Board members

Sean Wilkinson is a Maine native and a graduate of the Maine College of Art. His education at MECA kickstarted an obsession with design and typography that has been bolstered through the years by working alongside some of the nation’s most inspiring and influential design thinkers. In 2010, Sean founded Might & Main with two long-time collaborators, and the agency has shown great growth and potential in just over a year, serving local and national clients from an office in downtown Portland.
Sean stays connected to the Portland arts and music community, often trading work with great local organizations like SPACE Gallery in exchange for admission or karma (or both), and enjoys getting his hands dirty screening his own posters whenever he can.
Sean is occasionally an adjunct professor in the design program at Maine College of Art, worked for years as the Assistant for DesignInquiry (formerly Maine Summer Institute in Graphic Design), and is the co-founder of Picnic Music & Arts Festival. Somehow, he still finds time to get to the ocean on a regular basis, because that’s part of what living in Portland is all about.
 

Mira Alden, founding President of AIGA Maine, has over 15 years of experience in the field of design and visual communications. Currently, she is Design Director at Maine College of Art and Principal and Creative Director of her own practice, Alden Design Studio, located in Falmouth, Maine. Mira holds a BFA in Studio Art from the University of Hawaii and an MFA in Graphic Design from Rhode Island School of Design. After moving to New York City, she worked for five years producing original design solutions at MJM Creative Services (WPP Group). Mira is dedicated to the belief that a collaborative, process-based approach yields both innovative design and successful business solutions. Her favorite Pantone color depends on her mood.

Rand Ardell is the managing partner at Simmons Ardell, a South Portland-based communication design firm. Rand works with clients on marketing strategy and manages the firm’s client relationships. He is also responsible for business development and the firm’s operations. Rand was most recently the director of marketing for Bernstein Shur, one of northern New England's largest law firms. Earlier, he was the director of client services at McCabe, Duval + Associates of Portland, Maine, and a vice president and director of operations at MacLaren McCann, a Canadian advertising agency.

Kevin BrooksKevin Brooks is a principal at Might & Main, a small branding and design agency in Portland, where he heads interactive development and internet marketing strategy. Kevin carries with him a deep commitment to creating rich brand experiences that take advantage of each medium’s unique interface requirements.
As programs director for AIGA Maine, he works to elevate the exposure of Maine’s design community while continuing to fuel the conversations among designers that keep new ideas flowing.
Kevin lives in Portland where he enjoys taking photos, making short films and creating scenes on the fly as an actor with Portland Improv Experience.

Karan Cushman believes strongly in the power of giving back and has served on the AIGA Maine board since its inception in 2005. She is founder of Cushman Creative, a branding firm dedicated to working with organizations that are enriching our lives. Her desire to raise awareness has made a difference for international biotech corporations such as Genzyme and local non-profit organizations like Make-A-Wish of Maine. Karan has spent 18 years in the business and has degrees from RIT in Design and Photography. A Floridian, Karan also lived in Atlanta, Birmingham and New York where AIGA communities thrived. As Special Events Director, for 2012 she's focused on bringing engaging events to Maine that not only further our careers as creatives but also help educate our community about the power of design!

Gary LeBrun is the principle of glb Creative — a Portland-based graphic design firm that focuses on creating strategic, thought-provoking communications for collateral, Web, multimedia, identity and branding. He received his BFA in Graphic Design from the Academy of Art College in San Francisco, and began his award-winning career in 1993. While in the Bay Area, Gary worked with some of the hottest designers and agencies in the industry, most notably Frog, Via and 1185 Design. His client list features some of the world’s most respected brands including Adobe, Apple, Intel and Cisco Systems. Gary returned to his home state of Maine in 2000 to open and manage the East Coast office of 1185 Design, one of Silicon Valley’s premiere graphic design firms. In 2003, Gary launched glb Creative, a graphic design firm uniquely committed to client success. In addition to running glb, Gary has also been an instructor at the Maine College of Art, where he developed “Tools of the Trade,” a course that introduces students to the potential of modern industry software.

