Articles posted by Aaron

Cat Herder. Velvet Sledgehammer. Studio Sensei. Our team has grown! We’re proud to welcome David McIntosh, our new Studio Manager! First, shame on us for not having any news posts all year. It make it seem as though our year has been uneventful, or (gasp) boring. Well, that couldn’t be further from the truth. It’s been a very full year with lots of fun work for great clients. Who knows, one day we may even update our portfolio. No promises. But this isn’t a post about portfolios, or clients or our inability to update the website. No, this is a post celebrating and introducing our new Studio […]

We’ve been talking about some big news for a while now, and today we’re excited to announce that 903 is growing. Meet Jenn Buch, our new designer! Jenn arrived in Richmond last year from Austin, TX where she was a designer for Callaway Golf. I met Jenn while attending AIGA Austin’s Design Ranch and was thrilled when she decided to make the move to RVA. She jumped in to help us tackle a heavy workload in November and December and we soon realized that we had to have her as part of the team full-time. Hopefully, this is just the first of […]

Here at 903, we could not be more excited to usher in 2016. We’ve got some big plans for the New Year, including a special announcement later this week. But first, I wanted to take a quick look back at some highlights from 2015. Better late than never, right?   CommArts & Print January Around the turn of the year, we had our snazzy RVA Holiday Mug design featured in Communication Art’s Typography Annual 5 and Print Magazine’s 2014 Regional Design Annual. We had fun designing this little bugger and it was well-received around town, so it was nice to have a […]

Design Ranch Moto Adventure: Day 9 Headed Home Up & at ‘em. I am anxious to get home to my family, so I waste no time getting packed up and on the road. The motorcycle gods are smiling down on me again and I’m blessed with another day of clear skies and open roads. I even manage to get through Atlanta without any traffic woes or wrong turns. Somewhere along the way in Northern Georgia, the landscape starts to feel familiar and I feel as though I’ve already made it back to Virginia. Even though I’m still a few states away, it’s comforting. […]

Design Ranch Moto Adventure: Day 8 TX » AL I wake up surprised to see that Neal’s house still without power. But, luckily, my now depleted backup charger has my iPhone at 100%, even if I’m not quite at that point myself. I’m still feeling all the late nights on the Ranch. I fear I may be getting old. After cleaning up, packing up and loading up, I part ways with Neal and do my best to adequately express how grateful I am for his hospitality and kindness during my trip. I was on the fence about CouchSurfing, but getting to know Neal […]

Design Ranch Moto Adventure: Day 7 Adios Waldemar Oof. It is not fun waking up today. Not only do I have to pack up, part with all my buds and hit the road, but we made a pretty late night of it again last night. I stumble down to breakfast to stuff my face, grab a few pics with friends and start dealing out goodbyes. Draplin is wheeling and dealing, taking full advantage of any last minute opportunities to move some merch and head home with a lighter load. Last night when I handed my shirt over to have his Texas […]

Design Ranch Moto Adventure: Day 6 Lazy Bones I have another 9:00AM workshop, but I never see it. I sleep in until 11:00AM or so. Breakfast was never much of a consideration either. I’m not the only one in the cabin still sleeping, but others that were up late managed to get up and get to their morning workshops. How, I have no idea. I at least make it to lunch and bounce around until it’s time for my 1:30PM workshop with Judy from O-K Paper. This is my third year in a row taking Judy’s workshop. She is so much […]

Design Ranch Moto Adventure: Day 5 Soggy Day Up in time to shower and grab breakfast by 8:00. We’re supposed to get some gnarly weather today, but so far it’s just a bit cloudy. My 9:00AM – 12:00PM workshop is WOOD + TYPE with Bobby Dixon and Brian Phillips. We’ve got incredible canvases of found wood assembled by Brian and Bobby is giving us some hand lettering tips before cutting us loose to sketch our ideas and begin our final pieces. The hardest part is deciding on what to write and what style to utilize. Once I decide to make something for Lewis, I […]

Design Ranch Moto Adventure: Day 4 The Day Ahead I’m up around 7:00AM. The trip to Camp Waldemar should only take about 3 hours, but I’m planning on it taking 4, since I’ll have fuel and supply stops. Registration/Check-in begins at 11:00 and my first workshop starts at 2:30. In 2013, it took me longer to get to the ranch and I missed the start of my first workshop with Jay B. This year, my first workshop is with Aaron Draplin. I will not be late. I first saw/heard of Aaron Draplin through this video, which made waves a while back. At […]

Design Ranch Moto Adventure: Day 3 Up & At ‘Em I’m up at 7:00AM with Intentions of hitting the road by 8:00AM. I’m loading up the bike when Neal heads out, presumably to whip his fellow Texans into shape. I’m not expecting any rain, but after the past 2 days I’m not taking any chances and I drop my pack into a waterproof bag before strapping it to the sissy bar. I left my helmet and gloves in the garage overnight next to the bike. This turns out to be a mistake. After cranking the bike and putting on my helmet […]