PETRA CUSCHIERI

Even before graduating from George Brown's graphic design program, Petra Cuschieri was working on the Arts and Crafts Productions design team. Combining her passion for visuals and appreciation of music, Cuschieri worked on the Juno nominated Feist album Metals, as well as with artists including Jason Collett, Broken Social Scene and Dan Mangan.  Now on the other side of post secondary with laurels in tow from the AACE (Applied Arts Awards), and RGD (Registered Graphic Designers) for her thesis project, Cuschieri is working for Jackman as well A&C and heading her own projects, most recently the Christmas campaign for the Drake General Store.

Cuschieri has the incredible technical skills necessary for a computer-age designer, but she also is well versed in more traditional crafts, lending a depth and style to her design.  Petra knows how things are made in the material world, this somehow translates into her design work, making it seem more analogue and "real".  Her father is a tailor, from whom she learned the sewing and drafting skills necessary for constructing the line of handbags she produced out of high school and her current enjoyment in quilting.  We marvelled at the precision and beauty of her projects, reflected in the quilts (and sweater pictured above) of her beloved grandmother whose style and grace is present throughout Petra's home.