which is rooted in advocacy. So, the font itself has that social impact voice. 

We designed a custom “DCF” mark that feels bold, stamp-like, and expressive. Katie hit the mark on squishing those letters together and customizing them in a way that was super unique.

It carries this subtle idea of leaving an imprint, of making your mark.

Q: Let’s talk about the color—why that green?

Madie:
We wanted something energetic and youthful. That lime green felt fresh and a little unexpected. We were aware of trends, but we didn’t want to be overly trendy, just current enough to feel alive.

Katie:
We jokingly call it “Madie Graham Green.” It’s bold, but because the brand evolves year to year, there’s room to experiment.

Q: What challenges did you encounter during the project?

Madie:
The concept itself was pretty abstract, things like equity, community, and creative ecosystems aren’t easy to visualize.

There were definitely moments where nothing felt right. But that’s part of the process, you keep iterating, collaborating, and pushing through until something clicks.

Q: What part of the final result are you most proud of?

Katie:
I’m proud of how that mark turned out. You know, we were struggling, a little bit like Madie said, with the intangibility of what we were trying to capture, and I think ending up with a really simple word mark that just was “DCF”, but was able to convey like, impact, youthfulness, vibrancy. I thought that was a win. The simplicity of the final mark, it’s just “DCF,” but it still feels vibrant and impactful without relying on obvious symbols.

Madie:
I’m with Katie on that, I love what happened with the “F” like, just the shape of the “F”. It’s so nerdy, but it just looks so nice from a typographic perspective. But I also, on a very personal, selfish level, love that we got to sneak in, such as zesty green into a project. I’ve been wanting to use the bright green for years, and like, this worked really well.

Q: How do you hope this rebrand impacts DCF moving forward?

Katie:
Well, hopefully it’s a little more eye-catching than where it’s been before, and grabs the attention of more young designers in the area, makes them curious about it, to look into it. So we’re hoping it helps boost applications and make it easier for the DCF team to do what they need to do with those flexible templates. It’s not the most glamorous part, but it’s a win to make your slides easier to create. That’s always a win.

Q: What advice would you give organizations thinking about a rebrand?

Katie:
I think Natalie and the team were really good about teaching us about what they knew about the audience and always bringing it back to them. In this case, it’s nice because all the photography is basically going to be coming from the community portraits of the students as well as, like their work. It’s about as many opportunities as you can to point it back to them.

I would also say if you can do messaging work before any visual branding work, even if it’s just internal. Get really clear on things, like who are we? What are we doing? Why are we doing it? And why are we different from anyone else who’s doing it? If you can answer those questions, it’s so much easier to get closer to the visual brand faster. 

A lot of organizations have lots of different folks who offer opinions on the brand, and there can be a lot of misalignments in that approach. So, get really clear about how you actually want to come across to your target audience.

Q: Looking ahead, how do you hope this brand evolves over time?

Madie:
Honestly, I’m of the opinion that like design doesn’t have to be sacred, like, good design gets replaced, and we evolve. I don’t think design should be treated as permanent. It should evolve.

So I’m personally not attached to most of my design projects. Like, you kind of know when you let something out into the world, that other people are going to touch it and make it their own. And I think that’s one of the coolest parts about being a designer. 

If anything, I guess I’d hope there’d be some more fun, funky typography in the future, and that we don’t go away from building eclectic, maximalist brands. 

I think design as a trend has been going towards this idea of, like, universal, but in reality, it’s rooted and flattening. Like, if you’re making something for everyone, you’re not making it really for anyone. Like, it’s losing that human touch. So I guess I’d say, if there was something to keep, make it that idea of tangible texture, or just really cool typography and not sticking to the rules. Because the best thing about design is watching how people break the rules through time to create something amazing.

If someone redesigns this in 10-15 years and it’s better for that moment, that’s a success.

Katie:

Yeah, I totally agree. I think the designer can’t view their work as a precious baby that will never get changed. You can have it in your heart and love it while it’s here, but it’s always going to change. 

The only thing that you would want to preserve in a brand refresh is anything that’s beloved or widely recognized by the audience. In this case, things like the stamp, mark, or the ripples or something else that becomes synonymous with DCF over time.

Q: Final thoughts – What’s one word to describe the DCF rebrand?

Madie:
Zesty! That’s a word we all caught onto. It was such a funny, joyful moment during our meeting with the DCF team when we used the word “zesty!” We just kept it, so I feel like zesty is our word.

Katie:
Yes, zesty! …The other word that comes to mind is “energized.” It just feels like it’s super charged, which I love.

Closing Thoughts

Teal Media treated the DCF rebrand as more than a visual update, they made a system designed to grow, adapt, and amplify new voices.

It’s bold without being rigid and structured without being limiting.

And most importantly, it creates space for the next generation to step in and make their mark.

Resources

Case study: View Teal’s DCF case study here.

Learn more about Teal Media: www.tealmedia.com

Learn more about the Design Continuum Fund (DCF) 

By Design Continuum Fund (DCF) Committee

The next generation of designers is already shaping the future of the creative field across the DC, Maryland, and Virginia region. The Design Continuum Fund (DCF), powered by AIGA DC, exists to support those emerging voices.

Applications for the 2026-2027 Design Continuum Fund Scholarship are now open.

