Miguel Buckenmeyer

Senior Design Director

As a Senior Design Director, Miguel leads with a passion for the craft of design and a deep focus on typography. Miguel’s work demonstrates that when it comes to consuming media, beautiful typography and breathability are paramount across all devices. He mentors other designers on our design techniques and philosophy and is equally hands on with client projects. His key engagements include AdAge, Facebook, About.com, Scientific American and Engadget.

Prior to joining AREA 17 in 2013, Miguel served as Design Director at El Economista, the Spanish business newspaper that was named “World’s Best-Designed Newspaper” by the Society of News Design (SND). He worked as a consultant on the staff of The New York Times, The Washington Post and El Mundo (Madrid) and has participated in many magazine and newspaper prototype and redesign projects in the US, Europe and Latin America.

Miguel has won over two dozen awards from the Society of News Design, the Society of Publication Designers (SPD) and the Type Directors Club (TDC), with one of his designs for El Economista being named “Cover of the Year” by the Spain-Portugal chapter of the SND. In 2012, he served on the magazine and newspaper jury of the prestigious, London-based D&AD Awards that recognizes excellence in design and advertising.

Before becoming a designer, Miguel pursued an academic background in international affairs. He earned a Master’s degree from the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University, where he was a research assistant to former US National Security Advisor Anthony Lake and co-founded the Georgetown Journal of International Affairs. He has interned at the European Parliament in Brussels and the American Embassy in Lisbon, gaining foundational experience with governmental and international institutions.

Born to American and Spanish parents, Miguel grew up between Ohio and Madrid. Now Miguel lives in New York with his wife and five children.