Two black-and-white portraits of Gabriel David Carter and Paul Cress are positioned in the foreground against a textured grey and orange background featuring "Bmore Design Week 2026" text.

AIGA Baltimore

General Admission

A Saturday afternoon for trying things, thinking differently, and making space for ideas that don&rsquo;t have to be perfect. Day 2 brings together two conversations about the creative process: how we keep going when the work gets messy, and how our sketchbooks can become places to experiment rather than finished portfolios. 📅 Date: Saturday, October 17, 2026 🕰️ Time: 1 - 4 p.m. 📍 Location: Parks and People, The Stonehouse, 2100 Liberty Heights Ave, Baltimore, MD 21215 Parking: Parks &amp; People has two primary parking areas. For Lot A and the main entrance, enter from Liberty Heights Avenue and follow the driveway up to the property. Lot B can be accessed from the Reisterstown Road entrance. Street parking is also available along Auchentoroly Terrace and Liberty Heights Avenue. Please follow posted signage or on-site directions if a lot is closed or overflow parking is being used. 1:30 - 2:30 PM &bull; Delulu Enough To Keep Iterating with Gabriel David CarterThrough a behind-the-scenes look at a successful creative project, attendees will follow the evolution of a concept from its earliest rough sketches to its final execution. Along the way, they&#39;ll see how iteration uncovers new possibilities, strengthens solutions, and fuels innovation. Grounded in design thinking principles, this session offers practical tools and repeatable processes participants can apply to their own work, whether they&#39;re designers, marketers, entrepreneurs, or creative problem-solvers. Audience members will leave with a deeper understanding of the iterative design process, the confidence to embrace imperfect first drafts, and a framework for turning bold ideas into meaningful results. In a world that celebrates finished products, this presentation highlights the power of staying &quot;delulu&quot; enough to believe the next version might be even better. 2:30 - 3 PM &bull; Break&nbsp;(light refreshments will be provided)&nbsp; 3 - 4 PM &bull; A Sketchbook Isn&rsquo;t a Gallery. It&rsquo;s a Laboratory. with Paul CressWhat happens when you stop treating every drawing like it needs to be good? Illustrator and designer Paul Cress shares how sketchbooks, experimentation, and plenty of failed ideas have become an essential part of his creative practice.&nbsp; Through examples pulled from years of sketchbooks and personal projects, he&rsquo;ll explore the value of making without knowing exactly where an idea is going, learning from what doesn&rsquo;t work, and resisting the urge to make every page precious. A sketchbook can be a place to experiment, take risks, make mistakes, and try things simply because they seem interesting. Sometimes those experiments become finished work. Sometimes they don&rsquo;t. Both outcomes have value. This won&rsquo;t just be a talk about making.&nbsp; Everyone will receive a sketchbook of their own, and the call to action is simple: start now. We&rsquo;ll break out some old-school block printing materials, make that first mark together, and send everyone home with a sketchbook that&rsquo;s already begun. About Gabriel David CarterGabriel David Carter believes the world needs more reckless creativity. He is the Founder and Creative Director of Cheltenham Avenue, a digital branding and marketing studio that helps businesses, nonprofits, and organizations build memorable brands and tell compelling stories. As Communications Manager for Parks &amp; People, he uses strategic storytelling, marketing, and public engagement to connect residents with the transformative power of urban green spaces and inspire greater investment in Baltimore&#39;s parks and neighborhoods. Gabriel has also been a design coach for five years at the Maryland Institute College of Art&#39;s (MICA) annual design fest.A published writer and poet, Gabriel&#39;s work has been praised for its emotional depth, lyrical style, and capacity to spark reflection. His writing explores themes of identity, growth, grief, and human connection. Across his work in branding, communications, and literature, Gabriel believes thoughtful ideas, boldly expressed, can change how people see themselves, their cities, and the world around them.<a fr-original-style="" href="https://gdcarter.com/" style="text-decoration-color: currentcolor; user-select: auto; box-sizing: inherit;" target="_blank">https://gdcarter.com/</a><a fr-original-style="" href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/gabrieldcarter/" style="text-decoration-color: currentcolor; user-select: auto; box-sizing: inherit;" target="_blank">https://www.linkedin.com/in/gabrieldcarter/</a><a fr-original-style="" href="https://www.instagram.com/gabrieldcarter" style="text-decoration-color: currentcolor; user-select: auto; box-sizing: inherit;" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/gabrieldcarter</a> About Paul CressPaul Cress is an illustrator and longtime graphic designer who has spent the past 11 years working at Adobe. His illustration work is focused on character design, storytelling, and the simple joy of drawing. Many ideas begin in sketchbooks while traveling, then gradually grow into finished pieces. Travel, workshops, active participation in the illustration community, and ongoing studies at the Rhode Island School of Design continue to shape his creative process. While studying animation, he discovered a stronger interest in character development and visual storytelling than animation itself, which continues to influence the direction of his art. His work reflects a mix of curiosity, humor, observation, and personal exploration across both traditional and digital media. Above all, the goal is to create art that invites people to wonder, smile, and maybe laugh a little too.<a fr-original-style="" href="https://instagram.com/iamlasercups" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="text-decoration-color: currentcolor; user-select: auto; box-sizing: inherit;" target="_blank">https://instagram.com/iamlasercups</a><a fr-original-style="" href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/cressexpress/" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="text-decoration-color: currentcolor; user-select: auto; box-sizing: inherit;" target="_blank">https://www.linkedin.com/in/cressexpress/</a>