Each year, the scholarship helps ease the financial burden for talented and motivated students pursuing degrees in design and creative disciplines while connecting them to the broader AIGA DC community.

Design has the power to share culture, communities, and systems. The Design Continuum Fund supports emerging designers across the DMV. Make Your Mark on the future of design by applying or donating to the scholarship.

Eligibility

• Applicants must be citizens of the United States or possess a green card (formally known as a Permanent Resident Card or Form I-551).
• Applicants must be pursuing an undergraduate or graduate degree in a design or art discipline and intend to pursue that discipline as a career.
• Applicants must be enrolled (or planning to enroll) at accredited colleges and universities in Washington, DC, Maryland, or Virginia for the fall 2026 / spring 2027 academic year and must maintain full-time status for the entire year.
• Incoming students who have yet to enroll must submit proof of acceptance from schools of choice.
• Though not required, minority status is a significant factor considered in jury decisions.
• Students must have at least a 2.0 GPA.
• Scholarships are only awarded to students who can demonstrate financial need. Applicants must, therefore, provide complete financial aid information on the scholarship form and have the form signed by a financial aid officer.

All entries must be received by 11:59 p.m. PST, April 22, 2026. 

🚨 Deadline extended! 🚨

Great news! You now have more time to apply for the AIGA DC Design Continuum Fund scholarship. Awards range from $500 to $3,500+ for college and graduate students in DC, Maryland, and Virginia who are passionate about art, design, and creating social change.

New deadline: May 6, 2026 11:59 p.m. ET — don’t miss your chance!

How to Apply

We share an application with the AIGA Worldstudio Scholarships. By filling out the application, you may be considered for both the AIGA Worldstudio and the AIGA DC Design Continuum Fund scholarships. 

To apply, visit the application portal.

Donate to support the next generation of designers.

Our chapter’s leadership is committed to making our recruitment process as transparent and inclusive as possible. This includes sharing our board recruitment process with you, our AIGA DC community. If you have feedback, questions, or suggestions about recruitment, please email us anytime at talktous@dc.aiga.org. We’re happy to hear feedback on how we can do better.

Forming a Recruitment Committee

Our first step in the search for new board members was to form a recruitment committee. This group is composed of the Executive leadership team. Their task is to execute the board recruitment process, then propose a slate of new candidates to fill the open board roles for the upcoming year.

Building off past years’ approaches, this year’s process consists of four parts:

1. Outreach & Application Collection
2. Independent Review & Evaluation
3. In-person interviews
4. Deliberation & Offers

The committee develops the process, and then participates in training to ensure that all applications are reviewed fairly.

Outreach & Application Collection 

We aim to ensure that local prospective board members know which positions are open, how to apply, and what to expect throughout the process. We publish a list of the open roles on our website and across our social media platforms.

In an effort to recruit diverse board members, we accept nominations from the community and encourage folks to self-nominate.

Prior to the application deadline, we host a public information session where a small group of current board members candidly answer questions about the board structure, how we work, available roles, and the selection process.

The Application

In addition to some questions about the applicant’s experience and interest in joining the board, we ask for:

• Their resume
• A description of a time when they ran something (as a team lead, a project lead, managing people, planning an event – anything.) 
• A short writing sample: A draft of an email asking someone they admire to speak at an AIGA DC event. 
• A video recording or written responses to our STAR Method interview questions.

About the STAR Method Interview Format

The STAR Method is a behavioral-based interview structure where candidates answer questions by discussing the Situation or Task they had to resolve, the Actions they took, and the Results that were achieved. Recruitment Committee members asked each candidate the same questions, which gave interviewers a structured data-gathering process.

This form of behavioral-based interviewing is based on discovering how the candidate acted in specific position-related situations. Candidates are asked questions related to the skills and responsibilities outlined in role descriptions. Instead of asking how the candidate would behave in an imaginary situation, they’re asked how they behaved in a past experience.

Additionally, and most importantly, by asking a set of standardized interview questions, we reduce the likelihood of personal bias amongst the interview panel. Instead, we assess candidates on a much more even playing field, grounded in diversity, equity, and inclusion.

The committee wrote four STAR Method questions for the interviews that align with our scoring rubric’s themes of Accountability, Collaboration, Spirit, and Innovation. The candidates may opt to respond to the questions in writing or by submitting a video recording of their verbal responses. Each candidate is asked the same four questions and are not judged by their delivery method of choice.

Independent Review & Evaluation 

After the application period closes, each member of the committee reviews and scores a set of applications.

Reviewers are asked to rate the applications across five categories:

• Skills: How well does this person match the job description and have the skills to execute the role(s) they are interested in? If the person is applying for multiple roles, average the score.
• Perspective: How much additional perspective will this person bring to the board either from their background, interests, or area of knowledge?
• Spirit: How much support has this person provided to the design community, other communities, or others in the past?
• Accountability: Based on your review of this person’s resume, how accountable do you believe they are?
• Innovation: How likely is this person to bring new ideas to the board?

