If you think you have to work fulltime in a creative field, or have a desk job, Chad Kouri is here to tell you otherwise. As an artist in residence—even the title is pretty enviable—he manages to straddle both worlds in a job that was created just for him. Read on to learn how you can do the same thing in your own working world.

Occupation: Artist in Residence at public relations firm Edelman
Location: Chicago, IL
Age: 25
First Job: Christmas Tree Farm (if you don't count the 3 days I was a caddy...2 of which were training)
Best Job: Freelance Artist, Curator and Stuff Maker
Greatest Professional Challenge: Saying no
Salary During Your 20s: between $18 to 45k a year. Yes, you can actually live on $18k a year in Chicago. It's not fun but it's possible.
 
Chad Kouri, How did you get that f*&%ing awesome job?
I had been working independently on freelance illustration, art direction, and design gigs, and was also doing quite a bit of curation, event planning, panel discussions, and such for art happenings around the city (what I call "passion projects" since there isn't really any financial gain to them). A few folks over at Edelman had been following my work for some time, and when the higher-ups came to them about a special new position they were developing they thought I would be a really good fit. The conversation in the first interview went something like this: "So we need a creative on staff in our consumer marketing team and we really like what you are up to. We want you to work for us but we don't really know to what extent or even really what your day to day will be. We don't want you to stop what you are doing in the art community so what works best for you in terms of workload and scheduling?" Amazing, right? So after a couple weeks which turned into a month or two—of chatting, we came to this 30-hours-a-week, mostly-off-site position as Artist in Residence. I now help with everything from redesigning and rethinking new business pitches to curating art around the office, all while keeping up with and participating in the flourishing in the art and design scene here in Chicago.

How do you think using creative presentations help with business presentations? Which types of creative elements have you found work best?
Nowadays clients are so used to walking into a room and seeing a powerpoint presentation projected on a wall. I really want to shake up that expectation as much as possible. I'm a huge believer in the power of print material so I always push for some kind of print element as a leave-behind for presentations. Whether it is a fairly conservative brochure or a very personal handmade book, actually holding something in our hands and engaging with the content one-on-one is so much more of an intimate interaction with the information. When print materials are done correctly they speak so much louder than projections.  

What's your favorite project that you've done since you've been there?
My favorite has been developing problem solving strategies and exercises for the company. Not only did I have to come up with the exercises, but I also had to figure out a way to illustrate them so people could understand the concept easily. It really made me analyze my own process and how I problem solve on a day-to-day basis. The best thing about this job is the variation of projects. One day I can be helping curate the space with art from local public school students and artists, the next I can be designing and art directing a white paper for some very in-depth research on a specific target audience. Also, the companies understanding that I need time for my own projects in order for my work to stay progressive and top tear is truly amazing, so most of my work is done from my home studio or at The Post Family studio (a collaborative art and design venue/ studio I co-founded here in Chicago with some buddies). Believe it or not, this streamlines a lot of my process and makes for quicker turn around. Triple whammy!

5 Comments

• 
  08/02/2011
  laurel
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  Loved the article - so inspirational - but even more touched by the supportive comments. So nice to see such a public show of support - especially for someone taking the road less traveled.
• 
  04/22/2011
  Paula Kouri
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  Just keep reading the article over and over- so very proud and happy for you at all that you are accomplishing!!
• 
  04/20/2011
  swestley
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  couldnt be prouder.....
• 
  04/19/2011
  Shane Kouri
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  He's humble as #####, never know anyone who works as hard as him, be jealous but know it wasn't easy. Took him a lot of hard work and of course a TON of talent.
• 
  04/18/2011
  steve
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  Just. Jealous.