At its annual conference, which took place June 1-4 in Montreal, the Society for Environmental Graphic Design (SEGD) named Clifford Selbert and Robin Perkins, founding partners of Selbert Perkins Design, 2011 SEGD Fellows — the EGD field’s highest professional honor. They opened their Playa del Rey, CA-based EGD firm, which also has offices in Boston, Chicago and Dubai, in 1986.
As Fellows, they join the ranks of such luminaries as David Gibson, principal of Two Twelve Assoc. (NYC) and Deborah Sussman, co-principal of Sussman/Prejza (LA). Selbert’s expertise includes landscape architecture and graphic design, and Perkins’ background includes graphic design and sculpting.
Virginia Gehshan, co-principal of Cloud Gehshan Assoc., a Philadelphia-based EGD firm, said, “Original. Bold. Joyful. The depth and breadth of Selbert Perkins’ work is remarkable. They have entertained us with cows in the air at Seven Hills Park and giant chairs at the Pacific Design Center. Their accomplishments have greatly stretched the field of environmental graphic design.”
At the conference, SEGD also bestowed its Arrow Award to vinyl producer Arlon Graphics LLC (Santa Ana, CA) “for advancing technologies and manufacturing in the field, and for its long-term support of SEGD chapters, events, and educational programs.”
SEGD also honored Tom Esch with its Distinguished Member Awards. He’s a senior civil engineer at Norman Y. Mineta San Jose International Airport, and developed SEGD’s Airport and Transportation Workshop, which encourages collaboration among EGD firms, fabricators, manufacturers, and airport executives. He also organized the Airport Sign Managers Network to promote best practices in airport-wayfinding systems.
Founded in 1973, SEGD describes itself as “the global community of people working at the intersection of communication design and the built environment. Through educational programs, research, and publications, SEGD’s mission is to provide learning opportunities and resources for professionals involved in EGD, promote the importance of the discipline in establishing place, and continue to refine standards of practice for the field.”