To ensure consistency, the evaluators use the following criteria to grade applicants in each category: 

• 1 = Novice: New to the subject or not bringing any novel ideas or background
• 2 = Intermediate: Has some knowledge or skill but little applied experience
• 3 = Proficient: Has practical application of skills or knowledge on the subject
• 4 = Distinguished: A high performance level of experience and brings some new perspective
• 5 = Mastery: Has expertise and repeated experience in their subject matter, including novel ideas and background

Evaluators submit their scores privately to prevent them from influencing each other. Each application is reviewed by at least three members of the committee. We avoid having anyone review an application of a candidate they know personally or professionally to avoid conflicts of interest. All applicants are evaluated on the basis of what they provided within their application alone.

After extensive conversation during the first deliberation, the committee selected candidates to move on to the in-person interview.

In-person Interviews

Selected candidates are asked to meet with one of the committee members in-person on the day and time of their choosing. These meet-ups provide an opportunity for unstructured discussion to answer any lingering questions regarding the role or board service, and get a sense of the board culture and expectations. 

Locations, dates, and times for in-person interviews vary according to the committee’s availability. A booking page is shared with candidates to preview days, times, and locations to select the appointment that works best for their needs.

Deliberation & Offers

After in-person sessions, the committee gathers for final deliberations. They review applications, discuss interviews, and share recommendations for offers.

As the final group of candidates is narrowed down, the committee also reviews the candidates and the returning board as a group. This ensures the board will include a diverse mix of identities, geographies, experience, and industries within the broad umbrella of “design” in the DC Metro area.

The committee proposes a slate of candidates to AIGA DC’s current Board of Directors. During the May 2026 board meeting, the board will vote on approval of the new board members.

Next Steps 

This multi-phase recruitment process takes months of planning and execution, and the final piece includes our community. All active AIGA DC members will get an email with instructions on how to vote on our proposed slate of new board members. Members will be able to approve, reject, or abstain from voting on the full slate through a digital ballot.

Moving Forward 

Overall, this process helps our committee enact a more equitable selection structure for future board members to best serve and represent our community. We encourage feedback to continue to improve our processes for equity, diversity, and inclusion across the DC Metropolitan region. If you have any questions or ideas, please reach out to us at talktous@dc.aiga.org.

We’re looking for creative leaders to join the AIGA DC Board of Directors and help shape the future of the DMV’s design community! Whether you’re ready to commit to a two-year term on the board or serve on a 3-month term as a Design Fellow, there’s an opportunity for you to get involved.

Deadline to apply or nominate is March 29.

Why Join the Board?

As a board member, you’ll join a dynamic team of volunteers working to build and support the DMV creative community. You’ll have the chance to:

• Develop leadership skills and make valuable connections.
• Attend AIGA DC events for free.
• Shape the direction of AIGA DC’s programming, mentorship, awards, and events.
• Be part of a diverse, inclusive, and passionate team.

Who We’re Looking For

We’re looking for driven individuals with a vision for what AIGA DC can achieve, who bring enthusiasm and determination to the table. 

Whether you’re a writer, engineer, development specialist, project manager, or business owner, your unique skills are valuable. Diversity is at our core, and we strive for a board that reflects the rich tapestry of the DC design community. 

Be part of a team that welcomes questions, values commitments, and embraces a broad spectrum of backgrounds and experiences. Your journey with us is about making a real impact!

Open Board Roles

We’re recruiting for a lot of roles across every team on the board and are seeking passionate and committed volunteers. 

• Executive Team: Communications Director
• Programming Team: Awards Chair, Civic Design Chair, Programming Coordinator
• Communications Team: Social Media Content Creator, Communications Coordinator
• Operations Team: Creative Community Ambassador

🚨 New Role Alert 🚨

We’re opening a new short-term Design Fellow board role for designers looking to expand their portfolios and make a real impact. In this 3-month position, you’ll work with our Communications team to craft promotional materials for AIGA DC programs and initiatives.

As a Design Fellow, you’ll receive free entry to AIGA DC events during your term, a stipend to support your AIGA membership, and the opportunity to create portfolio-ready work that delivers positive impact to the DMV’s design community.

What’s the commitment?

Joining the AIGA DC Board is a two-year commitment. You can also serve for longer (and many do). At the end of each year, board members may decide if they want to keep their current role or move to another open position.

Specific responsibilities vary depending on the team and the role. All board members are expected to:

• Be (or become) AIGA members in good standing at any level. 
• Attend all required planning retreats and monthly board meetings.
• Attend major events (bonus: board members get into all our events for free!)
• Be responsive on Slack and email (Slack is our main communications platform).

The weekly time commitment varies from role to role and throughout the year.

Following our recruitment period, new board members are onboarded in May and officially begin their terms on June 1. The annual board retreat and planning session is in August. 

Monthly board meetings, events, and regular communications occur year-round, with breaks from board meetings in December, July, and August.

What is the Selection Process?

The Application

In addition to some questions about your experience and interest in joining the board, we’ll ask for:

• Your resume
• A description of a time when you ran something (as a team lead, a project lead, managing people, planning an event – anything.) 
• A short writing sample: A draft of an email asking someone you admire to speak at an AIGA DC event. You can make up whatever logistics you like – time, date, location, other speakers, etc. We’re looking to get a sense of how you think about AIGA DC and how you write in a professional context. A good writing sample would communicate clear directions, offer a compelling pitch, and be reflective of who our community is — a great one would also tell us a little bit about who you are and what parts of design you’re most excited about.
• A video recording or written responses to our STAR Method interview questions.

