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Cheers & Tiers: How Victor Davila Leads Five Communities Without Losing His Mind

Sometimes you meet someone who’s involved in so many creative communities that you wonder if they’ve secretly figured out how to clone themselves. Enter Victor Davila—Orlando-based illustrator, UCF professor, AIGA national board member, Creative Mornings host, Giant Illustrators founder, and apparently the human equivalent of a Swiss Army knife for design leadership.

Author

Rachel Elnar
May 24, 2025 • Estimated Reading Time: 5 minutes

Victor’s journey started back in 2011 when he joined the Orlando AIGA chapter. Plot twist: this guy who now seems to know everyone and their creative cousin was actually pretty introverted. His secret? He discovered that advocating for others magically makes you forget about your own nerves. It’s like when Ross from Friends adopted that fake British accent to get through teaching, except Victor’s superpower was genuine community care instead of questionable accents.

His wisdom bomb: everyone thinks everyone else is the cool kids, so nobody talks to anybody. It's like middle school all over again, except with better business cards and more artisanal coffee. The solution? Volunteer to organize events. Suddenly you have an excuse to talk to all those "cool" speakers you were too intimidated to approach. Victor went from being the person who'd attend events and leave without talking to anyone to becoming someone who creates the events and drags his friends along for the ride.

Leadership Retreats: Where Magic (and Pyramids) Happen

Ah, leadership retreats—where introverts go to become extroverts and everyone ends up in human pyramids that probably violate several safety codes. Victor’s first retreat was in Philly in 2013, where he met someone in a chipmunk costume who needed a bodyguard. Because apparently, that's how lifelong creative friendships begin.

The retreats weren’t just about the official programming. The real magic happened in converted church bars, on buses driving around Grand Rapids, and during those questionable pyramid photo ops. Victor learned that national board members were actual humans—shocking revelation—and discovered the beautiful evolution of retreat friendships: you start as “Hey Seattle!“ and “What’s up Orlando!” Then you graduate to actual names, which feels like a major relationship milestone.

Not all retreat memories are lighthearted. Victor’s Raleigh experience took a serious turn when the Pulse nightclub shooting happened in Orlando while he was away. But here’s where the creative community showed its true colors: board member Tibby Starks had already planned an entire “Love by Design” event during the plane ride home. Because when tragedy strikes, designers design—and they design with purpose.

The Art of Traveling in Packs

How does Victor balance UCF teaching, AIGA leadership, Creative Mornings, Giant Illustrators, and probably seventeen other things we forgot to mention? His strategy: “Sometimes not very well,” he admits with refreshing honesty. But also: travel in packs.

Victor has perfected the art of dragging his favorite people into every project. His colleague Ashley Taylor isn't just at UCF—she’s also Creative Mornings VP and AIGA Orlando VP. Devon Hornschmeier? She's everywhere Victor is, because apparently they’ve formed some kind of creative leadership duo that refuses to be separated. It’s mob mentality, but make it wholesome community building.

The Ripple Effect of Connection

Every cool community event you've ever attended at an AIGA chapter? Probably born at a leadership retreat. Changemakers events, AIGA Unidos, random collaborations between chapters—they all trace back to those post-programming conversations and questionable pyramid formations. Victor misses the retreats deeply, not just for the programming but for that special energy you can't replicate on Zoom. As he puts it: “How do you do a pyramid in a Zoom call?’

Would Victor be where he is without AIGA? Absolutely not. His advice for current and future leaders is refreshingly honest: surround yourself with people who have your back, remember that leadership is a team sport, and don't be afraid to advocate for others—it’s way easier than advocating for yourself and infinitely more rewarding. Plus, you might end up in a questionable human pyramid with some of the best people in the design industry. And really, isn’t that what community is all about?

Want to hear more stories like Victors’s? Subscribe to Cheers & Tiers on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. We’ll have more episodes featuring your friends and your favorite design leaders, sharing their journeys, challenges, and triumphs.

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