Creative Director + Designer
Digital + Traditional
Creative Director + Designer
Creative Director + Designer
Favorite Cookbook Design
Chef Nanette Smalley
2025
2025
Insight
Bringing Chef Nanette Smalley's Culinary Legacy to Life
"My creative director, Tanya, brought everything together with her exceptional layout and graphic design skills and her endless patience. Her ability to see my vision and execute it with clarity was astounding." – Nanette Smalley
The Challenge:
Chef Nanette brought her love and half a century of culinary expertise, personal narratives, and a vision to create something for her family that would outlast her career. I needed to craft a tangible legacy that captured her distinctive voice, celebrated her journey in food, and created an heirloom-quality piece that would inspire generations of home chefs.
Deliverables
Phased Production Timeline
Regular Creative Consultations
Team Alignment
Creative & Art Direction
Conceptual Sketches
Book Storyboard
Page Layout Design
Pre-Press Production
Industry
Cooking & Hospitality
Year
2025
Client
My Role
Art direction for both design and photography required careful balance — food styled beautifully next to the kitchen, at the time it was made. It was a rare cookbook photoshoot with no food additives or false items were added to the plates. We all agreed we required exacting standards. I selected colors that reflected the southwest, and her home in California. The linen cover added the heirloom quality, with texture that invited touch, and binding that allowed the book to lay flat during use. Special attention was paid to durability—this book was designed to be splattered, dog-eared, and handed down.
Team
Creative Direction & Design Photography (Case Study) Tanya Jessica Written by Nanette Smalley, Oak Porcelli, and Kevin Cain Food Photography & Video by Roxanne Turpen, Peter Farr BW Photography Project Management Gina Pennock
Insight
Bringing Chef Nanette Smalley's Culinary Legacy to Life
"My creative director, Tanya, brought everything together with her exceptional layout and graphic design skills and her endless patience. Her ability to see my vision and execute it with clarity was astounding." – Nanette Smalley
The Challenge:
Chef Nanette brought her love and half a century of culinary expertise, personal narratives, and a vision to create something for her family that would outlast her career. I needed to craft a tangible legacy that captured her distinctive voice, celebrated her journey in food, and created an heirloom-quality piece that would inspire generations of home chefs.
My Role
Art direction for both design and photography required careful balance — food styled beautifully next to the kitchen, at the time it was made. It was a rare cookbook photoshoot with no food additives or false items were added to the plates. We all agreed we required exacting standards. I selected colors that reflected the southwest, and her home in California. The linen cover added the heirloom quality, with texture that invited touch, and binding that allowed the book to lay flat during use. Special attention was paid to durability—this book was designed to be splattered, dog-eared, and handed down.
Deliverables
Phased Production Timeline
Regular Creative Consultations
Team Alignment
Creative & Art Direction
Conceptual Sketches
Book Storyboard
Page Layout Design
Pre-Press Production
Industry
Cooking & Hospitality
Favorite Cookbook Design
Chef Nanette Smalley
2025
Insight
Bringing Chef Nanette Smalley's Culinary Legacy to Life
"My creative director, Tanya, brought everything together with her exceptional layout and graphic design skills and her endless patience. Her ability to see my vision and execute it with clarity was astounding." – Nanette Smalley
The Challenge:
Chef Nanette brought her love and half a century of culinary expertise, personal narratives, and a vision to create something for her family that would outlast her career. I needed to craft a tangible legacy that captured her distinctive voice, celebrated her journey in food, and created an heirloom-quality piece that would inspire generations of home chefs.
Deliverables
Phased Production Timeline
Regular Creative Consultations
Team Alignment
Creative & Art Direction
Conceptual Sketches
Book Storyboard
Page Layout Design
Pre-Press Production
Industry
Cooking & Hospitality
Year
2025
Client
My Role
Art direction for both design and photography required careful balance — food styled beautifully next to the kitchen, at the time it was made. It was a rare cookbook photoshoot with no food additives or false items were added to the plates. We all agreed we required exacting standards. I selected colors that reflected the southwest, and her home in California. The linen cover added the heirloom quality, with texture that invited touch, and binding that allowed the book to lay flat during use. Special attention was paid to durability—this book was designed to be splattered, dog-eared, and handed down.
Team
Creative Direction & Design Photography (Case Study) Tanya Jessica Written by Nanette Smalley, Oak Porcelli, and Kevin Cain Food Photography & Video by Roxanne Turpen, Peter Farr BW Photography Project Management Gina Pennock
Insight
Bringing Chef Nanette Smalley's Culinary Legacy to Life
"My creative director, Tanya, brought everything together with her exceptional layout and graphic design skills and her endless patience. Her ability to see my vision and execute it with clarity was astounding." – Nanette Smalley
The Challenge:
Chef Nanette brought her love and half a century of culinary expertise, personal narratives, and a vision to create something for her family that would outlast her career. I needed to craft a tangible legacy that captured her distinctive voice, celebrated her journey in food, and created an heirloom-quality piece that would inspire generations of home chefs.
My Role
Art direction for both design and photography required careful balance — food styled beautifully next to the kitchen, at the time it was made. It was a rare cookbook photoshoot with no food additives or false items were added to the plates. We all agreed we required exacting standards. I selected colors that reflected the southwest, and her home in California. The linen cover added the heirloom quality, with texture that invited touch, and binding that allowed the book to lay flat during use. Special attention was paid to durability—this book was designed to be splattered, dog-eared, and handed down.
Deliverables
Phased Production Timeline
Regular Creative Consultations
Team Alignment
Creative & Art Direction
Conceptual Sketches
Book Storyboard
Page Layout Design
Pre-Press Production
Industry
Cooking & Hospitality
