ABOUT US
Shibui Design, LLC, was founded in 2005 in Atlanta, Georgia, by principal John P. Williams. A veteran exhibit designer with more than 25 years’ professional experience, John created his own firm after working as an exhibit designer in both large and small design/fabrication companies doing museum and trade show work around the world. By choice, he created a small, nimble organization to focus on design excellence and efficiency, powered by a select core of professionals who share his commitment to quality and client satisfaction.
Shibui Design has deep contacts in multiple disciplines within the exhibit world, enabling the firm to tap expert resources to build precisely tailored project teams, whatever the challenge. We remain small by design, maintaining a low overhead and focusing on delivering quality products, on time, and at the highest value for our clients.
John Williams
Founder, Principal, & Senior Exhibit Designer
With more than 20 years’ experience in the exhibit field, John has worked with many diverse teams on some of the highest-profile exhibits in the nation, including Hamilton: The Exhibition, The RMS Titantic traveling exhibit, and Cyclorama: The BIG Picture at the Atlanta History Center.
John holds a B.A. in architecture from the University of North Carolina/Charlotte and an M.F.A. in industrial design from Rochester Institute of Technology. Having worked at all levels of his industry, from initial design through shop fabrication to installation, he brings unsurpassed integrity and competency to his role as project manager and senior designer for all Shibui projects.
Michael Dubois
Design Director
Michael Dubois has been an exhibit designer and design director for a large Smithsonian-affiliated museum, the National Park Service, Fernbank Science Center, Atlanta, and several privately held national design agencies. A graduate of the Georgia Institute of Technology, Michael holds a B.S. in industrial design and an M.S. in architecture with a focus on interactive exhibitions.
Laureen Schlecht
Graphic Designer
Laureen is responsible for the graphic look and feel of some of the most notable museum exhibitions seen around the world, including Downton Abbey: The Exhibition and The Human Body Exhibition. She is known for her keen listening skills and highly imaginative creative designs. Laureen enjoys outdoor adventures and lives in Chattanooga, Tennessee.
Maria Karres-Williams
Social Media Director and Creative Consultant
Maria holds a B.A. in history and French and an M.A. in performance studies from University of North Carolina/Chapel Hill. Collaboration in the creative process is one of Maria’s key strengths. She believes that true and authentic creative collaboration can lead to outcomes that are far greater than the sum of their parts.
Faye Goolrick
Interpretive Planner
Faye is a professional interpretive planner, writer, and facilitator with years of experience researching and writing interpretive plans, exhibits, and interactive multimedia for museums, cultural and historic sites, and visitor centers for parks and other recreational sites.
A versatile interpretive professional, Faye routinely handles sites and subject matter ranging from the little-known maneuvers in the War of 1812 to rare Ozark fen ecosystems to STEM-focused state K-12 curriculum requirements. A Certified Interpretive Planner through the National Association for Interpretation, Faye holds a B.A. in English (Phi Beta Kappa) from Hollins College and an M.A. in history from the University of Virginia.
Detailed resumes and qualifications, as well as business references and applicable classification codes and certifications, are available upon request.