A Saturday afternoon for trying things, thinking differently, and making space for ideas that don’t have to be perfect. Day 2 brings together two conversations about the creative process: how we keep going when the work gets messy, and how our sketchbooks can become places to experiment rather than finished portfolios. 📅 Date: Saturday, October 17, 2026 🕰️ Time: 1 - 4 p.m. 📍 Location: Parks and People, The Stonehouse, 2100 Liberty Heights Ave, Baltimore, MD 21215 Parking: Parks &amp; People has two primary parking areas. For Lot A and the main entrance, enter from Liberty Heights Avenue and follow the driveway up to the property. Lot B can be accessed from the Reisterstown Road entrance. Street parking is also available along Auchentoroly Terrace and Liberty Heights Avenue. Please follow posted signage or on-site directions if a lot is closed or overflow parking is being used. 1:30 - 2:30 PM • Delulu Enough To Keep Iterating with Gabriel David CarterThrough a behind-the-scenes look at a successful creative project, attendees will follow the evolution of a concept from its earliest rough sketches to its final execution. Along the way, they'll see how iteration uncovers new possibilities, strengthens solutions, and fuels innovation. Grounded in design thinking principles, this session offers practical tools and repeatable processes participants can apply to their own work, whether they're designers, marketers, entrepreneurs, or creative problem-solvers. Audience members will leave with a deeper understanding of the iterative design process, the confidence to embrace imperfect first drafts, and a framework for turning bold ideas into meaningful results. In a world that celebrates finished products, this presentation highlights the power of staying "delulu" enough to believe the next version might be even better. 2:30 - 3 PM • Break (light refreshments will be provided)  3 - 4 PM • A Sketchbook Isn’t a Gallery. It’s a Laboratory. with Paul CressWhat happens when you stop treating every drawing like it needs to be good? Illustrator and designer Paul Cress shares how sketchbooks, experimentation, and plenty of failed ideas have become an essential part of his creative practice.  Through examples pulled from years of sketchbooks and personal projects, he’ll explore the value of making without knowing exactly where an idea is going, learning from what doesn’t work, and resisting the urge to make every page precious. A sketchbook can be a place to experiment, take risks, make mistakes, and try things simply because they seem interesting. Sometimes those experiments become finished work. Sometimes they don’t. Both outcomes have value. This won’t just be a talk about making.  Everyone will receive a sketchbook of their own, and the call to action is simple: start now. We’ll break out some old-school block printing materials, make that first mark together, and send everyone home with a sketchbook that’s already begun. About Gabriel David CarterGabriel David Carter believes the world needs more reckless creativity. He is the Founder and Creative Director of Cheltenham Avenue, a digital branding and marketing studio that helps businesses, nonprofits, and organizations build memorable brands and tell compelling stories. As Communications Manager for Parks &amp; People, he uses strategic storytelling, marketing, and public engagement to connect residents with the transformative power of urban green spaces and inspire greater investment in Baltimore's parks and neighborhoods. Gabriel has also been a design coach for five years at the Maryland Institute College of Art's (MICA) annual design fest.A published writer and poet, Gabriel's work has been praised for its emotional depth, lyrical style, and capacity to spark reflection. His writing explores themes of identity, growth, grief, and human connection. Across his work in branding, communications, and literature, Gabriel believes thoughtful ideas, boldly expressed, can change how people see themselves, their cities, and the world around them.<a href="https://gdcarter.com/" target="_blank">https://gdcarter.com/</a><a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/gabrieldcarter/" target="_blank">https://www.linkedin.com/in/gabrieldcarter/</a><a href="https://www.instagram.com/gabrieldcarter" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/gabrieldcarter</a> About Paul CressPaul Cress is an illustrator and longtime graphic designer who has spent the past 11 years working at Adobe. His illustration work is focused on character design, storytelling, and the simple joy of drawing. Many ideas begin in sketchbooks while traveling, then gradually grow into finished pieces. Travel, workshops, active participation in the illustration community, and ongoing studies at the Rhode Island School of Design continue to shape his creative process. While studying animation, he discovered a stronger interest in character development and visual storytelling than animation itself, which continues to influence the direction of his art. His work reflects a mix of curiosity, humor, observation, and personal exploration across both traditional and digital media. Above all, the goal is to create art that invites people to wonder, smile, and maybe laugh a little too.<a href="https://instagram.com/iamlasercups" target="_blank">https://instagram.com/iamlasercups</a><a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/cressexpress/" target="_blank">https://www.linkedin.com/in/cressexpress/</a>

AIGA Baltimore

Day 2 – Creative Practice: Keep Iterating + Keep Exploring

2100 Liberty Heights Ave

General Admission

$20