December 2023 Member Spotlight

Leah A. Knox, NCIDQ, ASID, WRID

Leah is a member of the architecturally-focused interior design team at Creative Business Interiors, a design-build-furnish interiors firm in Milwaukee, as a Studio Lead – Senior Interior Designer. Leah is NCIDQ certified and a Registered Interior Designer with the State of Wisconsin. She has been with Creative for eighteen years, having previously lived and worked in Madison and Chicago. Her projects include corporate workplace interiors, retail and hospitality, government, and multi-family living environments in the Wisconsin, North American, and international markets. She is a proud recipient of several ASID Wisconsin Chapter Design Excellence Awards, both as a commercial designer with Creative and as a residential designer on her own.

Leah is a long-time member volunteer with ASID WI and loves to tell the story of her first volunteer role as the committee chair of the “Appellation Committee” – a committee of one! Not much to do in that role, but that led to many other committee and volunteer opportunities through the years, including Board terms as Communications Director and Professional Development Director, culminating in her first term as Chapter President in 2011 – 2012, with a second term, in the midst of a global pandemic, from 2020 – 2021. Despite having to be a virtual presence during that term as Chapter President, Leah is very proud of two very important and pivotal events - the virtual Design Excellence Awards that was professionally produced and livestreamed to members, and the Chapter initiative to create the ASID WI Chapter Diversity, Equity and Inclusion committee. Leah was a member of the Government Advocacy, Design Excellence Awards, and Design Boss Learning Series committees this past year, and has created and presented, along with her good friend and ASID peer, Bill Beaudreau, a new training template for onboarding new Board Directors. Leah will always volunteer with the ASID WI Chapter – the great friendships, networking, professional and personal development, and leadership training have been nothing short of amazing and life-changing! As she recently stated at the Annual Meeting, held on October 5th, 2023, wherein she was presented with the Chapter Crystal Star Award in recognition of her continuing dedication, influence, and passion for the Chapter – “I think I have a problem!” It’s a good problem to have and she was surprised and humbled by the recognition.

When not volunteering for ASID WI, Leah enjoys DIY home projects, gardening, traveling nationally and internationally (having recently traveled to Barcelona, Spain and the south of France with her ride-or-die high school girlfriends to celebrate a big birthday!) and hanging out with her husband, Mark, and her 6-year old English Labrador Retriever, Bowie (named after her absolute favorite musical artist, David Bowie).