Alex Tatusian is a creative director and graphic designer.

He’s the deputy creative director at the San Francisco Chronicle, shepherding digital storytelling projects and design standards.

design & photo direction, design, some code

He was formerly the deputy design director for digital projects at the Los Angeles Times, working on digital story design and long-term improvements to the website and other platforms. Before that, he was the deputy editor of the Data and Graphics Desk.

design direction, design
design direction
design direction, some code
design direction, design, some code
design direction, some code

For select clients and collaborators, he serves as a design director or creative consultant on digital, print, and spatial media projects.

A bright title page from Bon Appétit's 2024 Best New Restaurants issue
A spread from Bon Appétit's 2024 Best New Restaurants issue reading Texas Barbecue's 26-year-old Maverick
design direction, web and print

Before the Times, he was the design director at The Marshall Project, a news organization reporting on criminal justice.

He designed and coded (and occasionally illustrated) ambitious stories, improved the website, oversaw design, and produced any physical or digital materials TMP needed.

An image of a browser frame with an orange outline of New York City with the text NEW YORK ON ICE on a black background
art direction, design, some code
An red line logo of prison bars being drawn back on one side like curtain fabric
branding, design
art direction, design, some code
art direction, design, some code
An image of the Death Penalty in America Facebook discussion group logo on a red background
branding, design
An animation of a woman with a Marshall Project tote bag spinning around
design
An illustration of two angles of a mugshot superimposed on top of each other
illustration

Alex takes on freelance work of many kinds but especially loves long working relationships that grow with time.

A cream-colored poster reading The Mess Age in mixed typography
art direction, design
A business card with the Rug and Vase logo one on side and David Chun's contact information on the other
branding, design with Sharanya
Text reading Bootleg Roasted Mesquite in a bronze font
design direction, custom type
A colorful poster for an engagement party with illustrations of wine glasses all over it
design, illustration

He was previously a fellow at the Center for Urban Pedagogy, where he designed a publication to elucidate New York City bail practices for families of the incarcerated.

The cover of a booklet reading Bail is Set Whats Next?
An illustrated spread from a booklet about paying cash bail
Six people sitting around a conference table looking at image ideas for a booklet project
art direction, design, illustration

That work led him to design and illustrate the first city-wide report on predatory equity in New York City's affordable housing system for Stabilizing NYC.

A red cover of a booklet on predatory equity on top of a yellow background
A map of predatory landlords on top of a yellow background
A graph of predatory equity techniques made of bricks on top of a yellow background
art direction, design, illustration

Until 2017, Alex was a designer at Bon Appétit, where he designed and art directed graphics for the print magazine, website, and video series. He produced a couple weird videos.

A magazine illustration featuring a coconut with milk coming out of it spelling Coconut
design, lettering
Three issues of Bon Appétit magazine with oysters, a donut and ramen on the cover
design, lettering
A magazine spread with hands eating out of the same bowl and text about Los Angeles
design, lettering
A title from a video reading Its Alive with Brad Leone
art direction, title design
concept, production, design

His practice is powered by improvisation, a collaborative (rather than hierarchical) approach to problem solving, and the use of simple design tools to do unusual things.

An album cover featuring a nutty collage and text reading Allora
art direction, design
The backside of an album reading Ben Seretan with a lot of psychadelic shapes and text
art direction, design
An orange album cover with random pieces of printed detritus and a yellow flower petal
art direction, design
A psychedelic poster about a Scree concert with wavy, altered ancient columns
art direction, design
A gray poster with text about an Early concert and illustrations of ancient artifacts
art direction, design

Since moving to L.A., Alex has designed titles and developed visual identities for films alongside his partner Sharanya Durvasula.

A film still reading Your Touch Makes Others Invisible in clay-like lettering on top of a sky
design direction, lettering, titles
A black background with white lettering reading Elodie
lettering, titles
A black background with white lettering reading Elodie
design direction, lettering, titles

Contact him at tatusian @ gmail dot com, and subscribe to his newsletter scraps of favor.

A newsprint poster about a film festival with punk rock typography
design
A black poster with red lightning and green and yellow information about a concert layered in
art direction, design
A stack of bound publications with an exhibition map and the words the third idiom on the front
design, risograph printing
A tape cassette case with blue transparent paper stood up against the light