Business & Strategy

Steff Geissbuhler

Partner

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Steff Geissbuhler is among America’s most celebrated designers of integrated brand and corporate identity programs. His work for a broad spectrum of international and national clients includes identity systems for NBC, Merck, Time Warner Cable, Telemundo, Voice of America, Toledo Museum of Art, National Parks of New York Harbor, Crane & Co., Calamos Investments, Conrad Hotels and Morgan Stanley Smith Barney. Prior to forming C&G Partners, he was a partner at Chermayeff & Geismar Inc. for 30 years.

Steff has designed architectural graphics for the IBM building in New York City; a complete sign system for the Universities of Pennsylvania; and Connecticut; printed materials for the Alvin Ailey Dance Theater, Mobil, Philip Morris, Cummins Engines and Union Pacific. Other commissions include graphics for the Smithsonian Institution’s Bicentennial exhibition; the “Sports Illustrated at the Olympics” exhibit; a new identity and graphics for the New York Public Library; the New Victory Theater; and a series of posters for New York City’s Department of Cultural Affairs. In 2005 Mr. Geissbuhler’s work was honored with the American Institute of Graphic Arts Medal for his sustained contribution to design excellence and the development of the profession. He is also the recipient of the U.S. Federal Achievement Design Award, and several awards from the Art Director’s Clubs and the International Poster Biennales. Steff served as the U.S. president of the Alliance Graphique Internationale and has been a member of the board of the American Institute of Graphic Arts. He is past president of AIGA’s New York chapter.

Steff Geissbuhler received his diploma in graphic design from the School of Art and Design, Basel, Switzerland. He has taught at the Philadelphia College of Art, Cooper Union, Yale University and lectures throughout the country.

Keith Helmetag

Partner

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As one of the founders of the firm, Keith offers creative and management direction to a talented team involved in sign, environmental graphics and exhibit commissions.

He is currently leading the sign and visitor experience planning for three of New York City’s largest projects: Yankee Stadium, Bank of America’s Headquarters at One Bryant Park (Manhattan’s first LEED-platinum skyscraper) as well as the World Trade Center Memorial Names Commemoration and site graphics. He is presently designing exhibits for the Federal Reserve Bank, Scenic Hudson’s West Point Foundry Preserve and Wisconsin’s Aldo Leopold Foundation, as well as themed interiors for Major League Baseball Headquarters and GE Tax & Energy Financial Services.

He recently completed an award-winning tour experience of the Good Housekeeping Institute, exhibits for the duPont Nemours Mansion & Gardens Visitor Center, Buffalo’s Erie Canal Waterfront District and a major sign program for Rensselear Polytechnic Institute’s new Experimental Media Performing Arts Center (EMPAC). His designs for NYC’s Flushing Freedom Mile, which brought themes of religious asylum and social tolerance to the sidewalks of the world’s most ethnically diverse neighborhood, are currently being expanded with new interpretive programming. Keith’s innovative approach for the U.S. Patent & Trademark Museum’s display system was recently awarded its own patent from the Office.

While a principal at Chermayeff & Geismar Inc., Keith designed exhibits for The Money Museum at the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, Automobile & Culture at MoCA Los Angeles; Science City and kidpower! for the New York Hall of Science, the National Oceanographic & Atmospheric Administration’s Rookery Bay Reserve, and the JFK Presidential Library, as well as signage and environmental design for Lincoln Center, Terminal 4 at Kennedy Airport, and Gannett/USA Today’s Headquarters. A Heritage Trails New York kiosk designed by Keith for the World Trade Center that survived 9/11 has recently been included in the Memorial’s collection for display.

Keith received a sappi Ideas That Matter grant promoting literacy and lemur conservation in Madagascar. He is a recipient of the American Institute of Architect’s Committee On The Environment (COTE) award for Philadelphia’s Heinz Tinicum Nature Reserve, and was the graphic designer of The New York Vietnam Veterans Memorial.

