Dean Poole

Dean Poole is co-founder and creative director of Alt Group, a multi-disciplinary design studio based in Aotearoa New Zealand. He studied at Elam School of Fine Arts, University of Auckland, majoring in sculpture. During his career, Poole has created numerous projects of national interest and cultural significance.

He has created the brands for Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki, Auckland Museum Tāmaki Paenga Hira, Toi Tū, Black Grace Dance Company, Silo Theatre, Stolen Girlfriends Club, Objectspace, and the arts and creativity space Te Oro. He led the creative studio in partnership with mana whenua and Jasmax architects to design the new station thresholds for Auckland’s City Rail Link, a project that won the award for Cultural Identity at the 2019 World Architecture Festival.

Key national design strategies include the promotion of the creative industries for Brand New Zealand, the Better by Design Programme for New Zealand Trade and Enterprise, and the creative leadership of the global Fisher & Paykel brand. He has championed design integration across New Zealand design-led companies, including the seating philosophy for Formway Design that led to the development of the Generation chair for Knoll, and the brand strategy for UBCO electric adventure motorbikes.

He has completed major international projects for the Abu Dhabi Government, including the brand for the Abu Dhabi Media Office, Abu Dhabi Economic and Tourism campaign and the creative strategy for the new creative precinct, MIZA, in the Mina Zayed Port. His creative direction has been acknowledged with more than 500 international and national awards, including D&AD, the German Design Prize, Red Dot Grand Prix, Tokyo TDC, One Show, IF Design, Webby Awards, AGDA and the Purple Pin, Aotearoa New Zealand’s highest design accolade, eight times. In 2010, he received the John Britten Black Pin, New Zealand’s most prestigious individual design award from the Designers Institute of New Zealand for his contribution to design in New Zealand and internationally. He is a member of the Alliance Graphique Internationale (2010) and served as the AGI International President (2018-2022).