Jennifer Muller began her own design company ten years ago as Lucky Tangerine, at a time when life at home in Brooklyn with her son Finn seemed way more appealing than going back to the 45th floor of a corporate office in mid-town Manhattan. So Jennifer designed a pretty postcard and left them at her favorite boutiques. Soon, she was creating logos and designs for the kinds of clients she dreamed of having: a spectacular clothing store, three photographers, two writers, one fashion designer, two performing arts studios, and a restaurant. After three years in Brooklyn, one amazing assistant and two studio moves later, Jennifer packed it all up and moved to Portland, Maine, where she was the solo designer for Maine magazine. She created their logo, art directed, and designed the first nine issues. Jennifer is a former faculty member at Maine College of Art and is currently the college’s graphic designer. One of the largest challenges over the next year will be implementing a complete rebranding initiative. Specializing in identity, editorial and book design, Jennifer’s work has been recognized by The Type Directors Club, The Society of Publication Designers, Print magazine, Graphis New Talent and Communication Arts. Her clients have included Rizzoli Books, Chronicle Books, Blue Q, Artisan Books, Maine College of Art, PopTech 2010, Beauty Mark Spa, Acorn Products, Rosemont Markets, Meredith Publishing, Jan Krukowski + Co., Diana Kane, Bliss Boutiques, Blanche + Mimi and SPACE Gallery, and PACA (Portland Arts and Cultural Alliance). Jennifer loves to sew her own dresses, scour flea markets for old fabric, buttons and paper, teach and enjoy picnics at the beach with Finn. And, of course, she loves what she does best: making striking, creative designs for striking, creative people.

Jessica Simmons is the creative director at Simmons Ardell, a South Portland-based communication design firm. Jessica leads the creative process on all client projects and directs the work of the firm’s creative staff and partners. Earlier, she served as the design director at McCabe, Duval + Associates of Portland and held positions with design firms Milton Glaser Inc. and WBMG Inc. of New York City, as well as Alexander Isley Inc. of Redding, Connecticut. A Maine native, Jessica studied graphic design at MeCA and has over 15 years of front-line experience across a range of media and industries.

Mark Smith received a BFA in Communications Design from Pratt Institute and worked as a graphic designer in New York City for 8 years before moving to Maine in 1988. He studied with Milton Glaser at the School of Visual Arts and has instructed graphic design courses at the Maine College of Art. Mark is a principal of Curvwork, a professional graphic design practice in Portland. He enjoys being at home with his family in Falmouth, being on the water in the Gulf of Maine, photography, and cooking.

Travis Soule is the one-man-show Graphic & Web designer for Saint Joseph’s College of Maine. In addition to daily duties in the marketing department, he also teaches Advanced Web Design for St. Joe’s. Travis received his BFA in Graphic Design from Colby-Sawyer College in 2006 and soon after left his home state of New Hampshire for the coasts of Maine. His expertiese covers many areas, including but not limited too: HTML, CSS, mobile web design, print design, photography, asking questions, cars and sticky pecan rolls.

Sarah Speare is the executive director of the Institute for Humane Education, a non-profit educational organization that offers online graduate degrees and educational programs and resources that empower people to use creativity, knowledge and critical thinking to help create a more just, sustainable and humane world. Sarah has leadership experience as a non-profit executive, entrepreneur and designer for social change. Most recently, she was a consultant to the non-profit Art At Work/Terra Moto in Portland, ME, that uses strategic arts projects for social justice in municipal governments, and was an advisor to Project M in Belfast, ME, that engages designers and creative thinkers to address global issues at the local level. From 1999 to 2009 she was the co-founder and president of Chomp Inc., a consumer foods company that was sold in 2009. Previous to that, she served as the first director of the Portland Arts and Cultural Alliance (PACA), and from 1985 to 1995 was the executive director of the Society for Environmental Graphic Design (SEGD). Sarah has also been a community design consultant to non-profits throughout New England and has served on the boards of Spiral Arts, Maine Arts, Architalx and currently serves on the board of AIGA/Maine. A graduate of Tufts University and the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, with a certificate in Arts Management from Radcliffe College, she has been honored with a Fellow Award from the SEGD and won an Innovation Award from the Center for Design and Business in Rhode Island.

Arielle Walrath is a web and print designer and illustrator with 15 years' experience. Arielle has lived in Portland for over a decade and in that time has crafted communications for a plethora of well-known local businesses as a freelance designer, co-owner of an award-winning animation studio and, like many Maine designers, a member of LL Bean's Creative Department.
Arielle is now one of three principals at Might & Main, an agile and energetic agency in downtown Portland, where her passion for excellent design finds an outlet in branding and strategy for a variety of local and national clients. She brings her business experience and a compulsive attention to detail to her role as Director of Operations, and hopes to help expand conversations around the reach and importance of design.