Marathon Man

by Tatyana Sinioukov

What makes Steve Renick get up every morning? How does he manage, after having been designing books for quite a few years, to keep his projects innovative and his approach fresh? The answer is simple. He really, really likes what he does

Steve Renick wears many hats, and they all seem to fit him comfortably: He is art director at the University of California Press, owner of Anselm Design (the work of which was included in the AIGA "50 Books of the Year" in 1998), and he has been teaching design at the California College of Arts and Crafts (CCAC) since the late 80s. The course Renick teaches focuses on book design; he teaches it in cooperation with Tom Ingalls of Ingalls and Associates, who has extensive book publishing and packaging experience, and Michael Carabetta, creative director for San Francisco-based Chronicle Books.

The graphic design program at CCAC is recognized for having produced many internationally recognized designers, Renick notes with pride, and the program's dean, Michael Vanderbyl, is this year's recipient of the AIGA Medal. In addition to teaching at CCAC, he says he engages in committee work and acts as an academic advisor and mentor there.

Renick has also taught the extension program for design at the University of California, until he became consumed by another passion that, he said, left no time for teaching that program--playing blues bass. If that's not enough to fill his days, Renick lectures on design and production and speaks at such industry events as the Bookbuilders West meetings and the BookTech conferences.

"Teaching is one of my real passions," Renick admits, noting that the art directorship at UC Press requires the most commitment. "My day starts early and often ends late, but I Iove my work."