Keith was educated as an architect (B.Arch.,UC/Berkeley), graphic designer (Philadelphia’s University of the Arts) and business manager (M.B.A., New York University’s Stern School of Management).

Jonathan Alger

Partner

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Jonathan Alger is a founding partner of C&G Partners, active in all forms of communication design, especially exhibitions, environments and public space. He is a dedicated advocate of strategic thinking and the thoughtful use of technology. He served two years as national President (2006-2007) of SEGD, the Society for Environmental Graphic Design.

Jonathan’s work includes the Star-Spangled Banner experience at the National Museum of American History, (open Nov 2008). Jonathan led the design for the recently completed Museum of American Finance on Wall Street (open Jan 2008). He led the planning and design team responsible for all new visitor experiences at the dramatically expanded the Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles, the most popular observatory in America (open Nov 2006).

He has conceived and designed experiences for the Holocaust Museum, the Bronx Zoo, the New York Hall of Science, the American Institute of Architects (AIA), American Express, Nasdaq and Sports Illustrated, among others. His projects include a visitor center for USAID, a public history installation for TIAA/CREF, two award-winning exhibits for the American Institute of Graphic Arts (AIGA), a studio tour at the Voice of America, and educational environments for the Japanese American National Museum. He is currently working on projects for the Museum of Jewish Heritage in New York City, Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, and the Holocaust Museum.

Jonathan is dedicated to expanding visitor experiences beyond the museum: he has done award-winning work for many libraries, including the Los Angeles Public Library, the Bobst Library of NYU, the Library of Congress and the Boston Public Library.

In other areas of communication design, he has created signage and wayfinding programs for many national organizations including Dulles International Airport, the Birmingham Museum of Art and the National Museum of American History. He has also created brand identities for a number of cultural institutions and exhibitions. His interactive design work includes a brand identity and website for the celebrated online journal FEED that was nominated for a Webby, the “online Oscar” of the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences.

He has received numerous design awards from the American Institute of Graphic Arts, the Art Director’s Club and the Society for Environmental Graphic Design. His work has also been honored multiple times by the American Association for State and Local History. He has written for, and been featured in, various magazines and journals. In 2004, he was featured on the cover of Graphic Design USA’s “People to Watch” issue. In 2008, he was profiled in Interior Design magazine.

Jonathan graduated from Yale University, B.A. with honors and distinction in Architecture, magna cum laude.

Maya Kopytman

Partner

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Maya has more than two decades of design experience, and is internationally recognized for pioneering work in interface design for websites, software, and location-based experiences. She has received numerous awards, among them the “Gold Pencil” from One Show Interactive and the Webby “People’s Voice” Award. Her work has appeared in many industry publications, including Graphis Interactive and Communications Arts. In 2006 Maya joined C&G as an Associate Partner, heading the firm’s interactive design practice.

She has led numerous projects, including web sites for Riverkeeper, American Council of Learned Societies, Samuel H. Kress Foundation, ARTstor, JSTOR, Kaplan Thaler Group, the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, NYU Wagner School of Public Service, FujiFilm and the American Institute of Architects. Her location-based interactive projects include exhibit software for the Museum of Jewish Heritage, document exploration systems for the Museum of American Finance, interactive orchestral visuals for Caminos del Inka and interactive kiosks for the Mashantucket Pequot Museum.

Maya holds a BFA from Bezalel Academy of Art in Jerusalem and an MFA from Pratt Institute. She has been a visiting instructor in Pratt’s Department of Computer Graphics and Interactive Multimedia, and is currently a member of the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences. From 1994 until 2006 she was a principal member of IconNicholson in New York, and a Senior Vice President there since 2004.

Amy Siegel

Partner

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Amy Siegel brings over two decades of experience to the design of environmental and print graphics. Since joining C&G in 1998, Amy has planned, designed and managed large as well as small-scale signage and wayfinding programs for institutional, corporate and public clients.

