Creative Director (Art)

Creative Director, Art Director

StrawberryFrog is a strategic and creative agency that helps brands outleap their categories, moving from where they are to where they want to go. Founded in Amsterdam in 1999 and rooted in New York since 2001, we have built a reputation for work that does not just communicate, it moves people. We operate through OUTLEAP Thinking, our proprietary methodology that pushes brands to outleap their category, outleap their competition, and outleap the brief. It is how we solve bigger problems than clients come in asking for, and it is what makes the work matter. Our clients sit in some of the most complex, high-stakes categories in marketing, from financial services and healthcare to technology and beyond. We are not a generalist shop. We are a sharp, focused, independent agency that knows how to punch above its weight. And we are looking for people who want to help us keep doing exactly that.

Who You Are

StrawberryFrog is looking for a Creative Director, Art Director who can build ideas that help brands OUTLEAP. We want a design-led creative leader with taste, range, and a real point of view. Someone who builds visual worlds, not just layouts, and turns complex business challenges into ideas people notice, feel, and remember.

• You are a CD-level art director with craft across design, film, typography, photography, social, digital, AI, and brand systems.

• You turn complex business challenges into ideas people actually notice, feel, and remember.

• You can build fully integrated campaigns across film, social, digital, OOH, experiential, AI, and whatever else the idea needs.

• You understand that great work is not just beautiful. It has to move the brand somewhere bigger.

• You are comfortable in front of senior clients. You can sell brave work clearly, defend the thinking, and bring people with you.

• You are not precious, but you have standards. You can take feedback, move fast, and still protect the idea.

• If you already have a copy partner you love working with, even better. Bring them. Chemistry shows up in the thinking, the work, and the room.

Responsibilities

• Lead creative development from concept through production across major client work and new business.

• Build big campaign ideas, platform thinking, visual systems, brand worlds, social concepts, activations, and presentation decks.

• Build visual worlds, not just layouts. Bring taste across design, film, typography, photography, social, digital, AI, and brand systems.

• Use OUTLEAP Thinking to push briefs beyond the expected and find the bigger opportunity inside the assignment.

• Partner closely with strategy, account, media, production, project management, AI teams, copywriters, and outside vendors to get great work made.

• Direct and collaborate with directors, editors, designers, photographers, illustrators, AI artists, production companies, and makers.

• Present ideas to clients with clarity, confidence, and enough charm to make the room believe.

• Guide the work through execution so the idea does not get watered down along the way.

• Jump into pitches and help us win.

• Raise the creative bar without slowing the room down.

Qualifications

• 10+ years of agency experience as an art director or design-led creative.

• A portfolio that shows integrated campaign thinking, strong craft, and ideas built to travel.

• Experience working across complex categories, fast timelines, and senior client rooms.

• The ability to lead both large-scale productions and scrappy creative sprints.

• Strong presentation skills and the ability to earn trust quickly.

• A clear point of view on culture, design, and where the industry is going.

• Comfort with AI and emerging creative tools. You do not need to be a full AI artist, but you should be curious, fluent, and excited by where this is headed.

• A strong creative spine and a hunger to make work that matters.

• If you come as part of an existing art and copy team, send both books. We want to see the partnership, the range, and the kind of trouble you can get into together.

What We Offer

• Medical, Dental, Vision and Disability Insurance

• Hybrid work with at least one day per week in our Empire State Building office

• Wellness Reimbursement Program

• Work from Home Allowance

• Employee Assistance Program

• Company events and culture moments that actually mean something

Ready to Outleap?

StrawberryFrog is not your typical agency. We are a tight, high-output team of strategic and creative thinkers doing serious work for serious clients, and having a lot of fun doing it. If you are already operating above your title and looking for a place that will match your ambition, we want to hear from you.

Compensation and Equal Opportunity

The annual salary range for this position is $170,000-$210,000 in accordance with the Pay Transparency Act in New York. Final compensation will reflect the applicant's skills, qualifications, and experience. The full package includes medical, dental, and vision insurance, disability coverage, a 401(k) retirement plan, and paid time off.

StrawberryFrog is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, veteran status, or any other basis protected under applicable law.