Are.na is a platform for networked curation & research. It's been my public brain for over a decade. I've also been a core advocate at Arena both formally and informally: hosting events, publishing commissioned interviews & essays, maintaining popular public channels, and commissioning artist collaborations for their store.

Example: are.na/blog/gift-shop-…
Role: Concept, director

Example: are.na/blog/the-wildne…
Role: Commissioned author

Example: are.na/the-creative-in…
Role: Creator

I engage with organizations when they need to re-think their identity and information architecture on the web. My process for building lasting and accessible design begins with research and dialogue to re-articulate the goals of a project to arrive at a shared language through shared documents. Once we build this structure, the design and development fall naturally into place — it’s the easy part. Clients include Artists Space, Eyebeam, and Kickstarter.

Example: artistsspace.org
Roles: Lead design, front end coding, strategy, research, information architecture, accessibility testing and education, team building

In 2016, I joined Kickstarter to launch “The Creative Independent,” a unique digital platform serving creative professionals. As creative director, I was involved in everything — from establishing our principles, to designing the site, to building with code & copy, to growing an aligned team and process. The vision was a “Wikipedia of the creative process,” a networked resource that was radically readable and evergreen. I built the site with evolution in mind — it’s constructed to grow every day and be gardened over time. The site has continued to grow and evolve like a living organism and today is a network of over 1500 interviews: a rich database of thought from writers, musicians, designers, visual artists, and others in six languages.

Website: thecreativeindependent…
Roles: Design, strategy, code, writing, team building

Essay: thecreativeindependent.com/essays/laurel-…
Role: Author
This essay has become required reading in many design syllabi worldwide and has been translated into multiple languages.

Blog: thecreativeindependent.com/notes/spiral
Role: Author

“i think that @thecreativeindp has the best web design of any blog ('digital platform') that i have seen ... it's such a pleasure to visit after a time away, and find the homepage has completely changed.” — @theinvertedform on Twitter, summer 2020

I was core to the growth of Linked by Air, a design & technology firm specializing in design systems and creative tools for cultural organizations. I worked with clients through the entire product lifecycle — driving design, front-end development, & project management. I also led design of the studio's popular CMS, Economy (ecnmy.com). Selected clients include the e-commerce site Printed Matter (the world's largest artists' bookstore), which helped double Printed Matter's online sales; the Yale AIDS Memorial Project; and the popular urban game Midnight Madness, which raised $7m for charity.

Example: www.printedmatter.org
Role: Lead design, content architecture, user testing

dynamic seasonal variable typeface & sound

tutorial that doubles as a meditative experience

interviews with artists & technologists about simple tools

exploring new ways of publishing to the www

accessible website design & identity

calming website for philosophy by Yancey Strickler

an app & "ode to airplane mode"

information architecture for generous traversal

slowly color shifting & collage-based artist website

graphic identity, signage, & website for the "San Antonio T"

web presence weaving architecture, poetry, & nature

creative strategy, web identity, writing, code, etc.

a book of 36 lyrical fragrance reviews

early artist-run gallery that exhibits & sells files as artworks