With our 2026 PRINT Awards regular registration deadline rapidly approaching on January 22nd, the excitement around this year’s Awards is mounting. But of course we’re still thinking about PRINT Awards of the past, and this week we’re highlighting the former PRINT Award-winner Sunday Afternoon.
Sunday Afternoon is a unique branding and talent agency hybrid based in NYC, who claimed our Agency of the Year prize in 2022. We recently checked in with Sunday Afternoon Partner and Executive Director, Rich Tú, who is also an esteemed Jury Member for our 2026 PRINT Awards in the Branding — Full Campaigns category. Tú shares what Sunday Afternoon has been up to since their PRINT Award win, and what sets their agency apart below.
What are some of the highlight projects Sunday Afternoon has worked on since being honored with a PRINT Award?
I joined Sunday Afternoon as Executive Creative Director & Partner right after we won the PRINT Award, and the energy was palpable. Some of our standout projects as of late have been CANAL Issue 2, ESPN’s Breakin’ on the One documentary, the brand identity for MM by Morimoto, and our recent campaigns with the running brand HOKA (with a couple more launching this year). It’s painful to name only a few because there have been so many great projects the past three years.
Can you elaborate on the unique structure of Sunday Afternoon functioning as a branding agency and talent agency hybrid? How does that set you guys apart, and inform the work you create?
Sunday Afternoon was built by artists, and we retain that spirit in everything we do. When running a studio, a good leader finds inspiration everywhere, and when authorship is that powerful and so varied from within your own ranks, that’s a powerful combination. That’s why when you see our work, it feels so unique with a distinct point of view. I’m not only speaking for myself when I say that the creative industry is in a rut and everything looks the same. You have to stick out.
On a practical level, our combined skillsets allow for high-level collaboration that you find in large agencies with many departments. However, we like to get our hands dirty, so we can be more nimble and adaptable to many challenges.
For you personally, how does it feel going from a PRINT Awards winner with Sunday Afternoon to a PRINT Awards jury member for this year’s awards?
Being on the jury is a true honor as I’ve been reading PRINT since I was a design student at SVA. My understanding of the commercial creative industry came almost exclusively from copies of PRINT that I would pick up at my local book store. Fun fact: My first commissioned illustrations came from Steve Heller back in 2006 for the NY Times Book Review!
Even now as a seasoned professional, it’s surreal to participate and work with iconic institutions that have been tastemakers in this industry.
I covered the 2026 World Cup host city poster designs released last April, one of which you yourself designed to represent New York/New Jersey. Can you describe the thought process behind your poster and what that experience was like?
The experience working on that historic project was so fun. FIFA reached out to me directly for the NY/NJ poster and I was honored to be a part of history and represent my area. FIFA was a great collaborator and they were so open to ideas.
I wanted the poster design to represent the best of what New York and New Jersey (and also the United States) have to offer, which is symbolized by the Statue of Liberty. I don’t think it’s controversial to say that I want the best for this country and its citizens, and that the virtues of kindness and accountability are honorable.
That said, it was after the poster launched that my world was thrown for a loop because I was doing news interviews for almost two weeks straight. I’ve never had to be so camera-ready in my life!
Feeling inspired? Apply to the 2026 Print Awards now!