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Firebrick Design 🔥 Pam

@firebrickdesign

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Award-winning branding, strategy, & design consultancy. 🏆 I was told there’d be cake.

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The sky was brilliant blue. It struck me then—and still astounds me—what a beautiful start to a perfect early Fall day in New England it was. #rememberthesky I was spared personally experiencing the collapse and chaos and fear of that day because of my babies; I had recently left my job in the south tower and was a new mom. My heart still breaks for my freshly “ex-”colleagues and friends and all the others heading toward the twin towers that morning. @911memorial by @firebrickdesign

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22 days ago

What’s your circus name? 🎪 Based on a romantic drama set in a traveling circus that was included in @thebushnell ’s Broadway season, the Top Hats & Trapeze event design is placed squarely in the 1930s time frame, lending an air of faded brilliance to all of the circus-themed components. Although skewing more to the glitter than the sawdust, the signs of deterioration are there; the gilding... burnished but hand-worn; the tassels... colorful but frayed; the silk... luxurious but slightly moldy. Conjuring up the spectacle of death-defying daredevils, fearless animal trainers, and a menagerie of creatures from far-flung locales, event attendees were transported to a world of thrill and skill, grit and glamour. The gala identity, applied across a multitude of pieces, was inspired by the exciting, seemingly dangerous, hyperbolic atmosphere of the circus.
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Product photos by Julie *the Death-Defying Human Cannonball* Bidwell @juliebidwellpix
Event photos by Defining Photo
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#eventdesign #paperengineering #invitationdesign #thebushnell #broadwaymusical by @firebrickdesign

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a month ago

The @thecadc threw a great party celebrating their anniversary and showcasing design excellence over the past fifty years. ♣️ To be included in their 50th anniversary show along with my fellow awardees is a singular honor! 🏆 Many thanks to the CADC, the judges, and my clients for the joy of having created work that was subsequently awarded two golds and two silvers at the 2026 show.
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All awards this year were for work created for my friends @thebushnell — endless thanks for the trust you place in me and for being a true collaborator in each and every project!
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🥇: Top Hats & Trapeze Announcements
🥇: Tomorrow Together Campaign Book
🥈: Top Hats & Trapeze event branding
🥈: Annual Message 2024|25
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Product 📸 by @juliebidwellpix
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#eventdesign #paperengineering #invitationdesign #publicationdesign #annualreportdesign by @firebrickdesign

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2 months ago

Thank you to the @worldbranddesignsociety for the recognition and the feature describing this work as “transforming the invitation suite into an immersive 1980s fundraising experience”. Totally rad!!

The Decade Of Decadence visual identity was developed for @thebushnell annual gala and celebrated their 2024|25 Broadway season.

#invitation #eventdesign #1980s #paperengineering by @firebrickdesign

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7 months ago

✨ New office accessories ✨, courtesy of the @adclubct

I’m honored to be included in this years round-up of winners from across Connecticut. Being singled out for the Creative Inspiration Award makes me very proud—and is a distinction I can only aspire to reach. 💛

Bonus fun was had meeting new people and catching up with folks I see a few times a year—Executive Director, @bernadettegreck and team threw a great party! Thank you!

🏆 Special judges recognition with the CREATIVE INSPIRATION AWARD: Decade of Decadence invitation
🥇 GOLD: Decade of Decadence invitation
🥈 SILVER: A House Divided announcement
🥉 BRONZE: Muse magazine Season 2024|25
🥉 BRONZE: Ad Club CT gift

@artmuseum_usj @thebushnell @adclubct #hartfordhasit #connecticutliving

Awards show 📸 by @dariuszterepkaphotography by @firebrickdesign

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a year ago

Inspiration for daaaayyyysss. 💥 At the AIGA Design Conference, I was able to LISTEN to, THINK about, and SEE design and design thinkers from all over the globe.

I’ll be thinking about my visit to the @coritaartcenter for... well, the rest of my life. A social service organization with a world-renown design archive, this is a place where mission, action, commitment, and communication are intrinsically bound together. I urge you to visit their space (and-, if possible, to donate).

@daikokudesign, Art Director @nippondesigncenter.usa is curating an open-source suite of pictograms. Don’t be fooled by simplicity; he’s refined each image down to it’s essence. Look for the traveling exhibition in London, Los Angeles, and São Paulo.

I saw design heroes—leaders in industry, education, and cultural criticism—inducted into the AIGA Hall of Fame. Equally inspiring, I saw inductee @cheryldmillerfineart doing the very same work in the very same seminar that I was taking. She’s not only a luminary in her field...but, also, a life-long student. Now THAT is impressive.

@elizabeth_goodspeed focused her thoughts on disillusionment and coping mechanisms in the design field. @jonathankim.design of @rarevolume dazzled us with the beauty of data. I saw the strategy behind the NASA website overhaul; heard about the power of design in journalism and media; was urged to think of the long-term success of design reframed beyond Western defaults and, instead, shaped by stewardship, adaptation, and legacy.

