“Hannah is by far the most thorough designer I’ve worked with in 20+ years in marketing.”
— Theresa Sarna, Senior Marketing Manager, Bubbies Homemade Ice Cream & Desserts, Inc.
Hello - welcome to my portfolio website. I’m Hannah Kirsch, a senior graphic designer and graduate of the University of California, Davis. I’m currently based in Prescott Valley, AZ.
And, yes, in my excitement at seeing something I designed out in the wild, I did indeed ask a stranger to take a picture of me in the freezer aisle at Costco.
“[Hannah’s] positive attitude, timely and efficient communications and willingness to work with all departments and our vendors has been amazing and has allowed those other departments to work more efficiently.”
— Chad McClintock, Chief Operating Officer, Sunfood Superfoods, Inc.
My approach to design:
Design is art — with rules.
Design and art naturally share many similarities, including a core emphasis on creativity and visual balance. Unlike art, however, design operates within the framework of rules, guided by specific parameters and constraints. I’m truly happiest in the world of creative work that comes with parameters, constraints, and rules. What can I say? I like to follow rules. After all, I was a Girl Scout for over a decade.
Graphic design is a branch of customer service.
I treat everyone as a client. Of course, in my role I apply my expertise in design to various projects. To me, often under-emphasized qualities found in stellar designers are: effective communication, honesty when mistakes are made, and patience. A restaurant [designer] can serve the best food [design work], but diners [clients] will walk away unhappy if they are served up this food by a sneering, apathetic waiter [bad communication].
Feedback is invaluable.
Feedback serves as a cornerstone for growth. In college, we trained to gather and provide feedback after every single project. Receiving feedback facilitates a deeper understanding of perspectives outside of my own, and leads straight to better, more effective designs. Even “bad” feedback holds value, as it often reveals something that needs fixing, albeit in a bit of a round-about way.
The key is flexibility.
Flexibility is crucial in design. Flexibility in accepting feedback means not taking critique personally. This allows for a greater acceptance of feedback and ability to improve designs rapidly and frequently. Flexibility in keeping up with trends keeps a brand fresh, evolved, and current. Design with rigid attachment to a certain style, in its own bubble outside of the rest of the world, seldom succeeds. Flexibility in moving work forward is an essential duty of graphic designers. The phrase “that’s not my job” is not an option, especially when working across different departments on complex projects. A flexible designer, like myself, is ready to get any task completed, from beginning to end.
“Hannah approaches every project with professionalism, fresh and creative ideas, and hard work. She clearly delivers the product, and asks questions along the way if needed. Anyone who works with her will be lucky to have the opportunity and connection to work with this talented designer.”
— Susan Abplanalp, Founder and President, Emery Street, Inc.