E BLAKE HICKS WILL MAKE IT FOR YOU PROBABLY

SHOWTIME!

2011 SWAC BBALL TOURNAMENT SITE INTERACTIVE

In order to improve upon the less-than-stellar attendance of the previous year's tournament in Shreveport, LA, the Southwestern Athletic Conference needed to turn the knob to '11 (PUNS!) with this year's tourney materials. Conference leadership turned to yours truly for an informational portal to best prepare motivated alumni to get the word out and get butts in seats in Garland, TX, to see some "electrifying" roundball and some wicked awesome halftime performances.

IT ALREADY HAPPENED, BUT:

»VISIT SITE

VERIZON ROCKSTAR GAMES INTERACTIVE

Verizon holds an annual RockStar contest that rewards its employees for knowing their product forward and backward. Finalists are flown in style to a rock-themed event where they rub shoulders with their peers in posh hotels and at private rock shows. To keep wannabe RockStars in the loop, Verizon tapped me to help develop an intranet site packed with event information. I took point on creating 3 fret-shredding Flash distractions to keep site traffic steady and employee productivity low.

SEE THEM MOVE:

»THE RIFFMASTER »LYRICAL LEGEND »AXE TO GRIND

HBO'S THE WIRE DOODLES ILLUSTRATION

The Wire is the best television program ever. I don't want to hear any of your arguments to the contrary, because they're wrong. I spent a summer professing my love for this series' characters the only way I know how—with my Wacom.

SEE THE WHOLE THING:

»BEHANCE

JEREMY VERSUS THE GERMS ILLUSTRATION

Your hands are covered in germs. Stop picking your nose. NOW!

In my final semester of undergrad, I wrote and illustrated a children's book detailing the exploits of a boy genius germaphobe in his first week of kindergarten. Because of his fear of all that is unsanitary, Jeremy has perfected a health and hygiene regimen so foolproof that in his five short years of life, he has yet to fall ill even once. But his inexperience with his hygienically challenged peers in the outside world may be his downfall - that is, unless he has something to do with it.

WANT TO MAKE THIS A REAL BOOK?:

»YEA »NAY

NFINITY WOMEN'S BBALL SHOES BRANDING/CONCEPT

Nfinity is a shoe company whose products abide by one simple rule - girls are not built like boys. Their products take into account the unique physiology of a woman's lower body and work to maximize the athletic potential of the active female while minimizing the chance of sport-related injury. My job was to try and help them leverage that unparalleled positioning to emerge into a big-name-dominated market with a brand-new basketball shoe.

SEE HOW ENLIGHTENED AND SENSITIVE I AM?:

»THAT TOTALLY MAKES YOU WANT TO PAY ME

FRUIT SHOOT EXPLORERS DOT COM INTERACTIVE/ILLUSTRATION

Fruit Shoot is the No. 1 kid's drink in the UK, but doesn't have a foothold as of yet in the US market. To attempt to extol its virtues to the Good American People, the interactive team at o2ideas was asked to develop a Web strategy to market the drink to both children and their money-laden guardians, and on a superquick deadline, no less. One of the resultant products was this educational minisite, rife with both knowledgy bits of goodness and panda bear noises.

SEE IT MOVE:

»GO EXPLORE!

2010 SWAC BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT BRANDING/CONCEPT

The Southwestern Athletic Conference is the second oldest conference in the United States, younger than only the Ivy League. Its relatively unknown member schools have produced superstars like Willis Reed, Jerry Rice, Walter Payton, Michael Strahan and Steve McNair. This is a conference that has always known how to ball, regardless of the sport. When the SWAC asked for a refresh of its brand just in time for its 2010 bball tourney, the answer was a no-brainer. To really understand what makes this conference great, you have to respect those that came before - honor the heritage.

I AM TOTALLY INTO SPORTS:

»THAT'S A QUALITY YOU'RE LOOKING FOR

WAVEFORM MAGAZINE PUBLICATION/ILLUSTRATION

Combining my love of electronic music, illustration, and design into one big, geeky publication, Waveform magazine is 40+ pages of sheer fanboyism. Working through the entire system for the pub's (that's what we call 'em in the biz) identity and handling massive amounts of text was at once cathartic and mind-numbing. Which is sort of the definition of graphic design, right? Anyhow, I have a truckload of respect for real magazine designers after this.

I AM NOT A PUBLICATION DESIGNER:

»YOU'RE FEELING IT ANYWAY

FOLLICORP™ BEARD IN A BOX PACKAGING/ILLUSTRATION

Face it, some dudes just can't grow a beard. No matter how mightily they try, some guys are just plagued by peach fuzz, stricken with spotty growth, or doomed to be totally devoid. To surmount these natural shortcomings, men take such shameful routes as improper use of hair growth products, costly surgery, and even shaving! Now, thanks to Follicorp's Beard in a Box, there's an affordable kit of scientifically engineered hormonal supplements with the power to put a majestic mane on any man!

ASHAMED TO BE BARE-FACED?:

»PLACE AN ORDER »I'LL TAKE YOUR MONEY BUT THIS ISN'T REAL

VEER, INC. TYPECON PROGRAM AD INTERN BUMBLING/TYPOGRAPHY

So, somehow I won a competition to be Veer's Summer Design Intern in Calgary, Alberta, Canada for 2007. I know, right? One of the first things they entrusted me with was the design of their '07 TypeCon program ad. Left to my own devices, I turned a somewhat simple request into a series of all-nighters by attempting to showcase every single capital I could fit from Veer's Jukebox and Umbrella type collections. They liked it so much they turned it into a life-size vinyl banner to stand next to their booth at the show in Seattle.

