2022 American Advertising Award Winners

Best Of Show

GrahamSpencer

Prairie Stories: Marcus Smith

2022 Meet the Judges

Laura is an Associate Art Director for Allrecipes magazine, at Dotdash Meredith, with over 9 years of professional experience. She always had a love for editorial design and how every piece of the visual and editorial puzzle leads to a unique design. Outside of work, she is a freelance designer with a passion for identity and brand design for one-of-a-kind, small business brands that appreciate the power of beautiful design.

Emily is a partner and Executive Creative Director at S/B Strategic Marketing where she leads a group of writers and designers toward effective solutions for clients. Focused primarily on the food and agriculture sectors, she has a passion for discovering the stories that make brands unique, and forming them into something that’s engaging, informative and creates meaningful connections with customers.

Andrea Quam is an associate professor of graphic design at Iowa State University’s College of Design. She received her BFA in Graphic Design from Iowa State. After her BFA, she practiced as a multimedia and print designer. She’s worked with a range of clients including: McGraw Hill, Ford, General Electric, Elsevier Science and Meredith Corporation. After a decade of dedicated practice, she returned to graduate school to receive her MFA in Visual Communication from Virginia Commonwealth University.

Andrea teaches at all levels of Iowa State’s graphic design program. Her work has been published and exhibited regionally, nationally and internationally. She has presented papers and published journal articles with organizations such as: American Institute of Graphic Artists (AIGA), the Design Research Society (DRS), International Digital Media and Arts Association (iDMAa), International Visual Literacy Association (IVLA), International Design Principles and Practice, and the University and College Designers Association (UCDA).

Her latest research endeavors find her exploring ‘graphic design ecologies’: the connections between the traditional and expanding graphic design field, and relationships between people, their environment and experiences. This perspective has cultured research in the areas of design pedagogy, sustainable ideals, digital publishing, identity and system design, experiential and interdisciplinary design. Students participating in her most recent interdisciplinary experiential design endeavors have received national (SEGD) and international (IDA) design awards.

Judge’s Choice

GrahamSpencer

Prairie Stories: Marcus Smith

“The videography was gorgeous and was a clever way to advertise their new virtual reality golf as well. The storytelling and editing was creative and I wanted there to be more episodes!”

-Laura Engel

GrahamSpencer

Prairie Stories: Marcus Smith

“This series did an incredible job of using beautifully shot footage and artfully captured interviews to create a compelling human interest stories while subtly conveying unique brand benefits and services offered by the golf course. It’s an excellent example of how art and commerce can combine to effectively achieve business objectives. Well done!”

-Emily Shea

GrahamSpencer

OnLume Surgical Website

check out the site:  onlume.com

“The OnLume Surgical website is visually appealing and beautifully executed. This website makes a potentially complex topic approachable and understandable with engaging imagery, beautiful video, humanistic type — all brought together in an engaging narrative approach. The medical field and its products are an important area for designers to help bring about clarity of communication and the human connection—the OnLume Surgical website does so with grace and elegance.”

-Andrea Quam

Professional Winners

Gold Winners

ColinKurtis
-CK Home Sweet Home Holiday Mailer

Digital Hive Mind
-Digital Hive Mind 10 Year

Graham Spencer
-Helm Truck & Equipment
-MPEC | NAPA – Better Together
-OnLumeSurgical
-Prairie Stories: Marcus Smith
-Railveyor
-RFD: Studying Success
-Rosecrance: Champions of Hope

PCI Pharma Services
-SMART Videos

Silver Winners

Chartwell Agency
-AR Ready to Learn Campaign
-Edgebrook Everyday/Unexpected
-Northern Illinois ReACH Logo Design
-Northern Illinois ReACH Website
-Warriner School Logo Redesign
-WCAS Website

Ginestra Watson
-Beefaroo Website Redesign
-Prairie State Legal Brand Standards

GrahamSpencer
-Four Rivers Sanitation Authority
-Helm Truck and Equipment
-RMTD Annual Report
-RMTD: We’ve Saved Your Seat
-The Helm Difference

Meridian Direct
-815 Day: Belvidere Chamber Shirt

PCI Pharma Services
-Holiday Card

Bronze Winners

Ad Vice Marketing
-Iverson Painting Brand Awareness
-Purple Bandana Resale Logo Design
-Winnebago County Fair Campaign

Chartwell Agency
-KANDU Yearbook
-WCAS Logo Redesign

Digital Hive Mind
-FCG Capabilities Brochure
-Team SMT: HR Recruiting

Meridian Direct
-ABC Supply Stadium VIP Kit
-ABC Supply Stadium VIP Kit
-ABC Supply Stadium VIP Kit
-Beloit Sky Carp Identity Products
-Holy Carp Greeting Card

PCI Pharma Services
-Canada LinkedIn Campaign
-Let’s Learn Logo

Student Winners

Gold Winner

Anne Longman
-Our Sweet Road

Silver Winners

Zachary Cook
-Noir
-Reflections

Ryan Judd
-Companions of Midnight: Photography

Nico Mho
-Loss of Self Trailer

Bronze Winners

Claire Eppley
-Burst Magazine Spring 2021
-Pipe Dreams Studio Logo Bump

Anne Longman
-Milikin Cross Country

Ryan Judd
-Companions of Midnight:Logo Design

Nico Mho
-Dissociate Trailer