Kevin Halstead, Senior Art Director Creating Retail, Brand & Shopper Marketing Experiences
Senior Art Director & Designer
- Art Direction
- Retail & Shopper
- Brand Systems
- Print & Packaging
- Retouching & Color
- Generative AI · Image & Motion
Art Direction
Retail & Shopper
Brand Systems
Print & Packaging
Retouching & Color
Generative AI · Image & MotionStore wall to phone screen
I art-direct retail, brand and campaign work that holds together at every size, from a 20-foot lightbox to a thumbnail on a phone.
Twenty-five years across agency, in-house and freelance. I direct generative tools the way I once directed a photo studio: a tight brief, lots of takes, and nothing leaves until it’s retouched and press-ready.
Available for lead roles & retainers
View selected work Short on time? The best of it on one page ↓
Available for lead roles & retainersPortfolio
Client work from agency, in-house and freelance roles. Older pieces are rebuilt at full resolution from the original concepts and copy.
- Client work — remastered
- Client work
- Speculative concept — not commissioned
- Fictional brand concept
Create a selection PDF 0 of 10 picked
- Choose up to ten pieces with + Add to PDF on a card or inside a project.
- Press Make PDF in the bar that appears at the bottom of the screen.
- You get one page with your picks and my contact details, ready to save or share.
| Preview | Client | Project | Formats | Label |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Cricket Wireless retail program | Store environment · Digital screens · Holiday vertical · Lightbox · Tablet ad | Client work — remastered | |
 | Tropicana Pure Premium posters | Campaign posters · OOH · Shopper | Client work — remastered | |
 | McDougal Littell print campaigns | Trade ad · Sponsorship poster | Client work — remastered | |
 | Married to 240 Volts show website | Show identity · Website · Episode player · Video cards · Mobile | Client work | |
 | Aon research report web heroes | Web hero banners · Report landing pages | Client work — remastered | |
 | GM Fleet & Commercial City Tour | Venue banner · Staff credential | Client work — remastered | |
 | Jazz at Symphony Center season poster | Season poster | Client work — remastered | |
 | McDougal Littell convention exhibit and banners | Island exhibit · Conference banners | Client work — remastered |
Concepts
Self-initiated and speculative work. None of it was commissioned by the brands shown. It's where I test ideas in image-making, typography and tone, with generative tools directed and finished like any other source.
| Preview | Client | Project | Formats | Label |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Levi's 501 Originals campaign | Posters · Social · Story · Display · Email · Campaign site · Design system · Copy deck | Speculative concept — not commissioned | |
 | Make Your Own Footprint — Dr. Martens | Poster series · Street posters | Speculative concept — not commissioned | |
 | Hills Worth Dying On — Crocs Classic Clog | Poster | Speculative concept — not commissioned | |
 | Make Room for Sound — Sonos Era 100 | Print ad / OOH | Speculative concept — not commissioned | |
 | Philips Hue print concept | Print ad / OOH | Speculative concept — not commissioned |
Lab
Small working apps I design and build myself. Each one is live, so open it and give it a try.
| Preview | Client | Project | Formats | Label |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Rag Right ↗ | Typesetting proof tool · labs.halsteadk.com | Web app · Mac app | Self-initiated tool |
 | Born Into ↗ | Birthday nostalgia card maker · born.halsteadk.com | Web app | Self-initiated tool |
Self-initiated tool
Rag Right labs.halsteadk.com
Every line deserves a good break
A typesetting proof tool. It marks widows, holes and wedges in red pencil, then resets the line breaks so the rag reads clean.
Launch Rag Right ↗
Self-initiated tool
Born Into born.halsteadk.com
The world you were born into
Pick a birthday and get a card with that week’s #1 song, the top movie, book and TV show, plus the slang and fads, designed in the style of the year.