SIDE NOTE: You can get a freaking lobster sub at Subway in Canada, but they've never heard of spicy mustard.

SOME EXTRA FUN FROM MY TIME IN AMERICA'S HAT:

»THIS FIGHT WAS WAY FIXED

HEY, LADIES AND DUDES!

MY NAME IS E. BLAKE HICKS.

I am an illustrator and designer who resides (currently) in Birmingham, Alabama. I am twenty-six years old. I graduated from Auburn University in May of 2008 with a BFA in Graphic Design and a burning hole in my soul which can only be filled by constantly making things I can be proud of. I enjoy the wearing of many figurative hats in my work, and relish the chance to look a good visual challenge square in its dead eyes and punch it in the face. I am absolutely always looking for new projects and opportunities, so if you've got something what needs creating, drop me a line.

I HAVE UPLOADED MY EVERLASTING ESSENCE TO THESE SOCIAL NETWORKS:

»BEHANCE »BLIP.FM »FACEBOOK »GOOGLE+ »LINKEDIN »TWITTER

END INFO SECTION

AHEM, LET'S START:

EDUCATION //

Auburn University (2003 — 2008)
BFA in Graphic Design
Graduated Cum Laude in May 2008
Cumulative GPA: 3.51
Active Member, AIGA, Auburn University Student Chapter

ED. HONORS & AWARDS //

2008 Birmingham Addy Awards
Silver Award for Interactive

2008 Auburn University Senior Project Show
"A-Commended" Award given for work above the level expected of an undergraduate

2007 — 2008 Student Advisory Council
Represented my peers and voiced their concerns to the administration of the College of Architecture, Design and Construction at Auburn University

2007 — 2008 Auburn University College of Architecture, Design, and Construction
Outstanding Undergraduate Student in Graphic Design Award

2008 Mississippi State University AIGA "File…Save As Soiree" National Competition
Juror's Award in Illustration

2007 Mississippi State University AIGA "We ♥ Graphix" Regional Competition
Best in Show - Painted Plate and Atlas of Pens Recipient

2007 Raeford B. Liles Annual Award Recipient
Awarded by Auburn Art Department to one male and one female student each year to recognize high achievement in the arts

PROFESSION //

Intermark Interactive — UI Designer 2011 — present era / Birmingham, AL
Setting adrift on the sea of serious interactive design / front-end development with a hardy band of swashbuckling adventurers with talentblades and smartsdaggers sharper than my own. Working in tandem with a team of 5 other hybrid-style designervelopers and allowing their brand of doing things to mingle in a stew with mine. Seasoned to taste.

o2ideas, Inc. — Art Director/Interactive 2008 — 2011 / Birmingham, AL
Supplying and applying my love of illustration, design, typography, and humor in projects both on and off the Web, regional and international, in a middling sized agency in Birmingham, Alabama. Opining and doting on the work of others, aiding in the uplifting of the Greater Good™. Rubbing shoulders with some real-live creative monsters and hoping to leech some of their talent to entwine with my own. Learning how much there will always be to learn, and staying hungry.

Veer, Inc. — Design Intern Summer Months, 2007 / Calgary, AB, Canada
8 weeks of intensive work on Veer's award-winning print design team in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Only the second U.S. citizen ever to be invited. Challenging hands-on experience and very real responsibility in a busy work environment with guidance from some of the very best minds in the Frozen Wastes. A broadening experience both professionally and culturally.

Mammoth Printshop - Designer Summer 2007 — Spring 2008 / Auburn, AL
Sole in-house designer and illustrator for a nationally renowned independent screen printer. Learned the ins and outs of the screening business, and got to work on designs for some exciting names in both art and music. Also made more teenage garage band shirts than I care to count.

FOCUSES (THINGS I LOVE TO DO) //

Designing & Developing Front-End Hotness
HTML5/CSS3/jQuery Noodling
Flash & Actionscript 3.0
Illustration
Hand-Drawn Typography
Intellectual Osmosis
Being Funny
Branding & Identity
Ping Pong
Playing an Admittedly Ridiculous Number of Video Games

PERSONAL & PROFESSIONAL OBJECTIVE //

To continually explore and experiment in new and exciting methods of design and communication, to stay fluid and open-minded in my approach to my craft and the assimilation of influences, and to remember my role as a public servant in society.

IF YOU MADE IT THIS FAR:

»KEEP GOING »SAY HELLO »LET'S MAKE THIS THING WORK TOGETHER

END CREDENTIALS SECTION

SO, YOU FINALLY WANT
TO TALK TO ME, EH?

Hello, Blake.

My name is , and my email address is AND

I have a great opportunity here that you cannot pass up.
I think you're especially neat.
I'm selling these fine leather jackets.

So while I was perusing your Web presence here, I thought I might drop you a line to:

inquire as to your desire to work with or for me in some capacity.
opine on your work in a positive/negative fashion.
make a connection with you for any number of reasons.

I will further expound upon my reasons for making this contact in the following box.

With that completed, I understand that you also have to ask me to perform a simple calculation to prove that I am a human being, and not some pencil-necked geek's ineffectual spam robot, so I'll definitely prove it next.

The sum of 4 and 4 is the number .

THANKS, YO!

I'll get back at you ASAP. Try and contain yourself until then.

YOU HAVE REACHED THE END