MHS Artists

Tom Criswell

  • The son of an advertising executive and a television game show host, Tom was born in Caracas, Venezuela into an internationally-traveled, bicultural family where marketing and the media were typical topics of conversation around the family dinner table. Widely studied, he attended The Art Institute of Chicago while still in grade school, and then graduated from Saint Andrew’s Preparatory School before returning to Venezuela to study graphic design at the Hans Neumann School of Design. Soon after, Tom attended classes at Prodiseño and the Federico Brandt School of Fine Arts.

    Relocating to Miami in 2000, where he was active in the fine arts scene, Tom was asked to join the art department of a film crew to work on a television commercial. This fortuitous event set continued successful collaborations into motion, developing his career as an art director for countless commercials, music videos, short films and special events, as well as earning him production design credits for three feature films. 

    In addition, Tom has worked as a prop stylist for photographers such as Annie Leibovitz, Bruce Weber, Nigel Perry, and David LaChapelle. His portfolio of clients includes Target, Coca Cola, Ray-Ban, Vogue, Sak’s Fifth Avenue, Adidas, K-Swiss, Viacom, Discovery Networks, Proctor and Gamble, Trojan, Old Navy, KFC, Dolce & Gabbana, Nissan, Telemundo, Univision, CBS, DSW, American Airlines, Bayer, Home Depot, Lowe’s, McDonald’s, National Geographic, Allure, Chloé, Panasonic, Sony, Minolta, AT&T, and Kellogg’s, among others…

    Tom’s creativity is propelled in large part by logic, resourcefulness, innovation, and the ability to improve upon any undertaking—all of which have brought him to where he is today. He currently lives in Miami with his wife, Claudia Tirado, and their two children— Sofia and Adam.