Charles Gibson’s involvement with the Hopkins Center Graphic Design Studio spanned two decades– as assistant designer under Mark Friedman from 1972-1974 and as design director from 1979-1987. Responsibilities included: design and implementation of season brochures; posters for the performing arts, film society, and Artist-in-Residence Program; print advertising; lobby/kiosk displays; fundraising pieces; and special projects. Prior to the opening of the Hood Museum of Art in 1985, Charles Gibson also designed invitations, posters, and exhibition catalogs for the Center’s galleries.

Posters for the Artist-in-Residence Program afforded unique opportunities for collaboration with the artists themselves. Typically, the artist provided an original piece appropriate for generating the separations required by the photosilkscreen process. For the Scholder and Mardi Gras Ball posters, the artists, American painter Fritz Scholder, and international poster artist Jan Lenica, produced the separations themselves. The Design Studio then functioned as a “master printer” under the artists’ supervision.​