Rick Markum - Professional Biography
As an environmental graphic and signage designer for Design Farm Studio, Rick works on a wide range of project types. From logo and marketing collateral design to interior and exterior comprehensive signage packages for large-scale mixed-use, office, retail and residential projects, Rick is able to draw on his variety of experience and over 30 years in the design industry to find creative and effective solutions for all types of signage and design projects.
Rick began his design career in 1990 as an automotive illustrator at Multi-Ad Services, Inc. in Peoria, Illinois. He relocated to Phoenix in 1993 to join U-Haul International (Amerco), eventually becoming the Corporate Imaging Program Manager, managing the signage and re-imaging of all U-Haul facilities throughout the United States and Canada.
In 2000 Rick joined Cornoyer Hedrick (which later became DAVIS after a merger with DFD). In his time with DAVIS, Rick managed the Environmental Graphics & Reform departments (Reform being the branded design service sector of DAVIS focused on renovation and rehabilitation of existing real estate assets).
Rick left DAVIS in 2010 to start his own firm, Design Farm Studio, where he continues to focus on large scale signage design projects as well as renovation projects in conjunction with DAVIS and other Architectural firms throughout the western United States. Rick's extensive signage background and knowledge of materials allow him to consider the fabrication process in the early design phases of a project, resulting in a more direct translation from the initial design to the final, built product.
Firm History
Design Farm Studio is a signage and environmental graphic design firm established in 2010. As the commercial real estate industry and the architectural and engineering fields were suffering through the "Great Recession". Rick Markum determined the timing might be ideal to create a design firm that had the capability to leverage his diverse signage design and graphics experience.
Having worked in a wide variety of graphic related roles including illustration, design, advertising, marketing, photography, web development, facility renovation and signage & environmental graphic design, Rick Markum's past experience meant that the new firm could provide a full menu of services to clients, and could also provide service to other markets which were not as negatively impacted by the down economy.
Design Process
Every project is different, so it is important to remain flexible and adaptable, however it is also important to have a design framework to build on.
In a nutshell, the design farm studio process focuses on some basic core principles.
1. Listen - Listen carefully to the client and fellow collaborators.
2. Collaborate - Work with everyone involved in the design process to establish the best solutions.
3. Plan - Plan your work, applying past knowledge and experience with information learned in the discovery process to create a roadmap for the project.
4. Execute - Work your plan, and follow through with the plan to take the design from concept to reality.
5. Adapt - Constantly take note of what is working and areas that may need tweaking, and always be open to making adjustments along the way.
