As an accomplished journalist, creative director, designer, George McCalman balances branding and design work for lifestyle, art, and food brands, while also tapping into the cultural zeitgeist as a writer. A cultural columnist for the San Francisco Chronicle, McCalman’s words inspire our society to think beyond preconceived notions of race. The San Francisco-based creative started his own company, McCalmanCo, in 2011. Since then, the self-described polymath and his multidisciplinary team of professionals have worked with several organizations to elevate their brands, including, the Nap Ministry, Umbre and Ochre, and We Are Lit. While co-leading McCalmanCo alongside Miriam Thompson, McCalman still finds time to write. In 2023, McCalman launched his first book, Illustrated Black History: Honoring the Iconic and the Unseen. His NAACP Award-winning book celebrates Black pioneers and serves as the precursor to his A March Through Time exhibition in San Francisco’s Pier 29 studio, which explores these pioneers through the Black community’s view of time. And if you catch his most recent Apple commercial feature, then you’ll see the creative hard at work doing what he does best, expanding how we engage with race and culture, one image at a time.