The Google form won’t let you save an application, so we recommend you draft your answers elsewhere and paste them in. Preview of application questions.

Nomination Committee Review & Interviews

Applications are reviewed by a nominating committee of board members and members of our community. The committee will arrange in-person meetings with select applicants. 

Taking into account individual skills and experiences, and with the expectation to create a board that is diverse and reflects the community it serves, the nominating committee will recommend a slate of new board members for approval by the current AIGA DC Board of Directors.

Invitations Extended to Join the Board

For the 2026 recruitment period, offers to join the board will be sent the week of April 26. The new board slate will be sent to the full community of AIGA DC members for approval for our executive positions.

Questions?

We will host a virtual information session on March 19 at 6:30 p.m. to cover more about what it means to be on the board, what the different roles and responsibilities are, and any other questions you may have about being on the board. 

Attending the session live is highly recommended as we’ll have board members available to answer questions. The recording will be made available on our website if you can’t make it in real time.

If you have any other questions, please email us at apply@dc.aiga.org.

Washington, DC, has a branding problem.

To outsiders, the city is defined by monuments, politics, and federal power. It’s a place of marble buildings and institutional authority. But ask natives and longtime residents what DC feels like, and the answer rarely begins with government. It begins with the city’s cultural institutions, it begins with rhythm, with community. It begins with Go-Go.

For decades, Go-Go music has functioned as more than a genre. It has operated as a living cultural system that has shaped language, fashion, gathering spaces, traditions, business ecosystems, and collective identity. Long before the language of “place branding,” “community engagement,” or “authentic storytelling” entered design discourse, Go-Go was already doing that work organically. It branded DC not through logos or campaigns, but through a decentralized system of participation.

In branding terms, Go-Go behaves less like a product and more like a decentralized network: owned by no single institution yet recognized instantly by those who belong to it. A T-shirt, a roll call, a flyer, a dance circle, or a neighborhood shout out becomes a signal, a shared visual and cultural code that communicates identity without explanation.

To better understand how this happened, I spoke with Dr. Natalie Hopkinson, associate professor at American University, Founding Chief Curator of the Go-Go Museum, co-creator of #DontMuteDC, and author of “Go-Go Live: The Musical Life and Death of a Chocolate City”. Using the chapters of her book as a guide, our conversation explored how Go-Go didn’t just soundtrack DC, but how it helped define how the city sees itself and how its people recognize one another.

What emerges is a story designers may find surprisingly familiar: a brand built not by strategy decks, but by community ownership, rituals, and lived experience.

Chapter 1: “A Black Body Politic” | Go-Go as a Cultural Brand

Question : How did Go-Go help define what it meant to belong to DC? Can it be viewed as a cultural brand that people lived inside of?

Answer: I think describing Go-Go as a brand people lived inside of is exactly right. Like any valuable brand, not everyone had access to it, and that exclusivity gave it power. After Go-Go was criminalized in the 1980s and pushed underground, participation became a way of signaling belonging, an unspoken recognition between people who understood the culture.

You could see that branding through local fashion. Wearing something like a Madness shirt wasn’t just about style; it communicated history and insider knowledge. Complimenting someone’s shirt became a coded exchange saying, “I see you, and I know what that represents.” Those items carried cultural capital and even economic value because they reflected identity and status within the community.

When I spoke with young people in Prince George’s County, many rejected national hip-hop brands because they represented somewhere else. They preferred local DC brands because wearing them expressed pride and self-knowledge. That sense of ownership created a cultural hierarchy enforced by the community itself — being local mattered.

Chapter 2: “Club U” | Spaces as Brand

Q: How did Go-Go spaces define the experience of DC culture and influence how the city presented itself?

A: Club U is a powerful example because it shows how Go-Go transformed space itself. The venue operated inside the Reeves Center, a municipal government building spearheaded by the late former DC Mayor, Marion Barry Jr. During the day it held offices, and at night it became a Go-Go club. That transformation demonstrated that Go-Go wasn’t separate from civic life, it existed within the city’s official infrastructure.

The club even broadcast live on the radio, which made the experience public rather than hidden. It showed that Go-Go belonged to the broader city and could occupy important, visible spaces rather than being confined to nightlife margins.

More broadly, Go-Go spaces were fluid. A firehouse, community center, prom, block party, or house party could all become Go-Go spaces. Wherever people gathered and created that shared energy, the culture existed, shaping how residents experienced DC itself.

Chapter 3: “What’s Happening” | Rituals and Everyday Life

Q: How did those shared styles and rituals become part of DC’s visual, cultural, or even political identity?

A: Over time I’ve come to understand Go-Go as a communal calendar. When I studied Globe posters, I realized there was always a Go-Go tied to seasonal milestones, like back-to-school events, holidays, sports victories, or school breaks. Anything that marked time in the community became an occasion for a Go-Go.

These gatherings went beyond entertainment. People celebrated birthdays, honored loved ones through RIP shout-outs, and marked life milestones collectively. Go-Go became a place where emotions and experiences were publicly shared and recognized.

Because of that constant presence, Go-Go shaped everyday behavior, like how people dressed, socialized, and moved through the city. It embedded itself into daily life and helped define what belonging in DC looked and felt like.

Q: Do you feel like there’s crossover with New Orleans culture, the way music is tied to everyday life there?

