Denver Startup Week

PRESENTATION AND WORKSHOP FOR DSW 2015

I provided a two-part event for Denver Startup Week in 2015 titled “Pencils Before Pixels.” For the first half, I led a presentation and discussion on the importance of sketching in your process. The presentation also covered what sketching is and the tools to consider for creating sketches. Rob Barnes led the second half with a letterpress printing workshop. Participants used Foil + Dies’ extensive collection of wood type to compose a letterpress print. The print was used to create a one-of-a-kind cover for their own iNPEND sketchbook. The event ended up being so popular that I, unfortunately, had to turn people away at the door once we reached capacity. Unbeknownst to me at the time, I also turned away the Design Track Chair for Denver Startup Week as well as several other DSW organizers who had come with her. She did not let me live that down easily.

For the event, I created a signed and numbered, limited edition letterpress print using wood type and hand-cut linoleum blocks. The print was given to workshop participants to serve as a reminder of what they had hopefully taken away from my presentation. I also used the print to make covers for iNPEND sketchbooks. The sketchbooks were given as a gift to my panelists for my other Denver Startup Week event. I led a panel discussion later in the week titled “Design vs. Dev: It doesn’t have to be this way.”