John Aardema Email & Phone Number

Greater Chicago Area

Greater Chicago Area

Designed and directed over 10 New York Times bestselling picture books, including the "How to Catch" series by Adam Wallace and Andy Elkerton, Little Red Sleigh by Erin Guendelsberger and Elizaveta Tretyakova, and Moon's First Friends Susanna Leonard Hill and Lisa Paganelli.

Illustrated three picturebooks, "The Blizzard Wizard" by Lynn Plourde, "There Was an Old Auntie" and "Emma's Rainy Day" by Jane Gillespie.Storyboarded many campaigns for clients such as AT&T, State Farm, Nabisco, JCPenney, Lowe's, Domino's Pizza, and more.Created illustrations for McGraw Hill, LeapFrog, DreamWorks, Barney & Friends, Evan-Moor Publishers, and more.

Redesigned CPT and MP magazines to to give each its own unique look and personality.Maintain design of magazine through font choices and title treatments, color palettes, illustration and photography selectionsInstructed a redesign seminar at the EPA 2005 Conference.Worked closely with illustrators and photographers to cultivate a stable of excellent go-to talent. Mentored an employee who was later offered an Art Director position.

Redesigned the decade-old Guideposts for Kids magazine to make it cleaner and easier to read, while keeping it kid-friendly and fun.Designed the premiere issue of the award winning Guideposts for Teens. Hired better illustrators while keeping within budget.Directed photoshoots for both cover and editorial.