Concerning this Concern

Dan Ibarra began his creative career at the end of the twentieth century, earning early recognition in 2000 with a Grammy nomination for Recording Package Design — predictably, losing to Madonna.

From 1999 to 2016 he was co-owner of the print and design studio Aesthetic Apparatus, whose work has been featured in Communication Arts Magazine, Creative Review, Swindle, Rolling Stone, and included in dozens of poster and design anthologies. His prints and posters have been recognized in numerous annuals, most notably a silver medal in the 2008 Chicago International Poster Biennial, a “Special Recognition For Excellence In Handcrafted Posters” in 2010, and inclusion in the Walker Art Center and Cooper Hewitt curated 2011 exhibition “Graphic Design: Now in Production.”

In 2015, Ibarra’s entrepreneurial concern merged with his interest in art eduction to briefly birth Schoolhaus, an experimental community art school blending continuing arts education, storefront schools, and peer mentorship.

In 2024 he earned a Creative Writing MFA from Augsburg University. His writing has been featured in Write or Die, and as a finalist in Terrain.org’s 15th Annual Nonfiction Contest.

Currently, Ibarra is an Assistant Professor of Art & Design at Augsburg University, the custodian of Thriving Concern, and co-owner of the design and branding studio Face of the Earth. He has recently been awarded the Honorary Lyz Wendland “My Laptop Was Stolen” Award, as well as the 2026 “Outstanding Moves!” award from the funk trio TH3 based on his expert knowledge of Edie Brickell & The New Bohemians’ guitar solo catalog. He lives in south Minneapolis with his daughter, his dog, her cat, and their thirty-nine plants.

Additional Concerns

Designer: Face of the Earth (2018–PRESENT)
Assistant Professor: Augsburg University, Dept. of Art and Design (2016–PRESENT)

Notable Past Concerns

Principal: Aesthetic Apparatus (1999–2016)
Adjunct Faculty: MCAD (2005–2010)

Exhibitions

  • “Garnish” (Solo Show) Gage Gallery, Augsburg University • 2019

  • POP MUSIC 1967-2017 Graphism & musique (Group Show) Cité Internationale Des Arts, Paris, Fr · 2018

  • East Coast Screenprint Biennial (Group Show) Arts Center, Troy, NY · 2014

  • NORTHERN SPARK (Print Workshop/Performance) MCBA, Minneapolis, MN · 2014

  • NATIONAL POSTER RETROSPECTICUS (Group Show) Touring Exhibition· 2013

  • “D.I.Y. PRINTING (Group Show) MMAA, St. Paul, MN · 2013

  • “GIG!” Rock Poster Exhibition (Group Show) Warner Brothers Studios, Los Angeles, CA· 2012

  • “Graphic Design: Now in Production” (Group Show) Walker Art Center, Minneapolis, MN ·2012

  • “PRO/CONFETTI” (Solo Show) Rotofugi Gallery, Chicago, IL · 2012

  • “Dead Wood” Print Folio (Contributor/Organizer) MAPC Conference, Minneapolis, MN · 2011

  • “Canktankerous Hellfighter” (Collaboration with Delicious Design League) The Family Room, Chicago, IL · 2010

  • “AAXI: Ten Years of Aesthetic Apparatus, One Year Late” (Solo Show) Minneapolis College of Art and Design · 2010

  • Art Crank (Group Show) Minneapolis, MN · 2009-2011

  • “Whose Piss Is This?” (Solo Show) First Amendment, Minneapolis, MN · 2008

  • “Cheap and Derivative” (Solo Show)OX-OP Gallery, Minneapolis, MN · 2006

  • “Poster Retrospective” (Solo Show) Subliminal Galley, Los Angeles, CA · 2006

  • “Poster Retrospective” (Solo Show) 9th St. Entry Gallery , St. Paul, MN · 2006

  • “Graphic Noise: Posters at 1,000 dBs” (Group Show) MCAD · 2006

  • “The Birthday Show” (Group Show) SSCA, Minneapolis, MN · 2005

  • “ENORM-O-PRINTS”, Foundation Gallery (Solo Show) Chicago, IL · 2005

  • “Almost Elegant”, Carlsten Gallery (Solo Show) UW, Stevens Point · 2004

  • “Plaster the Town”, Back Alley Gallery (Group Show) Minneapolis, MN · 2004

  • OX-OP Gallery (Solo Show) Minneapolis, MN · 2004

  • Flatland Gallery (Solo Show) Minneapolis, MN · 2003

  • Wendy Cooper Gallery (Two Person Show) Madison, WI · 2002