Kern Toy

Kern Toy, a San Francisco Chinatown native, began his design career when his Junior High School teacher, Mr. Clarke introduced him to Michael Manwaring, a former CCA instructor and noted graphic designer who would later become his teacher.

Years later, he met an associate from Jonson, Pedersen, Hinrichs and Shakery, who hired him as an intern. He apprenticed for several years for the masters, Kit & Linda Hinrichs and Neil Shakery, while at the same time earning his degree at CCAC. Afterward, Kern made his way to New York to see the bright lights and big city, where he worked for notable designers Tomoko Miho, Edward Walter, Peter Bradford, and HLChu & Company.

He returned to the Bay Area where he has worked for many well-known design firms, including EnterpriseIG/SBG Partners, Primo Angeli, Inc., Pentagram, and Alterpop. Kern was previously an art director at Autodesk and an associate/senior designer at Alterpop.

He is currently restarting his own studio practice and is always looking for fun and exciting projects. He counts among his clients The Asian Art Museum of San Francisco, The Society for Asian Art, Embarcadero Technologies, UCSF Family House, UC Davis, Oracle, The San Francisco AIDS Foundation, and University Games. Lately, his practice has shifted from larger institutions to smaller local businesses. He is always happy to help people get their business off the ground.

Kern has been teaching at CCA since 1998, including program advising. He also has taught in the First Year Program. His work has been featured in the Print Regional Design Annual, theHow Design Annual, and IDN, a Japanese design journal.