This Newark graphic designer is co-organizing TEDxWilmington

Rhianon Husmann’s job in one word? Inspire.
The Newark-based graphic artist (yes, named after the Fleetwood Mac hit) designs everything from brochures, business cards and posters to logos and websites. It’s through those media that Husmann is able to exercise her passion for lifting spirits.
“My love for design really is in illustration and inspiring others through art,” she said. “A few years back when I decided to really make something out of this whole inspiration illustration thing, I decided to take inspirational quotes and start illustrating them, creating pieces of art out of motivational quotes. Those are pretty much what got me through tough times in my life, so I’ve always been inspired by other artists who create motivational artwork.”
Besides the work Husmann does for her clients in Delaware and Philadelphia, she also shops her work on Etsy.

Husmann’s inspiration to create inspirational design was an instructor she had when she was going to school for graphic design at the Art Institute of Pittsburgh. The instructor was giving a lecture on getting out and getting to work.
“At the end of the lecture he said, ‘If not now, then when?’ That really resonated with me,” Husmann said. “If I wasn’t going to start putting all of my effort into my design and illustration, then when was I going to start?”
Husmann said she still keeps that mantra stowed away in the back of her mind. If she’s feeling a little down or particularly lazy, she’ll always refer back to those words: If not now, then when?

“That’s when the ball started rolling for me,” she said.
But as any freelancer will tell you, it’s not easy getting started. When Husmann graduated and came back to Delaware, there was a void — she no longer had proximal access to the network she had built for herself back in Pittsburgh.
So, brick by brick, Husmann began building another one in Delaware.
“If you don’t have connections in your community, you’re going to struggle,” she said. “You have to get involved in local events. If it’s just volunteering, you have to put out the effort to get something back.”
Given Husmann’s taste in design, it’s fitting that she decided to get involved with TEDx — the TED slogan being “Ideas worth spreading” and all.
“One of my girlfriends in Pittsburgh is the co-organizer of TEDxPittsburgh,” she said. “In March I attended their event and pretty much fell in love with TEDx and decided I needed to come back to Delaware and get involved.”
Now, Husmann is a co-organizer for TEDxWilmington. This year the annual conference will be at The Queen on Oct. 28. It was already sold out going into October. Husmann said it will be a “well-rounded mind-body educational experience.
“I love the message of ideas worth spreading,” she said. “It really correlates to what I do.”