From Illustrations to the Digital Age, Columbia Ad Agency Celebrates 20 Years

When company founder Jeff Antkowiak was asked what elements of the advertising business have stayed constant in the last two decades, he struggled to find any.

"Some days it feels like nothing’s the same,” said Antkowiak, whose Columbia-based company is celebrating 20 years this month.

ADG is hosting a variety of events celebrating its two decades in the business, including a with Jack Anderson, co-founder of the Seattle-based ad agency Hornall-Anderson.

Anderson’s agency is best known for its work designing the Starbucks logo.

ADG launched in September 1991 as a humble illustration studio and since that time, the ways advertisers reach their audiences has drastically changed.

When the company started out, Antkowiak said, most of the "proofs" or drafts, of items such as brochures and signs were drawn by hand. Today, nearly every project is created on a computer, making the process of creating advertising images much different, he said.

“It’s definitely a faster environment,” Antkowiak said. “It was crazy, you really had to have some skills back in those days that are not as necessary today.”

Last year, ADG expanded and moved into a larger facility. Its new home on 7151 Columbia Gateway Drive is twice as big as the former space, employing over 40 people.

Antkowiak said ADG has seen plenty of challenges in the past two decades. In the digital age, the company, with clients such as the Discovery Channel and Nickelodeon, has found success branching out into new markets like video advertising and electronic learning materials.

He said although the landscape is completely different, the goal remains the same. He wants to help tell a story, whether that story is about a new product, a television show or an online class.

With so much technology available to advertisers today, a good story can easily be traded for a flashy gimmick, said Antkowiak.

“I think that’s a big mistake,” he said. “Technology always changes, you can lose an audience if that’s all they have to rest on.”

ADG was recently ranked as one of Baltimore Magazine’s ‘Best Places to Work 2011.’ The company was also recognized by Inc. Magazine as one of the fastest growing privately owned companies in the country in 2010.

ADG Creative 20^th Anniversary Celebration Events: 

• Sept. 21 : , a discussion on the role of hand-drawn illustration in the digital age.
• Sept. 22: with advertising legend Jack Anderson.