Joe Stafford

Graphic artist, illustrator, designer, videographer, photographer, reporter, writer, editor, art director After about five years as a successful freelance multimedia artist, I've been a full-time employee at Bluebonnet Electric Cooperative since September 2017. I create full-color, multi-page graphic reports, murals, giant illuminated logos, large-format window clings, posters, bill stuffers, monthly magazine sections, social media elements and videos and innumerable other forms of communications reaching the co-op's 90,000-plus members. I combine an expertise in writing and editing with a flair for visual design and attention to detail. I'm comfortable in a fast-paced, deadline-oriented environment. Our team at Bluebonnet won the industry's highest national honor, the Edgar F. Chetsnutt Award, for best Total Communication Program in 2015, from the National Rural Electric Cooperative Spotlight on Excellence. I've won numerous awards from my work from the NRECA and the Society for News Design, among others. At the Austin American-Statesman, I worked for 20 years, mostly in the newsroom with an emphasis on graphic feature design. My final year at the paper I helped put together a team of innovators called Client Solutions, an in-house ad agency working with clients to come up with fresh ways to connect businesses with audience across all media platforms. That team also worked on in-house marketing projects, finding new ways to reach both audience and advertisers. I create primarily in the Adobe Master Suite: PhotoShop, Premiere, Illustrator, InDesign and Flash. Personal interest in Buddhism, which I've been actively practicing for many years.