The Power of the Y Conference: San Diego’s Biggest Designer Get-Together
21 years ago, AIGA San Diego brought together a local host of creatives to share among the secrets of their successes. These meetings promptly transformed into the area’s largest design forum, and AIGA San Diego’s Annual 2-Day Design Conference: The Y Design Conference.
Made up of inspiring speeches by big-name designers, intimate lunches and small group workshops, the Y Design Conference represents the most direct path into the minds of imminent designers all over the world; Bestselling authors, agency super stars, social-work heroes, and much, much more have made AIGA San Diego into one of AIGA’s most successful and talked about chapters nationwide.
“I really enjoyed the conference – everything about it from the sunny San Diego setting, to the great speakers and intimate crowd (an oxymoron!). It was all-inclusive without being overwhelming in scale…I always leave AIGA events recharged and ready for a new challenge.”
–Gail Anderson, The Boston Globe, Rolling Stone magazine, School of Visual Arts
“(E)veryone seemed to go out of their way to be nice…I was humbled by how many people became subscribers of UPPERCASE magazine after hearing my talk! I’ve spoken at many conferences, but I’ve never had such a reaction anywhere else. I think we were a lecture hall full of kindred spirits.”
–Janine Vangool, UPPERCASE magazine
“The format of the conference – in a relatively small venue and with some superstar speakers mixed with lesser-known and up-and-coming talent – is unique.”
–Andrew Byrom, California State University, AndrewByrom.com
“It directly led to several business inquiries and job applicants. Just the other day someone came up to me on the street and asked, ‘You spoke at the Y Conference last year, right?’”
–Justin Manor, Sosolimited
“It was like a baby tasting sugar for the first time! To cross pollinate with other awesome speakers, artists both professional and student in such an intimate setting was incredibly uplifting. We left pregnant with new wisdom and inspiration!”
–Jorge Gutierrez & Sandra Equihua, El Tigre, The Book of Life
“The response I had generously received from the (Y Conference) attendees allowed me to catapult my message to a national level. So without support of the San Diego community, I wouldn’t have had that opportunity.”
–Justin Skeesuck, I’ll Push You, The Push Project
AIGA San Diego’s yearly conference is a national production at a local cost. You can (and should!) sign up to the free AIGA newsletter to keep up to date on added speakers, student rates, volunteer opportunities and all the latest here.
