Associate Director, Art / Senior Design

Job Description

Associate Director, Art/Senior Design - (Open to remote)

Random House Illustrated Books is the full-package art department which produces titles for Random House Worlds, Harmony/Rodale, Inklore, Waterbrook and Multnomah, and Ink & Willow. We are seeking both an Associate Art Director and a Senior Designer for our 4-color book cover and interior design team, focusing on high end lifestyle and gift products for Random House Worlds and Harmony/Rodale.

In this role you will design, manage, develop, and oversee full-package art and design aspects of our Random House Worlds licensed lifestyle books and gift products, and Harmony & Rodale illustrated books. Working in partnership with the Art Director and Publisher, Editor, and Production manager on every project from conception through completion, the ideal candidate will have experience designing full package books, trafficking and art directing freelance designers, trafficking and art directing freelance illustrators, art directing photo shoots, and internal management experience.

Responsibilities and duties:
• Create visually captivating covers and interiors for full-package highly illustrated books
• Art Direct and oversee titles with freelance designers and illustrators, and maintain design schedules and databases. Communicate feedback and share design work with art directors and editors, etc.
• Thorough understanding of the book design process and technical knowledge of book production
• Strong knowledge of typefaces and typography, full-color printing, RGB / CMYK color spaces, and image formats
• Work with the Creative Director, Publisher and Editor to identify the right artist or designer for every potential manuscript, or the right project for every artist of interest.
• Prepare interior and exterior mechanicals from creation to final product, including: designing layouts and choosing typography, setting up style sheets, templates and parent pages, etc. with great attention to detail
• Create mood boards for design, typography, and color
• Commission and direct freelance illustrators and photographers
• Provide feedback during and direct (if necessary) photo shoots.
• Maintain a current sense of design trends and seek out up-and-coming artists (designers, photographers, illustrators) of interest.
• Manage color printing process and preflight with oversight from manager
• Experience in 3-D gift design would be a valuable asset

Qualifications:
• Minimum of 5 years design experience in the field of full-package book design in cookbooks and lifestyle ; minimum of 7 years of experience to be considered at the Associate Art Director level
• Expert knowledge of longform illustrated book design in InDesign
• Ability to work collaboratively with in-house colleagues and external artists and authors
• Incredibly high standards of design and finished product
• A love of typography and pop cuture
• Exceptional attention to detail and organization
• Fluency/full competency with the Adobe Creative Suite
• Excellent writing and communication skills
• Ability to manage competing priorities while adhering to deadlines

The salary range for the Senior Designer is $70,000 - $80,000 and the range for Associate Art Director is $80,000 – $90,000. All positions are currently eligible for annual profit award or bonus, subject to Company results.

Penguin Random House job postings include a good faith compensation range for each open position. The salary range listed is specific to each particular open position and takes into account various factors including the specifics of the individual role, and candidate's relevant experience and qualifications.

Full-time employees are eligible for our comprehensive benefits program. Our range of benefits include, but are not limited to, Medical/Prescription drug insurance, Dental, Vision, Health Care/Dependent Care Flexible Spending Account, Health Savings Account, Pre-Tax and Roth 401(k), Short and Long-Term Disability Insurance, Life/AD&D Insurance, Commuter Benefits, Student Loan Repayment Program, Educational Assistance & generous paid time off.

Jobcode: Reference SBJ-gw36wk-216-73-216-202-42 in your application.