Reflections Magazine Issue #70 - Fall 2009 | Page 30

Profile

Creative Design
SHU’s Robert Conlon
Balances the Business
and the Artistic Realities
of Graphic Design

Faculty Profile

Robert Conlon’s teaching career originally
wasn’t by design.

with ideas. We are moving from the ‘information age’ into the ‘idea age,’ so finding
that creativity within themselves may be
the most important asset they will have
for the future.”

In fact, the former theology student had
sketched a different plan when he moved
to Chicago to study for his doctorate degree
in philosophy more than a decade ago.
However, because of his background in
audio and video production – and to pay
some bills – he accepted a job working as
an art director for a small design firm. This
eventually led to a marketing manager position for the movie company Paramount
Communications. Eventually, he began
teaching graphic design part-time at a
local college. It was there he discovered
his passion for teaching.
“I felt like I had found what I both loved
and needed to do,” Conlon said.
In 2007 Siena Heights University hired
Conlon as a full-time faculty member to
teach graphic design in its nationally recognized art department. At SHU, he has
brought a combination of real-world practicality and artistic innovation to the classroom. Finding the right balance for each
student is his goal.
“The first thing H