Gary Koepke

Gary currently serves as chief creative officer, North America at SapientNitro. In this position, Gary leads SapientNitro’s visionary of redefining storytelling for the always-on world. 

Prior to joining SapientNitro, Koepke served as chief creative officer of Modernista!, an agency he co-founded in 2000. Modernista! produced some of the most award-winning and successful advertising of the past decade for brands like Hummer, Cadillac, TIAA-CREF,Budweiser, GAP and Project (RED). At its height, Modernista! grew to more than 235 people and was recognized with numerous accolades including its recognition as a top ten independent agency.

Under Koepke’s leadership, Modernista! was named Regional Agency of the year by Adweek and was acknowledged as a Top 10 Independent Agency by Campaign Magazine. Additionally, the company was recognized by Time Magazine as a producer of one of the Top Ten Best Advertising campaigns of the Year for The Gap. Other accolades include: The Wall Street Journal for the Best Spot of the Year for The Great Race, more commonly known as "Happy Jack”;AdWeek’s Best Spots of the Year for Cadillac, Khakis, Hummer H3, Escape; and Entertainment Weekly’s The Must List for U2’s popular music video for their 2006 hit song “Window in the Skies.”

Koepke was also the founding creative director of Vibe Magazine and his work has been presented at the DNP Gallery in Japan, which has named him one of America’s top designers. His work has also been shown in the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum, and is in the permanent collection at the Museum of Modern Art (MOMA). Koepke has won many awards over the years, including: Gold Pencils, Best of Show at ADC, AICP, D&AD, Best of Show at Society of Publication Awards, the Webbys People’s Voice Award, Clios and Andys. He sits on the Board of Directors for BoulderDigital Works at the University of Colorado at Boulder and previously served on the ADC board.

In addition to his acclaimed advertising portfolio, Koepke directed music videos for U2 and music icon David Bowie.  Prior to founding Modernista! Koepke was creative director at Wieden+Kennedy where he worked on brands such as Coca-Cola, Nike and ESPN. He also opened Wieden+Kennedy’s New York office in 1999.