contributions:
Visual Design
Websites
Newsprint
Apps
Books
Online Store
Advertising
Branding
Management
Production
The A.V. Club
Role: Art Director
Dates: April 2005 - August 2012
Location: New York, NY
The A.V. Club is an online newspaper and entertainment website that covers pop culture, including TV, film, music, books and games.
The a.v. club is satire pop culture
Problem to solve: With industry recognition but a lack of branding and identity of its own, readers often mistook A.V. Club content as satirical due to its association with The Onion (at the time, the A.V. Club was owned by Onion, Inc. and made up the second half of its subscription newspaper publication). Helping the A.V. Club become a distinct entity separate from The Onion was one of the earliest projects I worked on.
I led the design and maintenance of The A.V. Club’s print and digital platforms, overseeing visual and editorial design, branding and collaboration with local and national advertising partners.
The a.v club logo
featuring:
Visual Design
Branding
Online
Advertising
What better way to distinguish The A.V. Club than with its very own logo? In an era of flashy, ornate identities, I wanted something simple and fun - something that felt like one of the pin back buttons worn on the jackets of me and my school pals. Through consistent use over the years, it's become one of the most recognized brands on the internet.
as seen on the simpsons
The A.V. Club was featured in an episodes of The Simpsons on December 9, 2012. The logo served as a visual punchline to the fact that Marge had, you guessed it, confused the A.V Club for satire.
"…these fake movie reviews are so mean, it’s hilarious!"
Career
Highlight
as seen on the simpsons
The A.V. Club was featured in an episodes of The Simpsons on December 9, 2012. The logo served as a visual punchline to the fact that Marge had, you guessed it, confused the A.V Club for satire.
"…these fake movie reviews are so mean, it’s hilarious!" - Marge Simpson
Career
Highlight
Newspaper
featuring:
Visual Design
Newsprint
Books
Production
Advertising
When I redesigned the Onion newspaper, I paid special attention to making the A.V. Club a distinct and separate section from the Onion's satire. I gave them their very own logo, chose distinctive typefaces and designed a 'cover' inside the newspaper that served as a visual palate cleanser from the Onion content that preceded it.
website(s)
featuring:
Visual Design
Online
UX
UI
Advertising
The A.V Club website was a great place to experiment with different editorial products while leveraging the addition of audio and video content. My role involved working with both editorial and sales teams; providing design for new editorial features and pairing them with multi-tiered sponsorship options.
iphone app
featuring:
Visual Design
UX
UI
Apps
Production
Nuanced and insightful film reviews are one of the A.V. Club's most popular offerings. The A.V. Club Film app was an easy way to reappropriate that existing content and introduce a new revenue stream via sponsorship opportunities. At the time there was still an actual sense of excitement and novelty to downloading apps.
Wait, There's more!
Just like with the Onion, there was a lot of work to do at The A.V. Club both in print and digital mediums.
ad campaigns
podcast support
illustrations
ED. FEATURE DESIGN
More ED. FEATURE DESIGN
Even More ED. FEATURE DESIGN
the takeaway
In 2024, Paste Media acquired the A.V. Club and still delivers in-depth pop culture analysis, reviews and news.
but Wait, There's more!
Just like with the Onion, there was a lot of work to do at The A.V. Club both in print and digital mediums.
