Bill Cahan

Who is Bill Cahan?

Bill Cahan studied architecture at Washington University, St. Louis, and University of California, Berkeley. He became an architect and practiced at Anshen & Allen architects for five years, during which time, in addition to designing buildings, he was responsible for the rebranding of the architecture firm. In 1984, he left the architecture practice and started his own design consultancy, Cahan & Associates. He has lectured extensively around the World on the subject of design and branding for the Art Director’s Club, the AIGA, the London Type Director’s Club, at the RGD Ontario Design Thinkers Conference and at the HOW National Design Conference. He frequently judges design competitions for different design publications.

It is generally acknowledged within the design community that Cahan elevated what was at one time the dry and academic category of annual reports to a new level of quality and creativity. The "AR" not only became a powerful branding tool for otherwise difficult and uninteresting companies and organizations, such as those in biomedical, for example; Cahan's work inspired a whole new generation of creative people who began to see that annual reports and other under-appreciated media could become career-making creative opportunities.