We have updated our jury page with this year’s guest judges:
Meet The 2009 Guest Judges
Eric Nakamura, Publisher / Co-Editor
Eric graduated from UCLA with a degree in East Asian Studies in 1993. He got his start in magazine making through a stint at the Santa Monica College newspaper, The Palisadian Post newspaper, various zines, and Larry Flynt Publications. In 1994, he started Giant Robot magazine and in 2001 opened the first Giant Robot store in Los Angeles. Today there are Giant Robot stores in LA, SF, and NYC and a restaurant called gr/eats also in Los Angeles. Each location features the newest in Asian popular culture products along with monthly art exhibitions. Nakamura also curates exhibitions outside of his shop spaces for clients such as Toyota Scion, University galleries, and the Japanese American National Museum. In addition to publishing issues of GR, Nakamura has made an independent movie called Sunsets, shot photos for punk rock bands, and designs t-shirts. http://www.giantrobot.com/
Cathy Pitters and Torie Nguyen – Founders, Crafty Wonderfland
Cathy and Torie first met as members of the local craft collective, Portland Super Crafty. They both have been making and selling their own handmade wares for years and saw that Portland was lacking in a regular venue for crafters. The pair decided to create Crafty Wonderland – Portland’s first monthly indoor art + craft extravaganza. Since it’s inception in April of 2006, the event has gained a large following of loyal shoppers and vendors and has received glowing reviews in both local and national press. Crafty Wonderland: http://www.craftywonderland.com
Matthew Stinchcomb – VP at Etsy Inc.
Matt Stinchcomb, a.k.a. matt, has known Etsy since it was just a twinkle in Rob Kalin‘s eye. Matt was Rob’s roommate when the Etsy’s founders were first launching the site, and he joined the team as one of Etsy’s first employees. He shepherded Etsy through the heady start-up days — doing everything from screenprinting tote bags to hobnobbing with the press, from designing ads to handling Etsy’s marketing and communications, from founding Etsy Teams to Etsy’s “Artist-in-Residence” program (that only happened once). Since Etsy has been hiring more Admin, Matt has now passed on several of the hats he’d been wearing for many years. Today, in his role of VP of Community, he keeps us all honest (and hosts a dance party or two in the Virtual Labs). He’s a beloved co-worker — and we have an epic list of Fun Facts to prove it. http://www.etsy.com/
Natalie Zee Drieu – Senior Editor at CRAFT Magazine / Founder of Coquette
Natalie Zee Drieu is Senior Editor for CRAFT, heading up the popular DIY craft site targeted for the new generation of crafters. She has brought her crafting know-how to TV appearances for shows such as “The View from the Bay”, “Bay Area Backroads”, and “The CBS Early Show”, as well as conferences and trade shows like SXSW and the Craft & Hobby Association Show. Her fashion blog Coquette, http://coquette.blogs.com covers her love of fashion, technology and crafts and is rated one of the Top 99 Most Influential Style Blogs (http://www.signature9.com/style-99/). When she’s not running after her daughter Chloe, Natalie loves to knit or crochet while watching good reality TV. http://www.craftzine.com