Senior Project Director, JRA
Throughout his career, Schmidt has worked on a wide variety of design projects entering each at different stages of their development. Design roles have ranged from early master planning/concepts to final design deliverables. field art direction and construction administration.
A capstone project while he worked for PGAV Destinations was his involvement as an exhibit designer for the Space Shuttle Atlantis exhibit for the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex.
Previously, he worked as design coordinator and the assistant art director at Ferrari World Abu Dhabi, which opened in 2010 as the world’s largest indoor theme park featuring more than 20 state-of-the-art attractions covering 925,000 square feet. On Ferrari World he entered the project at early attraction concepts in 2006—and continued through all phases of design, fabrication oversight and site installation—completing at the grand opening in 2010. The opportunity on Ferrari World proved concept-to-market exposure for the life of attraction development within an international forum of mixed cultures with varied strategies for implementation.
Schmidt earned a master’s degree in set design for the theater from the University of Missouri Kansas City in 1998 and a bachelor’s degree in painting from the Cleveland Institute of Art in 1995.
Statement of Candidacy
Since 2013, I have been fortunate to hold IDSA St. Louis Chapter leadership roles as chapter chair, co-vice chair and education chair. During my two-year term as chapter chair, I led the chapter in more than 20 events, large and small, amplifying marketing and visibility, emphasizing community outreach and seeing marked growth in continuously well attended events as an outcome from lessons learned and our passion for building a great chapter.
For the past three years, I have led the 4th, 5th and 6th IDSA-STL Student Design Competitions—attracting students from university ID programs from across the Midwest with growing impact and attendance.
Another signature event which I helped lead that attracted a large audience from our St. Louis community included a presence from our headliner, Eames Demetrios, grandson of Charles Eames, and chair of the Eames Foundation at an event entitled Fusion, which was part of St. Louis Design Week 2013. He presented “Never Delegate Understanding,” followed by a book signing.
As the Midwest District Representative, I would continue to be an ear on the ground for our Midwest chapters; be present with them; and support them in every way possible. I want to ensure that they feel appreciated as well as connected and growing as a part of our IDSA national community.
I want to be a positive liaison to our chapter director and IDSA Board of Directors. I am confident that I have the right professional background, interpersonal skills and drive to achieve these objectives at a high level. Your consideration is much appreciated.
St. Louis Education Chair: 2016-2017
St. Louis Chapter Chair: 2014-2016
St. Louis Chapter Co-Vice Chair: 2013-2014