She has recently completed an award winning sign program for Hearst Tower in addition to sign programs for the new Yankee Stadium, Bank of America Tower and Henry Miller’s Theatre, all in New York City. She is currently working on the 9/11 Memorial Site and Museum at Ground Zero and the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center in Athens, Greece. She has completed several large transportation projects including new International Terminals at Logan Airport in Boston and JFK International Airport in New York.

Other noteworthy signage and architectural graphics projects include EMPAC (Experimental Media and Performing Arts Center) at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, NY; the McNay Museum of Art in San Antonio, Texas; Gannett/USA Today Headquarters, McLean VA; Toledo Museum of Art, Toledo, OH; Griffith Observatory, Los Angeles, CA; Times Square Subway Station, New York; Enoch Pratt Free Library, Baltimore; Landman Library at Arcadia University, PA; Jacob Javits Federal Building, New York; a branding program for GSA buildings nationwide; Flushing Freedom Mile, Flushing, NY; Baruch College, City University of New York; and The University Club, New York.

Amy studied Fine Art at the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture and the New York Studio School and has a B.F.A. from Pratt Institute. She is a member of the Society of Environmental Graphic Designers and the American Institute of Graphic Arts.

Scott Plunkett

Associate Partner

Scott Plunkett is an Associate Partner at C&G Partners, where he is responsible for the firm’s operations, including oversight of finances, physical operations, human resources and project management. He is also an integral part of C&G’s business development endeavors.

Scott comes from a fine arts background, and a long tenure in the fashion industry at French design company Agnes B.  Scott has worked with the leaders of C&G Partners since 1993. He has proven effective at merging creativity and business, keeping the firm operationally sophisticated.  His focus on art, people and finance enable him to assist the firm in developing and managing new opportunities.

He received a BFA from the School of Visual Arts in 2001, with a focus on painting and photography, and was the recipient of The Rhodes Family Award for Outstanding Students. He is a member of AIGA.

Leslie Hayden Sherr

Brand Strategy and Business Development

Leslie Hayden Sherr fulfills a hybrid role at C&G Partners defining brand strategy, cultivating new business, and consulting on marketing and communications. She draws on a background as a marketing consultant and design writer to support cultural brands and institutions seeking to differentiate themselves and define a clear positioning in the marketplace. She joined C&G Partners in 2003 and has been the strategic lead for such clients as Signature Theatre Company, Calamos Investments, New York City Office of Emergency Management, Vornado Realty Trust and Darien Library.

Her past work has included strategy, naming, copywriting, brand voice and media relations for such clients as Chandelier; YARD; Stone Architecture; Material ConneXion; Hoefler & Frere-Jones; Sullivan & Company; Assouline; The 7th Art; FMBranding; and Fountainhead Construction, among others. Her architecture-related project work includes positioning, naming and copywriting for Beacon Court, a luxury mixed-use real estate property designed by Cesar Pelli with interiors by Jacques Grange. A Vornado Real Estate property, Beacon Court includes the New York headquarters for Bloomberg Financial Network and an exclusive 55-story residential tower. A comprehensive property launch resulted in the creation of a positioning, name, sales collateral and print advertising, streetbridge signage, website and video. Other recent Manhattan real estate projects include the sales collateral and websites for 200 Fifth Avenue, 34 Leonard, W Hoboken, Morton Square, The Hubert Townhouses, and 59E57.

Leslie is a former Director of Marketing and Communications at the Carbone Smolan, Agency whose client roster includes work for such significant cultural institutions as The Louvre, The Jewish Museum, The American Craft Museum, Sotheby’s, Christie’s and Sesame Workshop, among others. She was also Director of Communications for Desgrippes Gobé Group, an international branding agency whose clients include Coca-Cola, Gillette, Godiva, Ann Taylor and Air France.

Leslie has written on topics ranging from annual reports and graphic design to architecture for a broad range of design-focused publications. She is the co-author of Design for Response: Creative Direct Marketing that Works. Leslie has a Bachelor of Fine Arts from SUNY Purchase, a Master of Arts from Parsons School of Design in Critical Writing on Architecture and Design, and is currently pursuing a Masters of Science in Landscape Design from Columbia University.

