Speakers

As a design director, mentor, educator and advocate for creativity, Johnathon provides environments where innovative thinking is encouraged. Johnathon brings decades of experience and involvement in the applied arts, encouraging growth and change in creative industries. As Director of Creative Services of the HCMA +Design team, he both challenges and contributes to the contemporary fabric of design today, and tomorrow.

He is the current president of the Graphic Designers of Canada, GDC National Ethics Chair, and past president of Canadian Association of Professional Image Creators (CAPIC ) Vancouver. He is also a founding committee member of CreativeMornings Vancouver and Interesting Vancouver.

Richard Hatter is an award-winning designer, illustrator, and Creative Director. In 2008 he founded Hired Guns Creative, a boutique design firm focused on branding and packaging design for the alcohol industry. He has 17 years of experience in graphic, print, and web design, as well as creative direction, and market strategy. Richard has worked for several large design firms, first at the production level and then working his way up to Creative Director. He has worked on a wide range of projects, including multi-million dollar accounts for nation-wide clients. He has a black belt in judo and two young children at home.

Mark Busse is a communication strategist and designer with a strong desire to use design and creativity as a catalyst for positive change while serving communities. As Director of Creativity and Engagement at HCMA Architecture + Design, Busse helps lead their interdisciplinary design team and heads up TILT Curiosity Labs initiative which explores creativity, design, and engagement in all its forms, including an artist in residency program.

A graduate of TWU’s School of Business and UBC’s Visual Arts Program, Mark is a Certified Graphic Designer, active executive, and Fellow of the Graphic Designers of Canada. Prior to joining HCMA. Busse was managing partner of Industrial Brand, a design consultancy which he co-founded in 1997 that specialized in helping professional services firms realize brand and marketing potential through research-based strategy and communication design.

Driven by a desire to extract learnings and process innovation from a variety of design practices, Busse is fascinated by new and emerging technologies and the revolutionary impact they have on humanity and the environments in which they live. As a burgeoning urbanist with a new perspective, his unique set of skills as a creativity and process facilitator, educator, and engagement strategist has allowed him to create communities and host conversations, workshops, and large events in a variety of forms.

Busse’s career has put him on the frontier of applying design methods to social and strategic questions in business, community, and the arts. He has been an outspoken design industry writer, speaker, and activist, serving on various industry boards, advisory councils, and education programs. As part of his role at HCMA, Busse invests in the creative community by producing and hosting events such as Likemind Vancouver, CreativeMornings Vancouver, and Interesting Vancouver.

Gillian Mothersill is an Associate Professor in the School of Graphic Communications Management (GCM) at Ryerson University. Her teaching areas include typography, design and layout, and business management. Gillian served as the Associate Dean (Faculty and Student Affairs) for the Faculty of Communication and Design from 2006-2012, and as Acting Chair of GCM for the first semester of 2016. Gillian is also a Management Team member (and Canadian representative) for the Creative Industries Global Network, funded by a grant from the EU Erasmus+ program. She has authored one book and numerous works published in academic and trade journals. In her spare time, Gillian lives with her partner in Regina, SK, and they make frequent visits to Rouleau where her grandmother was raised.