Still curious after all these years.

Luis Ramirez is an art director, creative director, and co-founder of Cast Iron LA (opens in new tab), a senior-led marketing agency based in Los Angeles. Small team, big agency experience, less bureaucracy, more outcomes.

He learned offset printing at a newspaper in high school and picked up design software early, back when few designers were using it. At RPA, he joined the interactive department when digital was still a side conversation, and went on to help clients through social media, app development, and the move to mobile.

In 1996, he was creative lead on Honda’s landmark website, one of the first major automotive digital experiences. He stayed with Honda for years after, launching the brand on social media and leading digital marketing efforts as the channels evolved. Other clients have included Hilti, Pentax, AM/PM, and ARCO.

Early on, he designed the Ozomatli logo as part of a college project that turned into something bigger. What started as a performance deal for a Dia de los Muertos event became a symbol that’s traveled the world with the band for nearly three decades. That project taught him something that still shapes his work: brand symbols need to live in the real world, not just on mood boards. They need to hold up on a stage, on a t-shirt, on album art, and in the hands of fans who make them their own.