About Graphic Presentations and its founder,
Porter Smith-Thayer
Working with fellow designers as well as keeping her own hands on the keyboard much of the time, more and more companies are discovering Porter Smith-Thayer’s energy, compassion and ability to know and understand the expectations of her clientele.
A graduate of Ohio University School of Design (with a second major in modern dance, by the way), Porter began work as a corporate image and packaging designer. (Remember your first margarine “tub”? The package may have been her design work.) From there she branched into the broadcast world and worked as the art director for WOUB-TV, a public broadcasting affiliate in Ohio.
Porter launched her independent graphic design career in 1979 with clients that included Ohio University, the United States Coast Guard, Kentucky Horse Park, the Kentucky Derby Museum (with Gerard Hilferty & Associates), the Academy of Natural Sciences (with Gerard Hilferty & Associates), and Stewart-MacDonald Manufacturing.
After moving to Richmond, VA in 1988, Porter founded Graphic Presentations, which today serves an impressive list of clients that span the public and private sectors. From Fortune 500 corporations to neighborhood nonprofits, Porter's services have garnered accolades for her ability to generate new ideas and take them successfully through implementation.
"What I enjoy most," says Porter, "is getting involved in the conceptual phase and working with people who understand the importance of good, clean design. Coming up with ideas that may never have been used, sharing these ideas with my clients, and together, creating a domino effect of new, fresh concepts makes my day absolutely fly by. I only wish there were more hours in the day. I love what I do."