Emanuela Frigerio

25 August 1962 – 6 May 2010

It is with great sadness that we report the sudden and unexpected passing of our friend, colleague and partner, Emanuela Frigerio, who passed away in early May in her sleep.

Emanuela will be greatly missed by the clients who worked with her, her friends and family, and of course by all of us at C&G Partners. Her warmth, friendly manner, creativity and spirit made her very special to us. While we are deeply affected, C&G Partners remains dedicated to serving the needs of our clients as always, as Ema herself would have wanted. Reflecting back and moving forward, we collectively keep her memory with us.

Emanuela Frigerio was a founding partner of the firm. She developed identity and branding systems, print programs, packaging, environmental graphics and publications for cultural institutions, government agencies, and a wide range of corporate clients. Drawing from her international experience at the highest level of graphic design, her work focused on visual communication that transcended regional and linguistic limitations. As a result, she had established an exceptional reputation in England, Italy, Japan, and the United States.

Emanuela was born in Torino, Italy. She graduated from the Polytechnic of Design in Milan in 1983, and began her graphic design career at Conran Associates in London, later joining Franco Gaffuri Agenzia di Grafica in Milan. In 1987, Ms. Frigerio relocated to Tokyo, where, at the branding firm PAOS, her work was influenced by the meticulous artistry of Japanese design.

Emanuela joined Chermayeff & Geismar Inc. in 1990, and served as a principal at the firm at the time of its closing in 2005. She directed a wide range of projects in numerous disciplines. She designed graphic identities for the Rockefeller Foundation, the McNay Art Museum, the American Council of Learned Societies, Integrated Living Communities, Marriott Rewards and the Index Corporation. Additionally, she designed a new trademark for Tokyo’s popular Marubiru building and a comprehensive brand repositioning for the Hankyu Hotel Chain. Major packaging programs for Liz Claiborne cosmetics and IBM Multimedia benefited from Emanuela’s creative direction, as well as exhibit graphics and wayfinding standard manuals for the Acquario di Genova, Oceanario de Lisboa and the New Orleans Aquarium. She designed graphics for exhibitions including the Museum of American Finance, New York University, the Library of Congress, Boston Public Library and the American Institute of Architects, along with sign systems for the McNay Museum of Art and the Bank of America’s world headquarters.

She created publications and promotional materials for numerous corporations, including JCDecaux, Knoll, FactSet, US General Services Administration, the Rockefeller Foundation and Crane Papers. She was a strong advocate for the design profession, collaborating frequently with the American Institute of Graphic Arts (AIGA) in the design of exhibits, print materials, publications and posters.

Emanuela was a recognized publication designer, creating books for Abrams, the Museum of Modern Art and New York University, as well as a monograph of Chermayeff & Geismar Inc.’s work, designing:, published by Graphis in 2003.

She received design awards from the Italian Art Directors Club, the American Art Directors Club, AIGA, SEGD, and the GSA Design Excellence Program, among others. Her work has been featured in the AIGA Graphic Design and Art Director’s Club Annuals, and in the design magazines Print, Step, Domus, Communication Arts, Graphis and How.

LIFE, believe, is not a dream
So dark as sages say;
Oft a little morning rain
Foretells a pleasant day.
Sometimes there are clouds of gloom,
But these are transient all;
If the shower will make the roses bloom,
O why lament its fall?

Rapidly, merrily,
Life’s sunny hours flit by,
Gratefully, cheerily,
Enjoy them as they fly!

What though Death at times steps in
And calls our Best away?
What though sorrow seems to win,
O’er hope, a heavy sway?
Yet hope again elastic springs,
Unconquered, though she fell;
Still buoyant are her golden wings,
Still strong to bear us well.
Manfully, fearlessly,
The day of trial bear,
For gloriously, victoriously,
Can courage quell despair!

Charlotte Brontë