ALTPICK.COM

The Alternative Pick, Altpick*com and the Altpick Awards

In 1991 The Alternative Pick was founded to provide creative professionals with a vehicle to find the freshest illustrators, photographers and designers in the commercial art industry. This ambitious task was started with a mission to present only the best, brightest and most exciting artists in the industry through the creatively inspirational Altpick Pick sourcebook.

Fast forward 17 years, Maria Ragusa-Burfield, founder and owner, continues to provide buyers of art the most tantalizing work in the commercial art world. True to the original vision of staying cutting edge, Ragusa-Burfield has continued to push the envelope through the Altpick*com website, the Altpick Awards and now The Alternative Pick Deck.

altpick.com - The Ultimate Source for Creative Talent

The award winning altpick.com was created to answer the need to find illustrators, photographers, graphic, web and interactive designers and animators.

The site allows artists to directly access their portion of the site to update images and information at any time and as often as they would like. Visitors to the site can keep track of their favorites using my*altpick and are notified by e mail any time an image is updated. Keywording makes it easy to find specific talent.

This is an invaluable resource for editors, art directors, designers and buyers. Artist listings are free and a full membership is only $299 annually.

http://altpick.com

Altpick Awards

Now in it's fifth year, Altpick Awards was created to be an interactive part of our on-going and innovative program of promotional products and services provided to creative professionals.

Through the Altpick Awards artists can submit artwork and be part of the voting process. By having two separate votes - one by artists' peers and one by a jury of professionals in the industry - artists can take an active part in the outcome of the awards.

Winners from both votes are published in a limited edition "Altpick Awards publication." In addition, all winners and entrants are posted on the awards website after the voting has been completed.

http://awards.altpick.com

The Alternative Pick Deck

The first edition of The Alternative Pick book was published in 1992. It was created out of the need for art directors, art buyers, photo editors and all those in the advertising, editorial and music industries who hire creative talent to locate the most contemporary designers, illustrators and photographers for assignments. In an ever-changing industry, the method and means to find talent has changed. To answer the creative's need to find talent quickly and easily, The Alternative Pick book has now evolved in to The Alternative Pick Deck. Always on the cutting edge, this latest creative promotions piece sets The Alternative Pick apart and creates an innovative format for locating talent. Each 5 1/2 x 4 card is printed on both sides and packaged in a beautiful flip top box. The 2008 edition will feature a Photography Deck and an Illustration/Design Deck. The Decks are distributed to creatives nationwide.

The Alternative Pick Deck

Altpick Awards Site Design

NeverWithout: Naoya Wada and Mickey Cohen - http://altpick.com/naoyawada

Rich Tumang designed the 5th Annual Altpick Awards banner and logo. http://altpick.com/rich2. Rich is also designing the Altpick Awards limited edition publication.

		Maria Ragusa-Burfield - Owner and Founder Maria Ragusa-Burfield's career in the promotion and marketing industries began at The Creative Black Book working with her mentors, Marty Goldstein, Stu Waldman and Peggy Flaum in different segments of the business for 13 years. In 1991, with that base of knowledge, The Alternative Pick was born. The original directory filled a niche for the more "alternative" style artist. The mission to present the best photographers, illustrators, designer and new media talent continues through The Alternative Pick Deck, Altpick Awards and Altpick.com
		Benita Yen - Altpick.com Associate Producer Enticed into the design field by hallucinations of owning Richard Neutra’s Kaufmann House, Benita has fully embraced the role of great design in every field known to man. A career as a creative manager which led to account manager in various advertising agencies in NY, has prepared her for the fine balance of guiding creatives as well as ad guys and all those corporate types. Current challenge: Guitar Hero without carpal tunnel.
		Rich Tu - Designer Rich Tu is an illustrator and designer hailing from the Garden State. After graduating from Rutgers University in 2004, decided that being an artist was better than working at the mall. His work has been seen in the pages of The New York Times Book Review, Business Week, and SWINDLE Quarterly. Recently he designed the Alternative Pick Double Deck. Currently he is based in New York, pursuing an M.F.A. in Illustration at the School of Visual Arts, and discovering new places to sing karaoke.
		Jason Burfield - Tech Jason has spent his working years as a photographer and as a programmer, with all the programming being done to help photographers. He built this site (altpick.com) as well as the Altpick Awards site. Jason is also founder and technical lead (meaning, he does ALL the tech!) of SportsShooter.com. Jason also founded PhotoShelter as well. Jason has over 1 TB of photos of his son, Dylan, and rides a Harley BMW KTM BMW & KTM (again).