Dedicated Team

Our team of marketing experts, visual designers, web developers, and writers work closely with you to develop just the right strategy and the most appropriate solutions for meeting your organization’s communication goals. We are your personal, holistic communication gurus, your right-hand problem-solvers, your nonprofit experts. You can depend on us to get the job done right.

Kristine Merz
Ryan West
Melissa Hallock
Karen Barzilay
Kevin Duffy

Kristine has a passion (some might say obsession) with helping clients uncover, define, celebrate, and visualize their “Truth.” As a designer and founder of Orange Square, she has set out on a mission to help clients communicate their brand and mission more effectively. The connection between strategy and design is what matters most to Kristine. She creates solutions that are built on strategy, that are visually compelling, and connect with the target audience. It has to work on all levels to be successful, and results are what Kristine is after.

A graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design with over 15 years of experience creating visually compelling, award winning, messaging and brands, she is always looking for the right clients to partner and grow with.

Kristine has worked with clients such as Wenger Genuine Swiss Army Knife, Brown University, the Boston Stock Exchange, The Rhode Island Foundation, Cytyc Corporation, Rhode Island KIDS COUNT, United Way, New England Research Institutes, Holland Engineering, and Plymouth Rock Insurance.

kristine@orangesquare.com

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For Ryan, one of the coolest aspects of the work at Orange Square is that strategy comes first — perhaps an odd thing to hear from a designer who can’t wait to dive into color, typography, and imagery. It only makes sense — and the end result more rewarding — to chart the right course before designing. The other highlight (and an unexpected one at that) of this work is continually learning about new products, new services, new ideals — something almost always unrelated to graphic design itself but that needs to be understood thoroughly before strategizing and creating effective and memorable visual solutions.

As Art Director, Ryan is responsible for handling all stages of a project, from initial design concept through final production, which also includes client communication and art direction of photography and illustration. Ryan delivers strategic and innovative design solutions noted for their fresh, approachable, and creative focus.

Ryan is a graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design with 10 years of experience in visual communication. He is also the recipient of two Rebrand100 Global Awards for the rebranding of Holland Engineering and New England Research Institutes among other industry awards.

ryan@orangesquare.com

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Melissa brings a wealth of talent and experience to her position as Senior Designer. Graphic design is often thought of as a job of “pretty-making,” a complete misconception here at Orange Square. For her, design is not just about rich colors and exquisite typography (although she can’t get enough of it); it’s about a well-thought-out concept and execution that leaves an unforgettable impression on the minds of the target audience. The ability to design and strategize well, is what makes Melissa an invaluable part of the team.

Melissa’s day-to-day responsibilities as Senior Designer include working on projects from initial design concept through final production and collaborating with clients to achieve an effective and compelling end product. Her goal is to produce exceptional design work that delivers results.

Before joining Orange Square, Melissa was the Managing Art Director for Munroe Creative Partners, a Manhattan advertising firm. An award-winning designer, Melissa has worked with clients such as Polartec, Saucony, and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.

melissa@orangesquare.com

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Karen has worked in the field of strategic public relations and marketing communications for more than 15 years. In addition to spearheading product launches, corporate communications programs, special events, and direct response programs for a variety of organizations and Fortune 500 companies, Karen has highly specialized skills directing campaigns for consumer packaged goods and health/medical products.

As a result of counseling clients on a host of communications issues, Karen has designed and executed regional, national, and international public relations programs throughout her career. Through this hands-on, direct-to-consumer and business-to-business experience, Karen has generated widespread media coverage in a variety of trade, business and consumer print, broadcast and online media.

karen@orangesquare.com

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Kevin is one of the word-smiths at Orange Square, and not just because he’s the only one with a dictionary. He brings over a decade of experience as a copywriter and creative director to his job. Kevin’s primary responsibilities include creating solid creative strategies and developing the client’s brand through copywriting. He says he crafts copy the way a sculpture works a piece of marble: He works on it until slowly, but surely, the copy reveals itself to him.

We don’t know what that means either.

But it seems to work because he has been fortunate enough to work with a wide variety of great brands like SAAB, IKEA Furniture, Schick, Teradyne, TYCO, Nokia, Rockport Shoes, and Irving Oil.

kevin@orangesquare.com

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