PAPER SHOW 2026
aiga chicago event
In an era increasingly shaped by digital tools and AI, print feels more essential than ever. For its third year, AIGA Chicago brings back the annual Paper Show to celebrate the role of print within the city’s design community.
Campaign Strategy, Copywriting & Media Production Lead: Derek Desormeaux
Sponsorship Lead / Event Coordinator / Print Design: Hannah Goldberg
Art Direction & Brand System Design: Katrina Trinh
Concept: Rooted in Chicago’s culture of making, this year’s branding explores paper through the lens of print. A CMYK-driven neo-print system translates the city’s landscape into bold, high-contrast forms for event communications, while a parallel 'Sponpor Spotlight' series highlights contemporary printing press structures—foregrounding the machinery and processes behind production. Together, these applications position paper not simply as a surface, but as the outcome of both industrial and creative systems, with the sponsor series emphasizing the tools and infrastructure that make print possible.
Presale Contents
The launch and presale series accounted for more than 46% of total ticket sales through organic reach alone. On LinkedIn, the campaign achieved a 12.5% organic engagement rate, demonstrating strong audience interest and effective community engagement without paid promotion.
Speakers & Partners
The main "Full Print Panel Speaker" announcement graphic on Instagram captured 3,837 impressions and reached 2,175 unique accounts.
The ‘Sponsors Spotlight’ series frames contemporary printing press structures as reflections of each sponsor’s expertise and commitment to print qualify. By foregrounding the machinery behind production, the series generated more than 6,600 impressions on LinkedIn and averaging over 2,200 impression per posts.