A: Absolutely! My late husband was from New Orleans, and when I described Go-Go to him, he immediately compared it to brass band culture. In New Orleans, music marks life events in a similar way; proms, celebrations, and community gatherings are structured around live performance.

Scholar Joseph Roach writes about second-line traditions as bringing ancestors into the present moment rather than simply remembering them. I see Go-Go functioning similarly. It’s about ritual, memory, and presence—creating shared moments where community history feels alive.

Both DC and New Orleans developed strong Black middle classes under different historical conditions, and those environments fostered ritual cultures rooted in African diasporic traditions. In both places, music became a living expression of identity.

Chapter 4: “Call and Response” | Participation & Power

Q: Did that interactivity help brand DC as a place of equity, voice, and community participation?

A: We have to be careful with the idea of “brand,” because Go-Go meant very different things depending on who you were. For locals, it represented identity and community. For outsiders and transplants, it was often associated with crime narratives from the “murder capital” era, which distorted its meaning publicly.

But within the culture itself, call and response is central. The band talks to the audience, and the audience talks back. The experience isn’t about a solo performer, it’s collective. Everyone in the room participates, syncing energy and emotion through rhythm.

That communal participation is one reason Go-Go has lasted so long. The audience co-creates the music, which makes the experience deeply personal and tied to identity. People aren’t just watching — they are part of the performance.

Chapter 5: “The Archive” | Tapes, Design, and Memory

Q: How important were recording and design in solidifying Go-Go as DC’s cultural brand over time?

A: Go-Go recordings were mostly utilitarian rather than visually elaborate. Tapes and CDs usually just listed the band, venue, and date. That simplicity actually makes them incredibly powerful archival documents because they precisely capture moments in time.

When I analyzed a 1986 Rare Essence recording, those details allowed me to connect shout-outs to larger historical events. A single tape becomes a historical document that reflects what was happening socially and culturally at that exact moment.

At the same time, these recordings are deeply personal archives. If your crew received a shout-out, that tape holds your memories and identity. The community created its own archival system through tape traders and collectors long before institutions recognized its value — Go-Go preserved itself.

Chapter 6: “The Boondocks” | When Go-Go Moves Outward

Q: What happens to a city’s identity when its culture is pushed outward?

A: When culture is pushed outward, cultural bonds weaken. Movements grow from proximity — kids attending the same schools, musicians living near each other, communities interacting daily. When people disperse, those organic connections change.

DC is the spiritual heart of Go-Go because it is also central to Black struggles for democracy and inclusion. The city became Chocolate City through migration, education, and political organizing. Moving Go-Go outside the city separates it from that symbolic center.

That tension became visible during #DontMuteDC, when many displaced residents returned to defend a culture they still felt ownership over. Even when people move away physically, their cultural connection remains.

Chapter 7: “Redemption Song” | Defending Go-Go’s Value

Q: How did that struggle shape the story DC tells about itself and its culture?

A: Before #DontMuteDC, many people avoided talking about Go-Go publicly because they felt embarrassed by it. Some saw it as unsophisticated or as a failed version of hip-hop — something tied to youth rather than adulthood or professionalism.

The movement helped shift that narrative. Go-Go began to be understood not as something to outgrow but as a cultural superpower — something worth teaching, celebrating, and protecting.

I remember giving a talk years ago where a young Black student reacted to the word “Go-Go” with visible discomfort because of the stigma attached to it. That showed how deep the shame had become. But at its core, Go-Go is the people and the drum. Negative associations may surround it, but they are not its essence.

Chapter 8: “Mr. Obama’s Washington, DC”

Q: How did DC’s Obama-era identity interact with or conflict with the Go-Go brand of “Chocolate City”?

A: The two largely existed on separate tracks. The Obamas supported many cultural initiatives and elevated Black art nationally, but Go-Go rarely intersected with that cultural narrative. To my knowledge, they never attended a Go-Go, and public acknowledgment came much later.

Institutions associated with Black upward mobility, like Howard University, often distanced themselves from Go-Go because it was linked to safety concerns and stigma. That association bundled violence and Go-Go together in ways that misunderstood the culture.

#DontMuteDC changed that dynamic because it demonstrated visible collective power. Earlier advocacy efforts hadn’t gained lasting traction, but this moment combined policy awareness, grassroots organizing, and powerful public imagery. Politicians may not have suddenly loved Go-Go, but they developed respect for its ability to mobilize people.

Chapter 9: “Roll Call, 1986”

Q: Was the roll call essentially the city branding itself out loud?

A: I wouldn’t say the city as an institution was branding itself. What you hear in roll calls is a community mapping itself in real time. The 1986 Rare Essence recording I studied is considered canonical because it captures a specific moment and social network.

When I transcribed it, I traced every name and reference — neighborhood crews, schools, local figures — and realized it was a pool of interconnected stories. It documents fashion, relationships, and local identity all at once.

Photographer Thomas Sayers Ellis, who recently passed, told me that Go-Go is a grammar, you know? And he has a poem that said, “Africa disagrees with subject verb agreement”, you know? And it’s sort of this idea that stories are not necessarily linear in the African diasporic tradition. They’re not linear, it’s more like a pool, instead of a beginning, middle, end, like a straight line. and I think that’s accurate. The storytelling isn’t linear; it’s communal and layered. The roll call is DC speaking itself into existence from the inside.

