EXHIBITION

ADAI’s 66th Exhibition

Founded in 1957, the Art Directors Association of Iowa has been connecting local professionals and students through design for over 60 years. Every year, ADAI hosts one of Iowa’s largest design exhibitions attracting hundreds of entries every year and attendees. The exhibition is an opportunity for Iowans to establish themselves as industry professionals, talented designers, and artists. 

ENTRY DEADLINE

February 23, 2024

Our 66th Exhibition is officially here and you’re invited to Enter the Wild! We want your best identity systems, web work, ad campaigns, and more. So pack your bags, set a course, and get ready to send in your submissions. Check out the rules, categories, and entry information to help navigate your way through this year’s exhibition.

CATEGORIES RULES ENTRY FEES
STUDENT JUDGING

March 13, 2024

PROFESSIONAL JUDGING

March 15, 2024

Professional Judges

Michael Braley

Creative Director Braley Design

Michael Braley has over 30 years of experience in brand, print, poster, book and package design. His work has been recognized internationally and is in the permanent collections of the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, the Chicago Athenaeum Museum of Architecture and Design, The Denver Art Museum, the Museum fur Kunst und Gewerbe (Art and Design) Hamburg, Germany, Lahti Poster Museum, Finland and The Museum of the Marie Curie-Skłodowska University, Lublin, Poland.

His work has also been awarded in numerous national and international publications and been selected for poster exhibitions in Bolivia, China, Colombia, Ecuador, Finland, Hungary, Peru, Poland, Romania, Russia, South Korea, Slovakia, Ukraine and the United States.

In 2016, Braley received the Iowa State University: College of Design: Design Achievement Award, recognizing outstanding creative and professional achievements of alumni. And in 2019, the American Advertising of Federation (AAF) Lexington awarded Braley the Distinguished Member Award.

Prior to Lexington, Braley worked at leading design firms in San Francisco and New York. Braley also lectures and leads design workshops at universities and professional organizations around the nation.

He is a 1993 graduate of Iowa State University, BFA, Graphic Design, and has served on the Iowa State University: Graphic Design Advisory Council since 2013. Braley is also the Creative Director and a committee member of the United States International Poster Biennial.

Tyler Granneman

Senior Art Director at Nomadic

An Iowa native, and a graduate from Iowa State University, Tyler is a Senior Art Director working at Nomadic: an AdAge Small Agency of the Year in Phoenix, Arizona. She has built her career in advertising creating social content, ideating digital activations and directing campaigns for brands like The Walt Disney Company, National Geographic, Capcom, Ubisoft and NBC Universal. When she’s not flexing her creative muscles at work, she’s spending her time with her husband and son, obsessing over her plants and keeping her garden alive in the Arizona heat.

David Rittner

Creative Director at Brado

David currently manages creative leadership for interactive and print work at Brado, a healthcare marketing agency based in St. Louis, Missouri. He is responsible for the strategy, planning and execution of projects that span from brand manuals to user experience for AI language models.

Prior to his work at Brado, David was a Partner and Design Lead at VSA Partners in Chicago, overseeing print and digital work for clients such as IBM, Harley-Davidson, Caterpillar and GE. Mr. Ritter’s work has been recognized by the New York Art Directors Club, British Design and Art Direction (D&AD), the Black Book AR100 show, Communication Arts and Critique magazine.

Mr. Ritter received his MFA in Graphic Design from the University of Washington and his BFA in Graphic Design from the University of Michigan.

Student Judges

Chad Owen

Owner & Manager of Owen Design

For over 25 years, Chad’s been a designer in the Des Moines area. He’s seen it all and done it all, yet is still learning. Creativity’s his main drive and what gets him out of bed each morning. Literally, his best ideas often spring to mind while procrastinating to get out of bed.

Kelly Bittner

Associate Creative Director at ZLR Ignition / Co-Founder Basemint Design

Kelly brings 20 years of comprehensive design experience and a talent for connecting the tone and visual messaging of a client’s brand to create campaigns that are memorable, meaningful and move the needle. Her award-winning work rises to the top of a variety of industries, including health care, public health, higher education, entertainment and finance. Kelly’s expansive portfolio of work includes digital, traditional, out-of-home, user-experience solutions and more. When she’s not working as a creative for her agency, Kelly enjoys helping her husband with their design and illustration business.

Melissa Carlson

Co-Founder 818- a tiny design empire

With over 20 years of experience in all things design, branding, and business, Melissa is passionate about helping small businesses develop, grow, and manage their brands. She has extensive project experience with brand marketing and environmental graphic design, and provides business development, creative direction, project management, and overall leadership for the 818 team. Melissa is a 2005 graduate of Grand View University and enjoys helping students and professional designers shape their art & design careers.

EXHIBITION
66th ADAI

Design Exhibition

April 19 2024

Location: Curate
322 E Court Ave, Des Moines, IA 50309

COCKTAIL HOUR

Doors open/cocktail hour 5:30-
6:30PM

DESIGN EXHIBITION
7:15-
9:00PM
AFTER PARTY
9:30-
??
EXHIBITION TICKETS

$45 each

Professionals & Guests

Drinks + heavy apps

$30 each

Students & Guests

Drinks + heavy apps, IDs checked at the door

Tickets are sold out!

SPONSORS

Art director’s annual design exhibition brings advertising professionals and students together from across iowa to showcase and award their work, and we couldn’t do it alone! Thank you to our sponsors for helping us recognize and foster creative accomplishments in iowa.

SPONSOR OPPORTUNITIES

Creative Champions

Arts Advocates

Printing Sponsors

PAST WINNERS
66th ADAI Exhibition

2024

WINNERS PHOTOS
65th ADAI Exhibition

2023

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64th ADAI Exhibition

2022

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63rd ADAI Exhibition

2021

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62nd ADAI Exhibition

2020

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61st ADAI Exhibition

2019

WINNERS PHOTOS