Craighton Berman

Craighton Berman is a Chicago-based designer, illustrator and creative strategist interested in shaping the future. The studio’s focus is bringing ideas to life—both for clients and as self-directed projects.

Craighton’s illustration practice is focused on the power and potential of the sketch. Guided by a background of industrial design and innovation consulting, his drawings and creative direction have been used to visualize new ideas & experiences, distill complex information, facilitate conversations and tell stories.

Craighton's industrial design practice is focused on running Manual, a home goods brand that creates products for slow living. Manual has independently launched over two dozen products, ran over 15 Kickstarter campaigns, has been featured in Wired & Businessweek, and has been sold through Crate & Barrel, CB2, MCA Chicago, The Cooper Hewitt Shop and "the internet".

Craighton has design work in the permanent collection of the Art Institute of Chicago; he was the first designer to use Kickstarter to launch a product; he has led courses on design entrepreneurship at UIC and courses on design sketching at SVA, IIT and SAIC, and his drawings are featured in a YouTube video with over 45 million views (it’s big in the elementary school scene).