Heady stuff. Do I understand all that I saw and heard? Nope. But that’s ok; I’m still processing much of it.

@shopatmatter took all my money. (And I’m not mad at that.) (The unsung hero of the conference was the amazingly patient Fed Ex employee at the Bonaventure!)

@AIGAdesign made all of this possible. I’m forever grateful to be a 365 Year in Design Winner. I appreciate the opportunity of this past week.

Individual thanks to @giuliadonatello and @leesean for their and their team’s hard work and to the incredible hosts, @aigalosangeles ! by @firebrickdesign

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a year ago

I’m thrilled to share that one of my projects has been selected for an @aigadesign award. 🏆

🌸 La Vie Bohème invitation was cited for its ability to blend theatricality and historical reference into a memorable design object.

“Through Art Nouveau details, typographic authenticity, and the inventive tunnel book format, it creates an immersive experience that captures the spirit of La Vie Bohème while driving record fundraising success”. — the AIGA jurors.

Many thanks to AIGA and to this year’s jurors for the recognition.

I’m always grateful to work with my long-time collaborators @thebushnell and @cannelliprinting, without whom this unique work wouldn’t exist.

#brandidentity #branding #eventdesign #typography #paperengineering #aigact #aigadesign #AIGA365 by @firebrickdesign

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a year ago

This invitation dropped out of a flying Delorean time machine. 🤖 Taking cues from the season of Broadway shows—The Wiz, MJ the Musical, and Back to the Future—it celebrates all things 1980s. The text on the back of the chrome holder shows how the invitation can be removed and popped up to be used as a paper fortune teller (think 1980s middle school recess). The copy and visuals reflect cultural moments such as Susan Kare’s early interface icons for Apple, the era’s neon colored fashions, and campy popular television shows like Dynasty. The entire piece is intended to be a playful invitation to a fundraising event and a keepsake reminder of a joyful and generous community. @thebushnell
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#paperengineering #thebushnell #invitationdesign #theeighties
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📸 @juliebidwellpix
✉️ @cannelliprinting by @firebrickdesign

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a year ago

Thank you to @thecadc for the work they do to nurture an engaged, inspired, and creative community. ♣️ I’m grateful for an event where I get to catch up with friends and colleagues and see some incredible work. ❤️ And I’m honored to be the recipient of two Gold Awards and a special Judges Award. 🥇🥇♣️ by @firebrickdesign

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a year ago

I’m proud to share that my work has been chosen in the 2025 @print_mag Awards, honoring creativity, intention, and innovation in visual design.

Creativity blooms... as a a happy disorder of joy and vitality. 🌸 La Vie Bohème for @thebushnell won a silver in Invitations.

Many thanks to the Print Awards jury. Endless gratitude to my clients and colleagues who make this unique work possible.

📸 Product glamour shot by “more oyster tacos” @juliebidwellpix
🌸 Curious ostrich motion by the talented @jaikobl
🎨 Expert print by @cannelliprinting

#PRINTAwards #2025PRINTAwards #PRINTmagazine #creativityinbloom #DesignAwards #CreativeCommunity #CelebrateDesign by @firebrickdesign

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a year ago

Here’s a ‘zine—it helps tell the story of the Civil War and photography.

This announcement was designed for an exhibition comprised of over 80 rare original photographic prints and cased images documenting numerous important aspects of the Civil War, seen through the lens of the most gifted artist-photographers of 19th century America. The show was sumptuous and heartbreaking. The die-cut structure of the invitation physically reflects the divisions of the Civil War and the typography and the artwork are authentic to the era.

It was important that one full side of the invitation could be used as a poster—and that the broadside reflected the print aesthetics of the Civil War era. Inspiration was taken from such disparate things as; the theatrical poster for “Our American Cousin” at Ford’s Theatre (best known as the play that U.S. president Abraham Lincoln was attending when he was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth), notices posted for “runaway slaves”, and enrollment posters for both the Union and Confederate armies.

The ’zine format was able to organize a large amount of information and create a booklet keepsake. The split down the center of the format turns from a liability to an asset as it reflects the exhibition name “A House Divided”.

This was a gorgeous and meticulously researched exhibit @artmuseum_usj — the announcement was part of a larger exhibition design project.

All images are from the collection of Michael Mattis and Judith Hochberg (look them up — they solved an art forgery mystery!).

Photos by @juliebidwellpix

#museumexhibition #civilwarhistory #historyofphotography #printdesign #paperengineering by @firebrickdesign

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a year ago

Seize the day. 🫠 While I appreciate all you go-getters go getting (yay! Go, you!), I’m staying here. Not assessing or reassessing. Just Sitting In It. I have lots of plans and new things for 2025. But before I start all that busybusy… I’m taking this moment to just… be. 🆒 All the best in the new year, however you choose to mark it! 🤍
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Nonchaloir by John Singer Sargent @ngadc by @firebrickdesign

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2 years ago