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Brian Collins (designer)

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Brian Collins
Alma materMassachusetts College of Art and Design
OccupationDesigner • creative director • educator
Awards
Websitewww.wearecollins.com

Brian Collins (born 1959 or 1960) is an American designer, creative director, and educator. He is the chief creative officer of COLLINS:, an independent strategy and brand experience design company. Previously, he served as chairman and chief creative officer of the brand and innovation division of Ogilvy & Mather for ten years.

Early life and education

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Brian Collins was born in 1959 or 1960)[1] grew up in Lexington, Massachusetts,[2] and graduated with a BFA from the Massachusetts College of Art and Design in 1982.[3] He also studied at Parsons School of Design in New York City.[4]

Career

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Collins is a designer, creative director, and educator.[5]

After graduating college, Collins started his own studio in his parents' garage, working with clients including the Digital Equipment Corporation, John Hancock Financial, and Perkins School for the Blind. The company grew to a team of 20 and relocated to Concord, Massachusetts.[6]

Collins's interest in working on global brands led him to sell the business, and he spent a summer in London before being hired by The Duffy Design Group in Minneapolis,[7] whose clients included Giorgio Armani, Jim Beam Brands, and Porsche.

In 1995, Collins moved to FCB in San Francisco to work on Levi Strauss & Co.,[8][9] Amazon,[10] MTV,[11] and The Walt Disney Company.[11]

Ogilvy & Mather

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In 1998, he became senior partner and chief creative officer for the new design and brand identity division at Ogilvy & Mather in New York.[12] At Ogilvy, he worked for clients including The Hershey Company,[13][14] Kodak,[15] IBM, The Coca-Cola Company,[16] BP,[17] Motorola,[18] Mattel,[19] Vera Wang, American Express, Kraft Foods, Unilever, and New York City's bid for the Olympic Games, NYC2012.[20]

When Hershey's hired Collins and his team, they initially requested a billboard design in Times Square, but Collins expanded the project into a retail store in New York City's Times Square that has remained open for over 15 years.[21]

In 2004, Collins's team launched the Dove Campaign for Real Beauty in North America. The campaign won the Media Image Award from the National Organization for Women.[22]

In 2007, Collins's team collaborated with Office dA in the design of BP's Helios House gas station in Los Angeles.[23] The project is included in Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum.[24] The project also won the I.D Magazine Annual Design Review Award for Environments, Design Distinction; AIA Los Angeles Design Award; and the 2009 Grand Clio Award for Design.[25]

In July 2013, Collins was appointed to the Ogilvy & Mather Worldwide Creative Council,[26] the council that oversees the agency's work globally.

Other projects

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After the September 11 attacks, Collins and his team published the book Brotherhood, which became the basis of an exhibit at the Museum of the City of New York.[27] It was a tribute to New York City's firefighters that reached The New York Times Best Seller list.

Collins also produced The Ecology of Design,[28][29] a handbook on environmental design thinking, published in 1996 by the American Institute of Graphic Arts.

COLLINS

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In 2008, Collins founded COLLINS:, a strategy and brand experience design company.[30][31] The company's first job was working with The Martin Agency to design an ad campaign on global warming[32] for the Alliance for Climate Protection.

The company designed The CNN Grill,[33] and led the brand and design development for the new Microsoft stores in partnership with The Martin Agency and Gensler.[34][35]

The company's 2015 global redesign and identity system for Spotify[36] was cited as one of the year's most notable designs by Fast Company,[37] Wired,[38] and Design Week.[39]

