DESIGN GIRL MAGIC COLLECTIVE
We are Design Girl Magic — a creative 3-person team, based in the San Francisco area, with over 20 years of collective experience creating art — in the corporate arena, public sector, and as freelance fine artists. We are strong, talented, and complex women of color who live and breathe art. We collaborate to create. We are visionaries who work to tell stories and strive to promote community engagement and awareness through what we create. Our approach to large scale projects involves brainstorming, research, community outreach, and planning. We feel it is important, not only to create a beautiful aesthetic, but also to fully understand the project’s objective and successfully convey the intended message. Our mission is to take part in meaningful projects that promote awareness, insight change, encourage interaction and involvement, and spark creativity.
ARTISTS
VAL MARGOLIN
I’m Val Margolin, the Design Girl behind creative studio DesignGirlMagic! I’m a native Detroiter currently living in the San Francisco Bay Area. Focusing on surface design, illustration and large scale murals, my work is bold, colorful and quirky. I love to mix modern and vintage vibes into my projects, with a thoughtful attention to detail that brings a unique mix to my projects.
As a child of musical parents, I was born with the love of travel. I love to learn and bring elements from my travels into my work from my studies in West Africa, The Netherlands and Spain.
Trained as a Graphic Designer and Fine Artist, I have experience developing projects for clients large and small. Currently I have taken a pandemic pivot to follow my dream of working full time as a creative entrepreneur.
CRISTINA PARAISO CHAVEZ
I am a graphic designer with over 20 years of experience in various industries—Public Sector (LA County), B2B Magazine Publishing, eMedia Marketing, Catalog Design, Cosmetics Packaging, and Graphic Design Instruction.
Most recently, I took a leap of faith and left the stability of the corporate world to embrace my inner Fine Artist. In 2020, I joined the creative collective, Design Girl Magic‚ founded by Valerie Margolin.
And together, we are building a portfolio that showcases our mutual passion for art and design—one project at a time.
INSIYA DHATT
Insiya draws inspiration from both her birthplace in the desert of Rajasthan and the intensity of her hometown Mumbai. After receiving her Masters in Banking and Economy, she spent 15 years shaping the face of eCommerce. During the following years, she left her position in the dot-com world to devote herself to art.
Her artist books are held at university collections among which are RISD and Baylor University. David’s Ankles which was a collaboration with Bridget McGraw won the First Place prize at Marin MOCA’s Altered Book Exhibition.
In addition, she currently serves as a Board Member at Hand BookBinders of California and Focus on Book Arts
PROJECTS
DGM COLLECTIVE PROJECTS
ZSFGH Foundation Hearts in San Francisco 2022
FEATURED ZSFGH Hearts in SF ARtists
This year we are honored to have been chosen by the ZSFGH as featured artists in the Hearts in San Francisco 2022 Series. We’re creating a tabletop heart inspired by our repeat pattern called GiveLove, and a mini heart to commemorate the 150th anniversary of ZSFGH.
For more information about the ZSFGH Foundation: https://sfghf.org/hearts-in-sf-2023/
GiveLOVE Tabletop Heart Sculpture created by DesignGirlMagic for the 2023 Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital’s 2023 Hearts in San Francisco Series.
GiveLOVE on exhibition at the San Francisco Ferry Building as part of the 2023 Hearts in SF Fundraiser Series.
Wisdom’s Gift Mini Heart Sculpture created by DesignGirlMagic for the 2023 Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital’s 150th Anniversary Hearts Series.
Wisdom’s Gift on exhibition at the San Francisco Nieman Marcus Flagship Store in Unin Square as part of the ZSFGH 150th Anniversary Hearts Series.
FEATURED Let’s GLOW SF ARTISTS
Let’s Glow SF, produced and funded by Downtown SF and made in partnership with A3 Visual, is a projection mapping event that uses video projection techniques with light and colors to project virtual images from local and international artists onto iconic buildings throughout San Francisco’s Financial District. As the largest holiday projection mapping event in the U.S, this stunning journey of light will feature the works of local and international artists while celebrating the festive winter season in the heart of San Francisco.
Snowflake Garden digital mural by DesignGirlMagic on display at the inaugural 2021 SF Glow Holiday Projection Mapping Event at One Bush Plaza.
Ornament Drop digital mural by DesignGirlMagic on display at the inaugural 2021 SF Glow Holiday Projection Mapping Event at One Bush Plaza.
SFTrees digital mural by DesignGirlMagic on display at the inaugural 2021 SF Glow Holiday Projection Mapping Event at One Bush Plaza.
Dandelion Garden digital mural by DesignGirlMagic on display at the inaugural 2021 SF Glow Holiday Projection Mapping Event at One Bush Plaza.
MURALS
San Mateo Highlands Spring Craft Fair 2022