Who Owns (and Protects) the Brand?

Q: If we think about DC culture as a brand, who owns it, and is Go-Go still branding DC?

A: I’m personally anticapitalist, so the word “brand” makes me a little uncomfortable, but it works in this context. At the Go-Go Museum, we described Go-Go as a network of fiercely independent Black-owned businesses, bands, clothing lines, venues, promoters, restaurants, and media ecosystems.

Go-Go operates as an umbrella identity. Businesses align with it to signal authenticity, collective values, and deep roots in DC culture. In that sense, Go-Go absolutely still brands the city.

But ownership is collective. The real question isn’t who owns the brand, it’s who protects it. For decades, the community has resisted outside extraction while keeping the culture alive. As demographics shift and new audiences embrace Go-Go, whether that protection continues remains an open question.

Final Thoughts

If branding is ultimately about shared meaning, then Go-Go may be DC’s most successful, and most misunderstood, brand system.

Unlike traditional branding, Go-Go has no centralized authority, no official style guide, and no singular owner. Its power comes from collective stewardship. Bands, dancers, clothing lines, promoters, neighborhood crews, and audiences all participate in maintaining and evolving the culture. The brand survives because people actively live inside it.

Dr. Hopkinson’s insights reveal something designers may often forget: identity cannot be imposed from the top down. The most durable cultural brands emerge from community participation, repetition, and shared rituals. Go-Go persists because audiences are not consumers, they are co-creators. Every roll call, every shout-out, every raised hand reinforces belonging.

Today, as DC continues to change through development, migration, and shifting demographics, the question is no longer whether Go-Go brands the city because it clearly does. The real question is who protects and stewards that brand as new audiences encounter it and new institutions attempt to define it.

Dr. Natalie Hopkinson, PhD is an associate professor of media, democracy and society at American University. She is also the Founding Chief Curator of the Go-Go Museum, the former co-lead scholar and curatorial consultant for the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis, an author, an activist, and co-creator of #DontMuteDC.

Connect with Dr. Hopkinson: Instagram | Substack | LinkedIn

The Book
Get “Go-Go Live: The Musical Life and Death of a Chocolate City”

Visit the Go-Go Museum
Plan your visit to the Go-Go Museum & Cafe

An ordinary New Year’s resolution can feel daunting to choose, let alone stick with for an entire year. But for designers with a backlog of tutorials, inspiration bookmarks, dream projects, and more screenshots to “remember for later” than we know what to do with; taking on a resolution can feel like a sisyphean task. To make this less daunting, AIGADC’s Board of Directors shared some of their creative goals for 2026.

“Say yes to projects that spark curiosity, civic good, and a little chaos (the good kind).”
-Jessica Hoang, Co-President

“Avoid Monday morning meetings.”
-Nabi Bilal, Communications Co-Director

“I’d like to contribute to an urban plan that serves as a blueprint for long-term decision-making. Design is embedded in the everyday places people inhabit—these choices about future architecture, landscape, and infrastructure investments, directly shape how residents move, gather, live, and connect with their community.”
-Alexa Powell, Programming Coordinator

“I want to revamp how I seek inspiration, prioritizing mediums that are not digital, and focusing on building my skillset as a graphic designer.”
-Eden Patrick, DC Design Week Chair

“Finally master a file naming system and stick to it so that I can stop living in final_final_REALLYFINAL_v7.”
-Anike Skeete, Programming Director

“Read my TBR backlog of books.”
-Meghan Romance, Communications Coordinator

As the year draws to a close, we’re taking time out to recap our favorite things from 2025. While there were so many great things we could list, we decided to limit our list to 10 things ranging from events, to initiatives, to people, places, and things. 2025 was special for so many reasons, and we’re so proud of our community for showing up and showing out throughout the year.

10 – Our 2025 Chapter Sponsors

Our chapter sponsors helped us put on events and initiatives for the DC design community that made a huge impact. We’d like to give major thanks to Artechouse, Coforma, and Public Servants for being our 2025 chapter sponsors.

9 – Volunteers

We’re grateful for the people who give their time and energy in service to the local design community. From our boardies, to our committees, to our event volunteers, we could not exist without you and your efforts. Our volunteers make everything we do possible and we thank each and everyone of you sincerely.

8 – The 2025-2026 Design Continuum Fund Scholarship Recipients

We awarded Design Continuum Fund scholarships to six deserving students. Our 2025-2026 DCF recipients are:

CHLOE McNEILL, Illustration, Undergraduate student at Howard University

ALAINA LURRY, Photography, Undergraduate student at MICA

BAO DUONG, Illustration, Graduate student at Johns Hopkins University 

NASTYA LAVRY, Communication Design, Undergraduate student at MICA

ARISHA RAHMAN, Illustration, Undergraduate student at George Washington University

MABEL TSADO, Communication Design, Dual Degree Graduate student at MICA & Johns Hopkins University

Additionally, we have to give a big shout out to Teal Media for their work rebranding the Design Continuum Fund. If you’re not aware, the Design Continuum Fund supports local design-minded students by offering them financial assistance to pursue their design education. 

7 – SHINE Mentorship

One of our primary Initiatives, the SHINE mentorship program is back just in time for 2026. For those who don’t know, SHINE is a four-month mentoring program. The program matches mentors and mentees around DMV design communities looking to connect, challenge each other to grow, focus on portfolio development, or collaborate on a project of their choice.

