Past Event
Wednesday, October 21 2026
6:30–8:30 pm
Business of Design
Legal & IP
Wednesday, October 21 2026
6:30–8:30 pm
Business of Design
Legal & IP
Legal perspectives in the design sector
The rules underneath the work. How creative businesses protect the idea, define the relationship, and avoid turning ambiguity into expensive problems.
Creative teams spend enormous energy thinking about the work and surprisingly little thinking about the agreements that make the work possible.
Matt Vittone and Elena Gurevich, get practical about contracts, scopes, intellectual property and the uncomfortable gray areas that show up between agencies and clients, before, during and after the work.
This conversation is moderated by AIGA NY board member Mike Perry of TAVERN.
Panel
Matt Vittone
Advertising, Marketing, IP & Media Attorney
Frankfurt Kurnit Klein & Selz
Elena Gurevich
Owner, EG Legal Services
Director of Development at Center for Art Law
Business of Design is an intimate roundtable series spotlighting the people who make great creative work possible but rarely get the spotlight.
Design is often celebrated through craft and creative vision. But behind every successful studio, agency, or in-house team is a group of operators, strategists, and leaders quietly holding the system together.
This series reframes “business” not as the enemy of creativity, but as its infrastructure.
Each session brings together experienced practitioners in a specific discipline for an honest, peer level conversation about what actually happens behind the scenes. Shared lessons and an open Q&A exchange with the audience.
Capped at 50 attendees, the goal is intimacy, candor, and usefulness. This is not about inspiration quotes. It’s about how the work actually gets done.
Event Series: Fresh Dialogue
These events are critical discussions that focus on current events, issues of cultural relevance and emerging topics in the world of design.
Photography and Video
Please be aware that photography and filming may be taken at this event for marketing and promotional purposes. If you do not want to be photographed or filmed, please speak to our team on the day.
Schedule
- 6:30 pm Doors open & check-in
- 7:00 pm Event begins
- 8:30 pm Event ends
Tickets
- Non-Member $45.00
- AIGA Member $35.00
Panel
Elena Gurevich
Elena Gurevich is an AI & IP attorney who works with founders and companies at the intersection of artificial intelligence, product development, and regulation. Her practice
focuses on the practical legal issues that arise when companies build, adopt, commercialize, or govern AI tools and AI-enabled products. Elena served on the EU General-Purpose AI (GPAI) Code of Practice Working Groups and is a recognized speaker on AI governance and policy.
Mike Perry - Moderator
Mike is the Founder and Chief Creative Officer of TAVERN, a Brooklyn-based creative agency focusing on food, beverage and hospitality brands. With 15+ years of success in building industry-leading brands, Perry made a name for himself, both brand and agency side, with stints at NBC Sports Network, Quaker City Mercantile, Stranger & Stranger, Jones Knowles Ritchie (JKR), Design Bridge and TikTok Creative Labs. He has been behind some of the biggest rebrands in the industry, with clients including Budweiser, Beam Suntory, Burger King, and Diageo.
Perry creates timeless brands by taking inspiration from the brand’s past while simultaneously reimagining their equities for contemporary tastes and standards. Through this signature “modern heritage” branding philosophy, Perry and Tavern pair strategic storytelling with archival stewardship. They build brands that resonate with today’s audiences, as is evident in recent work with brands such as Sizzler, Old Grand-Dad, Burt’s Bees, Overholt Whiskey, and Old Crow, to name a few.