Embracing a Punk Rock Attitude for Modern Design
Monday, June 29
2:45 pm - 3:45 pm (Chicago)You can design stronger, clearer work by questioning assumptions and designing with intent. In this session, Michael Mondragon shares a mindset-driven approach to modern design rooted in clarity, purpose, and judgment.
Using a “punk rock” attitude as a metaphor—not a visual style!—Michael challenges autopilot thinking, over-templated solutions, and trend-chasing. The focus is on making deliberate design decisions that serve the message, not the tool, template, or shortcut.
This session helps designers push back on defaults, trust their creative instincts, and create work that communicates more clearly, confidently, and memorably in today’s fast, AI-assisted design landscape.
You will learn to:
- Make intentional typography choices and find the right fonts
- Make non-destructive image enhancements in Photoshop
- Create textures from your own images
- Style and modify letter forms in Illustrator
- Bring it all together in InDesign