Launch Born Into ↗
More work
Earlier client work and further concepts, kept for range. Click any piece to open it.
| Preview | Client | Project | Formats | Label |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | A Royale Upgrade — Queen Yemeni Coffee | Poster | Speculative concept — not commissioned | |
 | Generations — ten-brand poster series | Poster series | Speculative concept — not commissioned | |
 | Made to Last — a speculative poster series on repair | Poster series | Speculative concept — not commissioned | |
 | Not Done — a speculative poster series for five brands | Poster series | Speculative concept — not commissioned | |
 | MacNeal Hospital residency recruitment cover | Recruitment cover | Client work — remastered | |
 | ABA Source publication cover | Publication cover | Client work — remastered | |
 | GTE Student Visa website | Website | Client work — remastered | |
 | Find Your Own Frequency — Converse | Vertical poster / social | Speculative concept — not commissioned | |
 | Less Than Zero title poster | Poster | Speculative concept — not commissioned | |
 | Put In the Work — Gatorade | Vertical poster / social | Speculative concept — not commissioned | |
 | A Different Point of View — Warby Parker | Vertical poster / social | Speculative concept — not commissioned | |
 | Find Your Next Favorite — Spotify | Vertical poster / social | Speculative concept — not commissioned | |
 | Sidequest Citrus Co. poster | Beverage ad / poster | Fictional brand concept | |
 | Block Party — a speculative poster series for three brands | Poster series | Speculative concept — not commissioned | |
 | Objects — three fictional product launches | Poster series | Fictional brand concept | |
 | EM Studio type poster | Service poster | Fictional brand concept | |
 | Ovation Musical Theatre poster | Poster | Client work |
Experience
Twenty-five years across agency, in-house and freelance roles: retail and shopper marketing at TPN / Omnicom, educational publishing at Holt McDougal, and an in-house photo studio at Havas. The through line is owning the work from concept to press-ready files.
- Art Direction
- Retail & Shopper
- Brand Systems
- Print & Packaging
- Retouching & Color
- Generative AI · Image & Motion
- 2001–PresentArt Director & DesignerIndependent practice, alongside and between staff rolesIdentity, print, packaging, digital, environmental, and generative image/video for agencies and direct clients.
- 2010–2014Senior Art DirectorTPN / OmnicomRetail creative for Cricket Wireless across the complete path to purchase.
- 2004–2008Senior DesignerHolt McDougal / HMHDesign standards and art direction across a large educational marketing catalog.
- 2000Art Director, DigitalDouglas–DanielleWebsites and microsites from concept through preproduction.
- 1997–2000Studio Artist to Art DirectorHavasBuilt an in-house high-resolution photo studio and moved into art direction.
- 1990–1993Production & DesignMcKnight Kurland / Vision ProductionLayout, electronic publishing, packaging mechanicals, and typography.
About Kevin
My first title was Macintosh operator. “Mac op” sounds like part of the military, but it meant preproduction and print production: separations, mechanicals and type that had to survive a press. That is still how I work. The idea comes first, and the last two words of every paragraph come right after it. I don’t think a senior art director gets to skip either.
Since then I’ve built an in-house photo studio at Havas, set design standards for a national educational publisher, and art-directed Cricket Wireless retail across the whole path to purchase at TPN / Omnicom. Today I use generative tools the way I once used a photo studio: directed, retouched and held to the same standard as everything else.
Images run in the family: my grandfather and my uncle were both photographers, and we had a darkroom in the house. I trained at College for Creative Studies and Wayne State in Detroit, back when everything was done by hand. Now I’m in Chicago, where I bike everywhere and come home to Franklynn, a tuxedo cat also known as Franklynn Goes to Hollywood.
About this site. Designed by me in Figma and built in HTML, CSS and JavaScript with Claude. The hero is drawn live in WebGL. Type is Archivo Black, Archivo and IBM Plex Mono, and a small script ties the last two words of every line together so no word sits alone. Keyboard navigation, reduced-motion support and alt text throughout. Hosted on Cloudflare.
Let's talk
I'm open to senior creative roles, freelance projects and extra help when a deadline gets close. If something here fits what you're working on, I'd be glad to hear from you.
- Full-time rolesSenior art director and design lead positions, Chicago or remote.
- Projects & retainersCampaigns, retail programs, brand systems and production.
- Agency overflowAn experienced pair of hands that needs no hand-holding.
Projects & retainersCampaigns, retail programs, brand systems and production.
Agency overflowAn experienced pair of hands that needs no hand-holding.
Résumé · PDF ↓Chicago-based · Remote by default · References on request
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