Many can say they have put their stamp on Park City. Few can say it as literally as Michelle Rayner of Cosmic Design. The vibrant new logo for the Park Silly Sunday Market? That’s hers - bright, joyful, “and as communal as the market itself,” she smiles. The interactive wall at the redesigned Hotel Thaynes that evokes our mountains and their stories? Also Michelle’s. “Pause, explore, and contribute your own memories,” she encourages.
Look for her creative touch on Park City Coffee Roaster packages featuring local topo maps and vintage photos, or on customized book covers. Michelle grounds her designs in the land, history, and cultures around us. “At the core is my passion for design and storytelling,” she says, often sparked by long walks around town, inspiring her personal goal of sketching 100 buildings this year. “I love how styles coexist in harmony here.”
Michelle discovered our mountains in 1992, arriving from her native Massachusetts. “There was something here both completely new and strangely familiar.” She was drawn to the layered quality of Mountainkind life. “The more time you spend here, the more it reveals itself.”
Her work captures our spirit well by blending new horizons with a deep respect for place. “I reimagine what has been and make it feel fresh, dynamic, and unexpected.”
“I also love power tools!” she exclaims, so the warm weather will find her tackling house projects, when she’s not painting canvases or clamming with family on Martha’s Vineyard. Winter is for skiing, après, and curling up with a good book.
Reflecting on the qualities that have earned her a prominent place in Park City’s creative scene, she advises, “Tune out the noise, stay consistent and true to your instincts, and give yourself the freedom to evolve.” Then, with a smile as she heads off for another long walk along Main, she adds, “And don’t lose your sense of enjoyment.”