Apply: SHINE Applications are now open. The deadline to apply is Jan. 27, 2026

Volunteers: Those looking to volunteer can sign up here. The deadline to sign up as a volunteer is Jan. 5, 2026.

🎨 SHINE 2026 graphics were designed by Ania Siniuk

6 – Salons

Salons are special events because we get to engage our community in smaller, more intimate settings. It’s a great opportunity to share thoughts, connect one-on-one, and be in a space with others who share similar interests. 

This year, our salons consisted of a mural tour in NoMA and a sneak peak into the holiday edition of Room Service, the pop up in union market where local creatives got to design and reimagine rooms in the old Motel 6.

We look forward to more great salons in 2026.

5 – Virtual Events

It seems like only yesterday that we were in the midst of a once-in-lifetime pandemic (Hello 2020 😒) in which things like social distancing and virtual events became the norm. While we’re thankful to have gotten back to in-person events, we have to admit, there’s nothing we like more than a well-run virtual event. With that said, we must highlight the “Inside the Overnight Campaign” event. It was a fantastic virtual event run by our programming team featuring the design teams from the Harris for President campaign. Check out a recap of the event here.

4 – CreateAthon 2025 (#CAT25)

There are so many nonprofits providing great services to their communities, but sometimes the helpers need some help. CreateAthon 2025 was a truly amazing experience where five teams of designers were paired with five nonprofits to produce branding and marketing materials in a 24-hour design sprint. 

We could not have done it without sponsors like, Steampunk – who lent their space for the event – as well as Fufu + Grits, Topo Chico, Smart Water, Make A Scene Media, Jamie Kimball, and Compass Coffee. 

Check out the recap video for #CAT25 produced by Make A Scene Media. Needless to say, great design was created although not much sleep was had.

🎨 CreateAthon 2025 graphics were designed by Candace Sanders.

3 – The Return of DotGov

DotGov returned in 2025 after a multi-year hiatus, and it could not have been timelier. DotGov 2025 gave civic designers and those working with the government a chance to connect, learn from one another, and elevate conversations around positive change at a time when many government workers were furloughed as we experienced the longest government shutdown in U.S. history.

We’d like to thank our attendees as well as our sponsors for the event: Coforma, Public Servants, Civic Design Collaborative, Flipside Innovation, Humans of Public Service, IDEO.org, WellFed, Hanad Ali Photography, Print Mag, and Tre’Von Henderson Photography. 

Check out the recap video for DotGov 2025

2 – An Unparalleled DC Design Week

DC Design Week 2025’s theme was Unparalleled Pathways, and the theme was truly fitting. This year’s DC Design Week (DCDW) was one for the record books. The week began with a coffee kickoff in Union Market and continued with events that ranged from architecture and design, to culinary delights, a Homegrown design panel with world-class creatives, a creative portfolio review, a game and animated film debut, and a spiritually stirring nature hike and museum tour.

We’re so grateful for all of our attendees, volunteers, and sponsors who helped make DCDW 2025 one of our most impactful initiatives of the year.

1 – Our DC Design Community

In 2025, our community showed up and showed out. To our community, you’ve shown up for our events and you’ve given your time, effort, and resources. You are members, sponsors, our board members, committee members, volunteers, and our greatest advocates. Let’s continue to build a strong community and support one another as we head into a new year filled with many new opportunities to learn and grow.

CreateAthon DC 2025 occurred on November 15-16 at Steampunk’s creative studio in McLean, VA. During this 24-hour hackathon, 25 local creatives and strategists completed pro bono projects for 5 local nonprofits.

How It Started

Equipped with laptops, snacks, and a whole lot of caffeine, 30 creative professionals arrive to the event on November 15th. After a brief introduction, they formed teams and began their 24-hour design marathon.

Nonprofits and Projects

Archaeology in the Community
Focused on an updated identity refresh and communication system for Archaeology in the Community. This refresh serves as the foundation for a new and expanded visual identity system across social channels and newsletter platforms. Retaining the spirit of the past logo, this new system refines their visual identity into a flexible and digital-friendly system for a modern audience.

Congress Heights Arts and Culture Center
Redesigned the visual identity for Congress Heights Arts and Culture Center (CHACC) and created reusable assets for the non-profit, including new logo variations, brand guidelines, donor materials, social media templates, and motion graphics.

Period101
The team focused on creating a simple but elevated brand identity for Period101 that reflects their youthful, community-oriented attitude. Along with brand assets and custom illustrations, we included research, a website audit, and a social media suite tailored to their DIY approach.

The Heart Leaf Center
The team led a focused creative sprint, developing updated visuals, messaging, and ready-to-use campaign assets that captured the nonprofit’s impact and supported their end-of-year appeal.

Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company
With ‘The Biggest Ticket’ campaign for Woolly Mammoth’s Golden Ticket subscription, we fused bold creative, a charismatic mascot, and dynamic branding to celebrate the theater’s outsized influence on the district and the arts.

Final Presentations

Sunday morning brought the final, crucial stretch. As teams grabbed breakfast around 8:00 a.m., their focus was entirely on file submission and final presentation checks.

