2008 | BARACK-ON OBAMATHON T-SHIRT | CLIENT: FRESH PRESSED

Emerging Talent No. 6: Max Erdenberger
“I have never been drawn to the type of work that has an identifiable look,” says designer/art director Max Erdenberger. “Oftentimes I see the reference before the remake. Most of my commercial work right now is derived from the constructs of advertising—which on the outside look really glamorous and easy. So there is usually a really well-defined problem to solve with either a funny script or extremely well-crafted piece of print developed.” Erdenberger works with teams comprised of a wide range of creative collaborators to create advertising spots, online presences and print collateral. Currently he is an art director at Wieden + Kennedy (W+K) in Portland.

Erdenberger has been involved in film, design and animation since the tender age of 14, when he started an experimental AV club at his high school, directing, animating and starring in his own productions. Before entering college, he went to work for Nike in its advanced products group, The Innovation Kitchen. As a 19-year-old apprentice to renowned designer Tinker Hatfield, Erdenberger assisted in designing the Air Jordan line and Lance Armstrong’s U.S. Postal team jerseys, and launched Nike’s first skateboard brand. Wanting to do more with visual communication, Erdenberger entered CalArts where he continued to formulate his own process for merging graphics, type, art direction and live action. While in school he worked with the Directing Duo at Logan. Upon graduation, Erdenberger was recruited by Brand New School (BNS) for design and direction of projects for Apple, Nike SB, Sony, EA Sports and Doritos. After leaving BNS, Erdenberger went freelance, art directing a music video for Gnarls Barkley and a short film for Nike Sportswear. He then relocated to Oregon with his talented art-director wife Megan McGinley and their young son.

In addition to his commercial work, Erdenberger is involved in art/activism projects, developing a series of posters promoting environmentalism and contributing to the blog ViewersLikeU, a clearinghouse for visual culture, arts and music with an international group of contributing filmmakers, artists, designers, musicians, typographers and tastemakers.

“I’ve always been impressed with Max and his ability to create simple and distilled imagery that has a complete pop appeal,” says Jonathan Notaro, creative director at Brand New School. “He challenged my thinking and always exposed me/us to ways technology was pushing design. He’s completely interested in that intersection. It’s a lot like watching the next generation—or your kids even—and [observing] how much more intuitive they are with technology. Max represents that in every fashion, with a deep knowledge of the past and, most importantly, an eye for cool. You can’t teach taste.”
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