Chris Desmarais was raised in California, in a small town nestled between Lake Tahoe and Sacramento. After high school he attended California State University Long Beach (CSULB) where he received his Bachelors of Arts degree.
Soon after college, he moved to Portland, Oregon and worked as a Graphic Designer, Architectural Draftsman and Concept Artist for a stereo electronics company and an external hard drive manufacturer. During that time, he also started his own design and drafting contract firm, C9 Design.
Upon relocating to Las Vegas, Nevada, Chris worked in the trade show booth industry, and in 2003 transitioned to a full-time, faculty member at the Art Institute of Las Vegas. Chris has now taught over 25 different courses in the areas of: Graphic, Interior, and Environmental Design, Architectural Drafting, 3D-Modeling and Packaging Design.
He lives with his wife, Tamara, and two children, Sienna and Caden in Las Vegas, and enjoys road and mountain biking, basketball, softball, designing, drawing and travel.