Before the nonprofit representatives arrived, we paused the floor to conduct the ‘Rose, Bud, Thorn’ feedback activity. This exercise allowed our volunteers to provide crucial, confidential input on the weekend, covering everything from event amenities (Rose) to future suggestions (Bud) and areas for immediate improvement (Thorn).

With that valuable feedback secured, the teams transitioned fully into presentation mode. By 8:45 a.m., the air was thick with anticipation as nonprofit representatives began filling the seats. Despite the obvious lack of sleep, the teams delivered their 24-hour creative concepts with passion and clarity, earning strong applause and genuine admiration for every deliverable.

 View Some of the Project Work Created During the Event 

As AIGA DC’s premier initiative, CreateAThon DC continues to serve as a powerful example of mission-driven design. For 24 intensive hours, talented volunteers joined forces, pooling their expertise to craft strategic, innovative creative assets for five deserving local nonprofits. This demonstration of concentrated effort profoundly proves design’s potential to drive immediate, tangible positive change. Our profound gratitude goes to every volunteer whose talent and dedication made this success possible.

View Event Recap Video

Sponsors

In addition, we want to thank all of our event sponsors that made this event possible

Graphics by Candace Sanders.

Photography by Jamie Kimball.

Videography Make A Scene Media.

A Week Built on Care, Curiosity, and Collaboration

DC Design Week 2025 brought thousands of creatives together across Washington, DC for ten days of programming under the theme Unparalleled Pathways. As the season of reflection arrives, we’re looking back with gratitude at the highlights, ideas, and moments that defined this year’s festival and the people who made it possible.

Highlights from DC Design Week 2025 

This year’s events spanned architecture, visual design, fashion, food, film, technology, and community practice. Each program offered a different way to explore the nonlinear routes that shape creative work and the many places design lives across the District.

The week opened with The Creative Reset at Grounded, a wellness-focused gathering designed to help creatives slow down, recharge, and set the tone for the days ahead. That momentum carried into the Coffee Kickoff at The Village at Union Market, where attendees connected with organizers, volunteers, and partners in a warm, welcoming start to the festival.

PLATED: A Culinary Salon

An intimate, design-forward dining experience that treated food as a medium for narrative, memory, and sensory storytelling. PLATED brought together chefs, designers, and culture-makers for a multisensory exploration of how cuisine becomes a form of creative research.

HOMEGROWN: A Creator’s Playground

One of the most memorable events of the week, featuring Aria Hughes (Complex), Cam Kirk, Chela Mitchell, and Domo Wells. Together, they explored what it means to build creative careers rooted in the DMV, blending local identity, global impact, and the courage to forge your own path.

GEN-SYNTH Screening + Talk

In partnership with Vega Studio, attendees experienced GEN-SYNTH, a short film created with AI as a cinematic tool. The post-screening conversation with Ceej Vega invited attendees to consider authorship, Black creativity, and the future of AI-driven storytelling, offering one of the week’s most forward-looking perspectives.

Drummond Projects Open Studio

A rare look behind the scenes of architectural practice. Attendees explored materials, models, and process, reinforcing the week’s focus on tactility, experimentation, and the craft behind designed spaces.

The Portfolio Review

Design students and emerging professionals received one-on-one portfolio feedback from creative leaders across the region. The event served as both mentorship and momentum for the next generation of designers.

Farewell Field Trips

On the final Saturday, attendees explored museums, nature, and design-forward spaces across DC and the region. These reflective excursions closed the week with movement, perspective, and shared inspiration.

Closing Reception at Molteni&C Georgetown

The festival concluded in the new Molteni&C flagship showroom, celebrating the connections, collaborations, and creative sparks that shaped this year’s Design Week.

Investing in the Future of Design in DC

Across 10 days, the week celebrated design not only as a discipline, but as a shared experience shaped by culture, identity, and the city itself. Every program was powered by volunteers, partners, and community members who contributed their time, expertise, energy, and generosity.

For that, we are deeply grateful.

AIGA DC is proud to introduce this year’s recipients of the Design Continuum Fund (DCF), a merit-based scholarship program that empowers design-minded students across the DC, Maryland, and Virginia region.

Since its founding, DCF has helped remove financial barriers for local students who are pursuing design education. More than funding alone, DCF connects scholars with the AIGA DC community and provides mentorship, networking, and opportunities to make meaningful impact through design.

We believe design is powerful. Today’s students are tomorrow’s creative leaders. They will shape industries, champion equity, and solve complex challenges in our communities. By supporting DCF, you help build a stronger and more diverse generation of designers who are ready to lead change.

Meet the 2025-2026 DCF scholarship recipients:

• Alaina Lurry, Photography, Undergraduate student at MICA
• Arisha Rahman, Illustration, Undergraduate student at George Washington University
• Bao Duong, Illustration, Graduate student at Johns Hopkins University 
• Chloe McNeill, Illustration, Undergraduate student at Howard University
• Mabel Tsado, Communication Design, Dual Degree Graduate student at MICA & Johns Hopkins University
• Nastya Lavryk, Communication Design, Undergraduate student at MICA

Thank you to our jurors, donors, and partners for investing in the next generation. Your support opens doors for talented students who are ready to Make their Mark.

Help us share the announcement, spread the word, and grow the fund. When more students apply and more donors contribute, the impact multiplies.