Sweet stickers Hank! photo by Roger Wong

Congrats to Portfolio Center‘s, Hank Richardson, for being the recipient of The Art Director’s Club‘s Grandmaster Award. Hank is an amazing teacher and mentor to anyone looking to have a career in design. However, I’m not really grasping what the term “grandmaster” really means here. Maybe it means Hank gets black tees and John Lennon spectacles for life?

Seriously though, (I think I can speak for most people who have gone through the Portfolio Center curriculum), Hank has been one of the most influential figures in my life. I didn’t know what I wanted to do with my life until I randomly met Hank one day. After talking with him for several hours, I decided to take a risk, leave my job, and go to school at Portfolio Center.

Over the next few years, I was frequently subjected to his unorthodox teaching style which included 6am classes, weekend classes, marathon 12 hour classes, and the destruction of countless sketchbooks. I learned a tremendous amount from him on how to work hard, work smart, develop concepts, talk to clients, draft logos, work with type, and most importantly, believe in my abilities. He even invited me to return to Portfolio Center to teach a class of my own. I’m now teaching the class that I always wanted to take while I was at PC, Music Industry/Album Cover Design, and I’m having a blast doing so.

The above photo of Hank and I was taken by a classmate, Roger Wong, a few years ago when I was working with a live client on wine bottle designs while I was still a student. I have Hank to thank for setting up that experience, guiding me through the initial stages of the project, and letting me fly on my own. That bro totally changed my life!