The American Design Club (AmDC) was conceived in the spring of 2008. At that time, America's relevance in the design world was being questioned, with some postulating that US-based designers would never be as influential or productive as their European counterparts. Looking around, however, all we saw was talent and ambition in our fellow American designers, from close friends to former employers to recent design school graduates. What was missing was an avenue for these designers to share their work with a broad audience.The AmDC's founding members resolved to improve the situation by creating a platform from which designers could launch new ideas and connect with one another.