Honors and awards

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Selected works

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References

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  1. ^ Parpis, Eleftheria (August 23, 2010). "Brian Collins: Dream Designer". AdWeek. Retrieved August 23, 2015.
  2. ^ Debbie Millman (September 17, 2018). "Design Matters" (Podcast). Design Observer. Retrieved April 6, 2019.
  3. ^ "Distinguished Alumni Award 2004". Massachusetts College of Art and Design. Summer 2004. Archived from the original on March 12, 2008. Retrieved April 7, 2019.
  4. ^ Rogers, Bruce (March 4, 2019). "Design As Change Agent: Interview With Brian Collins". Forbes. Retrieved April 8, 2019.
  5. ^ "Brian Collins". School of Visual Arts. Retrieved April 7, 2019.
  6. ^ Debbie Millman (September 17, 2018). "Design Matters" (Podcast). Design Observer. Retrieved April 6, 2019.
  7. ^ Tischler, Linda (June 1, 2005). "Blowing Out Advertising's Walls". Fast Company. Retrieved April 8, 2019.
  8. ^ "Levi's Jeans for Women Shop". SEGD. Archived from the original on September 25, 2020. Retrieved April 7, 2019.
  9. ^ Elliott, Stuart (October 8, 1997). "Levi Strauss campaigns become pieces at an exhibition". The New York Times. Retrieved April 7, 2019.
  10. ^ Cuneo, Alice Z. (April 14, 1997). "Cyber Bookseller Amazon.com Taps FCB". AdAge. Retrieved April 7, 2019.
  11. ^ a b Kattleman, Terry (May 1, 2000). "A Huge Connect". AdAge. Retrieved April 7, 2019.
  12. ^ "Brian Collins". ADC. Archived from the original on May 13, 2021. Retrieved April 7, 2019.
  13. ^ Bertrand, Kate (August 1, 2006). "Brian Collins In Conversation: Reinventing Brand Design". BrandPackaging. Retrieved April 7, 2019.[permanent dead link]
  14. ^ Brill, Louis M. "Hershey's How Sweet It Is: The Eye-Candy of Times Square". SignIndustry.com. Retrieved April 7, 2019.
  15. ^ "Kodak logo". Archived from the original on November 20, 2007.
  16. ^ "Sprite posters and Times Square billboard". AIGA. Retrieved April 7, 2019.
  17. ^ "Bp Corporation Of North America Retail Fuels/Energy: Bp Helios House". Adeevee. July 1, 2008. Retrieved April 7, 2019.[permanent dead link]
  18. ^ "Motorola". COLLINS. February 16, 2014. Retrieved April 7, 2019.
  19. ^ "Mattel". COLLINS. February 11, 2015. Retrieved April 7, 2019.
  20. ^ "Design for NYC's Olympic bid: NYC2012". Archived from the original on July 19, 2011.
  21. ^ Tischler, Linda (June 1, 2005). "Blowing Out Advertising's Walls". Fast Company. Retrieved April 7, 2019.
  22. ^ "NOW National Conference: 2006". NOW. Archived from the original on August 7, 2007. Retrieved April 7, 2019.
  23. ^ Carranza, Luis. "Brian Collins, Helio House & Design". Adcentered. Retrieved April 7, 2019.
  24. ^ "Helios House". COLLINS. February 28, 2014. Retrieved April 7, 2019.
  25. ^ "Helios House". MPdL Studio. Retrieved April 7, 2019.
  26. ^ Nasi, Theresa (July 29, 2013). "Ogilvy & Mather adds three inductees to the Worldwide Creative Council" (Press release). New York: Ogilvy & Mather Worldwide Communications. Archived from the original on August 16, 2013. Retrieved April 8, 2019.
  27. ^ ""Brotherhood" exhibition". AIGA. Retrieved April 7, 2019.
  28. ^ "The Ecology of Design: The AIGA Handbook of Environmental". AIGA. Retrieved April 7, 2019.
  29. ^ "The Ecology of Design: The AIGA Handbook on Environmental Responsibility in Graphic Design". AIGA. Retrieved April 7, 2019.
  30. ^ "About". COLLINS. Retrieved April 7, 2019.
  31. ^ Schenker, Jennifer L. (July 16, 2018). "Interview Of The Week: Brian Collins". The Innovator. Retrieved April 7, 2019.[permanent dead link]
  32. ^ "We". AIGA. Retrieved April 8, 2019.
  33. ^ "CNN Grill graphics". Commarts. Archived from the original on May 3, 2015. Retrieved April 23, 2014.
  34. ^ AIGA Design Archives - Microsoft Store Identity
  35. ^ GeekWire: "Admit it, Apple fans: Microsoft's stores are pretty darn fun"
  36. ^ "New Identity for Spotify by Collins". Brand New. March 19, 2015. Retrieved April 8, 2019.
  37. ^ Tischler, Linda (March 12, 2015). "Spotify Unveils A Bold New Brand Identity". Fast Company. Retrieved April 8, 2019.
  38. ^ Rhodes, Margaret (December 28, 2015). "A Look Back at the Year's Freshest Logo Reboots". Wired. Retrieved April 8, 2019.
  39. ^ Dawood, Sarah (March 13, 2015). "Spotify undergoes colourful brand refresh". Design Week. Retrieved April 8, 2019.
  40. ^ a b "Brian Collins". Massachusetts College of Art and Design. September 13, 2018. Retrieved April 8, 2019.
  41. ^ "Distinguished Alumni". MassArt. Archived from the original on March 12, 2008. Retrieved October 23, 2007.
  42. ^ "Blowing Out Advertising's Walls". Fast Company. Retrieved April 7, 2019.
  43. ^ "2006 National Organization for Women, Image Award". Archived from the original on August 7, 2007.
  44. ^ "Art Center College Of Design Summer, Honorary Doctorate 2008". Archived from the original on July 16, 2011. Retrieved April 7, 2009.
  45. ^ "The One Show Gold Pencil winner 2009" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on June 26, 2010.
  46. ^ "Clios". Retrieved April 8, 2009.
  47. ^ AIGA Design Archives
  48. ^ "Graphis Master: Brian Collins is Reshaping Branding in the 21st Century". GraphisBlog. August 27, 2018. Retrieved April 7, 2019.
  49. ^ "Brian Collins, "The future of design: What we desire"". Nokia Bell Labs. Archived from the original on May 26, 2018. Retrieved April 8, 2019.
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