About

Media Objectives is an interdisciplinary design studio uniquely housed within Valerio Dewalt Train Associates, an award-winning architectural firm based in Chicago, San Francisco and Palo Alto.

We are grounded by the belief that meaningful experiences are created with great design. From the environments we inhabit to the brands and digital/printed media we encounter, design defines what we see, how we feel and what we think. More simply, it defines our connections.  

With this in mind, our objective is twofold:

  1. Leverage design to better connect people to spaces, brands and ideas.
  2. Apply our craft to create fully integrated experiences across all design media.

Together, these objectives are the foundation to our studio and everything we do.
We like to call them our M-O.

Capabilities

M-O is a full service design studio offering our expertise across multiple forms of media, including:

  • Brand Strategy
  • Identity
  • Environmental Branding
  • Exhibitions & Installations
  • Signage & Wayfinding
  • User Experiences
  • Website
  • Print
  • Art Direction
  • Architecture & Interiors

Our Process

Our collaborative and research-based approach enables us to craft innovative, authentic and meaningful experiences that meet our client’s key goals. This process includes five steps, each with a clear purpose:

01) Discover

Conduct research to identify objectives, challenges, opportunities, insights and drivers to fuel creative exploration.

02) Ideate & Test

Explore testable platforms that can inform the strategic direction.

03) Prescribe

Define and develop the most fitting creative strategy.

04) Translate

Refine the strategy’s visual, verbal and experiential expression across all applications.

05) Realize

Finalize an implementation plan and deliver a successful outcome.

Our Clients

  • Adobe
  • Aloft
  • Avison Young
  • Cal Poly
  • CA-Ventures
  • Chicago Park District
  • eBay
  • Hard Rock Hotel
  • Glassdoor
  • Google
  • Kresge Foundation
  • Lincoln Properties Residential
  • Lynd Company
  • The Mart
  • McHugh
  • PayPal
  • Peak Campus
  • SanDisk
  • School of the Art Institute of Chicago
  • Structured Development
  • StubHub
  • SunPower
  • Textura Corporation
  • University of California San Diego
  • University of Chicago Laboratory Schools
  • Urban Land Interests
  • Village of Mount Prospect
  • VMware
  • Walsh College
  • Yelp

Our Team

We’ve built an interdisciplinary team of curious, committed and talented creatives, formally trained in the fields of architecture, visual communication, interior design, brand strategy and industrial design. Each of us bring a unique viewpoint to a project while sharing the same objectives.

  • Joe Lawton Managing Director The brains of the operation and the captain of the ship. To say he works 24x7 is an understatement. Joe brings an architectural background mixed with event planning and non-profit marketing.
  • Stephen Killion Director - Chicago Pushes the boundaries of design, all the time. Years of architectural studies and time spent as an editor of a Dutch design journal have deeply influenced his design philosophy.
  • Crystal Adams Director - SF Conceptual design lead addition to the team. Crystal’s background from strategic branding applied through various touchpoints gives her an exceptional insight across the spectra.
  • Noah Jeppson Senior Designer
  • Rafael Barontini His collection of rocks keeps him busy, but finds time exploring popular culture through the semiotics of text and image.
  • Allison Rokusek With experience in graphic and industrial design, Allison tinkers with tools across disciplines to take ideas from sketchbook and screen to surfaces and spaces.
  • Amanda Davidson When not knitting creatures to hide in photos, she blends backgrounds of interior and graphic design with art and craft to explore the world of experiential branding.
    Teamwork is her dreamwork.
  • Katarina Gois When not doing design, she can be found exploring the city, swimming, or eating cookies.
  • Vivian Jones
  • Adam Farooq If you need help looking your best, this is your man. Adam loves diving into big data and getting real results. He also moonlights as our resident coding authority.
  • Maya Bird-Murphy As an architectural designer, graphic communicator, community engager and educator, Maya brings a new perspective to the table. When she’s off duty she can often be found lounging in her portable hammock with her dog.
  • Francisco Lopez de Arenosa His unidentifiable accent is confusing, however, his written and visual communication skills can piece a story together in imaginative ways.
  • Jacob Goble Quiet in person, but loud on paper. When he's not working on graphics you'll find him busy upholstering furniture and hand binding books.