Clarence "Cap" Pannell

1971, B.F.A., Graphic Design
Instagram: Cap Pannell
Website: CapPannellArt

Please tell us a bit about yourself.
When I was about four years old, my dad owned a 1951 Chevrolet sedan. I thought the car was as sleek and beautiful as a rocket ship. It stood out against many other cars in our little East Texas town, some of which were black Model A's. I asked my dad why they looked like they did, and he said, “They're old.”

So, in my child's mind, I thought that cars of brilliant candy-colored red, green and blue grew old and turned as black as Wayne Newton's hair, their sleek lines sprouting fenders and detached headlights like ear hair. Their curved windshields no longer at a rakish streamlined angle but rectangular and vertical as fence posts.

Breakthrough. When I was ready to retire from graphic design and illustration, I decided to try a third career-painting. Most of my works are cloudscapes and landscapes.I had made my first leap of the imagination.

Except for drawing constantly, there were few activities to foster that imagination in my small town. The closest thing to art was shop in high school, where I learned to make birdhouses no bird would live in. So, college was an experience that opened my eyes and my imagination.

Upon graduation, I got my first job at Stan Richards and Associates, the premier design studio in town. After about three years, I left to start my own business. Years later, I met my future wife, Carol, a very talented copywriter. After working together for a year, we married and formed Pannell St. George's design studio. We have enjoyed a marriage and a working relationship that has lasted 45 years.

What is the best advice you've ever received about working in an art- or design-related field?

Never have a job. It can be taken from you — opinion by Milton Glaser.

If you could go back in time, would you choose the same profession, specialty, etc.?

I have thought about this question many times. The other choice was archeology. I have always had an interest in human prehistory. One incident made me think long and hard about changing careers. This was in my first year as a graphic designer. I wasn't very good at it. Working for Stan Richards and Associates, I thought I would be fired at any minute. On vacation, I was in New Mexico visiting an archeological dig. The dig leader approached me and put something black in my hand. "Have some 1000-year-old campfire charcoal." Wow. Evidence of someone's campfire, meal, or attempt to keep a predator at bay eons ago struck me profoundly. I thought, "I've put in only a year at this point. Nothing to be lost if I start over. I could still go back to school and study archeology." But something amazing happened. As lousy as I thought I was, I won a gold medal in the Dallas Society of Visual Communications show a month or so later. That was a thrill. And it was the impetus I needed to continue my career as a graphic designer.

Brochure for Southern Methodist University. Entitled “How to Measure a Leader,” photos of different measuring devices, such as clocks, scales, etc., served as metaphors for measuring the varying degrees of leadership.

Was there a moment, class, or professor that has had a lasting impact on your career?
In my senior year, the incredibly talented illustrator Bart Forbes came to school as an adjunct professor in illustration. He was the first practicing professional to teach any art class at NTSU. Until then, classes were taught by academics with limited experience in design and illustration. It was the kind of wonderful class that I had never experienced.

During the summer semester, I took some classes to finish my degree. Bart called me one day and said Stan Richards was staffing up and suggested I see him. Stan Richards? Who's Stan Richards? I did not know the Dallas design community, let alone who was the star. Bart lent me a portfolio case because I didn't have enough money to buy one. Over the course of a couple of weeks, I called Stan asking about the job. With a tired sigh, he said, “Okay, you're hired. I'm going on vacation. I'll see you in two weeks.”

Thank you, Bart.

Physician Staffing Resources snake ad. PSR brought physicians and emergency rooms together with a contract that was very clear-cut with no hidden agendas or stipulations.

Ads for people to reduce cable cutting
Southwestern Bell. This phone company was experiencing a high number of cable cuts, mostly by heavy equipment used in construction. The three direct mail posters illustrated how an important phone call could be cut off due to cable cutting. Each poster was hand torn by an unfortunate printer.

Alzheimer's. This illustration for the University of Notre Dame's alumni magazine accompanies the story of a woman's slow descent into Alzheimer's.