—  About

Maria lee may be vertically challenged, but she “walks with purpose”. She’s been named:

“Creative Director of the Year” by Ad Age A-List & Creativity Awards | ”Creative Team of the Year” by Campaign US Awards | “Champion of Change” by Campaign US Awards | “Creator of World Changing Ideas” by Fast Company | “Rising Star of Madison Avenue” by Business Insider | ”Girlboss” by LinkedIn | 2x Cannes Young Lion | “Mother of Hounds” by friends & family

Maria is a fearless creative leader who puts brands at the center of culture through design thinking, storytelling, and technology. She’s led work at top agencies and Google, and is known for building teams that make creative AND effective work. The kind that takes courage.

Courage to challenge brands.
Courage to push boundaries.
Courage to take calculated risks and fail forward.

Beyond the work, Maria uses her voice to drive change. She’s partnered with the Association of National Advertisers, Ad Council, and 3AF to help lead the industry’s conversation around race and bring agencies together to fight racism/xenophobia. Her social impact work has been recognized by Fast Company (World Changing Ideas), Bloomberg, and leading non-profits including Stop AAPI Hate and Act to Change. Passionate about giving back, she created “Project Honor” to help raise funds for various AAPI communities across the country. A true passion project in partnership with GoFundMe and the world-renowned artist, Victo Ngai.

She teaches, mentors, and juries globally— nurturing diverse talent and building the future of creative leadership.

Give her a shout: marialeedesign@gmail.com

—  Get In Touch

Email
LinkedIn
RECOGNITION

Ad Age A-List & Creativity
Campaign US Inspiring Women
Business Insider
Fast Company
Girlboss
Bloomberg News
WARC
Ad Council + Asian American Marketing & Advertising Townhall
ABC News, Al Jazeera
3AF, Ad Council - Love Has No Labels
D&AD
Clio Awards
One Show
Art Directors Club
Festival of Media North America
The Webby
Graphis Advertising Annual
2014 + 2016 Cannes Young Lions
Muse by Clio
National Addy Awards
US Ad of the Week
Creativity - Editor’s Pick
MediaPost Awards
Direct To Consumer Ad Awards
Shorty Awards
Hatch Awards 

—

Experience

Droga5
Goodby Silverstein & Partners (GS&P)
Google
72andSunny
BSSP
Arnold Worldwide
Rhode Island School of Design (RISD)

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Clio Awards Jury
Campaign US Inspiring Women Awards Jury
ADC of Canada Jury
ANA Multicultural & Inclusive Marketing Jury
Festival of Media North America Awards Jury
Webby Awards Jury
Shorty Impact Awards Jury
AdForum PHNX Jury
Creator of Respond2Racism
Co-founder of GS&P’s first AAPI ERG
Creative Education Volunteer @ 826 Valencia
Instructor at r/advertising school on reddit
4A’s Multicultural Advertising Intern Program

—

BRANDS

Instacart
Starbucks
Xfinity
Google
Central Garden & Pet
Journeys
J.P Morgan | Chase
Smithsonian
NCSOFT Games
Panera Bread
Pepsi Co | FritoLay
Nature Made
Allergan
HTC
Warner Bros
New Balance
Jack Daniel's
University of Phoenix
Mill Valley Film Festival
CenturyLink
Avocados from Mexico
Aetna Health Insurance
Legacy | truth
CVS Pharmacy
Panasonic
Dell