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From “Queer Eye for the Straight Guy” to the announcement of Viacom’s new gay network LOGO, this past year has shown a dramatic evolution in gay imagery and themes in television, advertising and design. But do these images change people’s ideas or reinforce stereotypes? Has marketing to a gay audience eclipsed gay activism? How does one create work for a gay audience? Are all designers gay? GAY-I.G.A. will be an informative exploration of these questions and more by a panel of designers, journalists and artists who are creating provocative work for and about gays and lesbians.

Stephanie Gibbons
The senior vice president for advertising and promotions at Showtime Networks Inc. She is responsible for the development and oversight of all of Showtime’s consumer and trade advertising and promotional campaigns. Gibbons spearheaded campaigns for numerous Showtime originals including the hit series “The L Word” and “Queer As Folk.” While at Showtime, Gibbons has held various positions including vice president, advertising and creative director for Red Group, Showtime Networks’ in-house advertising agency. Gibbons holds a B.A. in English and Journalism and a B.S. in Mass Communications from Miami University in Oxford, OH.

Carrie Moyer
A New York-based painter, graphic designer and one half of the public art project, Dyke Action Machine! (DAM!). Her paintings and design work have been widely exhibited and reviewed in both the U.S. and Europe. DAM! is a two-person public art project founded by Moyer and photographer Sue Schaffner. Since 1991, DAM!’s culture-jamming campaigns have dissected mainstream advertising by inserting lesbian images into recognizably commercial contexts. During the 1990s, she created agitprop for many lesbian and gay organizations, including the Lesbian Avengers, Queer Nation and the Irish Lesbian and Gay Organization. Moyer teaches at the Mason Gross School of the Arts, Rutgers University and Queens College.

Maurice Vellekoop
Was born in Toronto in 1964. He studied communication and design at the Ontario College of Art from 1982 to 1986. Maurice started illustrating and showing his work during his third year at College. Since then, he has worked for almost every major editorial publication in North America as well as for design, book publishing and corporate clients. In addition to his own illustrated comics, he is the creator of Maurice Vellekoop’s ABC Book: A Homoerotic Primer.

Michael Wilke
The executive director and founder of the Commercial Closet Association. His syndicated column about gay marketing and media appears on gay.com, AdForum.com and leading gay newspapers. He has written about gay advertising and media for Advertising Age, The New York Times and The Advocate and has appeared on “Entertainment Tonight,” “Extra!” and VH1. He studied journalism at the School of Visual Arts in New York City.

Drew Hodges, moderator
The creative director of Spot Design, an award-winning design studio established in 1987, specializing in entertainment graphics. Drew launched SpotCo in 1997, a full-service advertising agency specializing in the theatrical industry. SpotCo’s client list includes the Broadway and Off-Broadway productions of “Avenue Q,” “I Am My Own Wife,” “Frozen,” “Sight Unseen,” “De La Guarda,” “Annie Get Your Gun,” “The Vagina Monologues,” “Rent,” “Chicago,” “La Boheme,” “Man Of La Mancha,” “Wonderful Town” and “Bombay Dreams.”