Adrian Shaughnessy (This is Real Art) was one of the big guns of the conference and I’ve got to say, one of the people I was looking forward to seeing most. I am a huge fan of his book, How to be a graphic designer, without losing your soul. What amazed me about Adrian was the fact that he was a self-taught graphic designer having had no formal schooling in the subject.
He states three attributes that a young graphic designer needs:
- Cultural Awareness
- Communication skills
- Integrity
Communication
We need to be able to talk about our work but not confuse clients with the jargon which we use as designers on a daily basis. The work will simply not sell itself to clients- we need to explain it.
Presentation skills. As customers, we don’t expect to walk into a sofa shop, expecting to buy a sofa with a thousand pounds in hand and expect the salesperson to not show it you! It is the same principal with our clients. We need persuasion and language skills to build up our presentations. If a client does not like our presentation, it is most likely the presenting or the application of the presentation which they are rejecting, not the idea itself. Maybe it’s the fact that we’re not listening to them. Do we really listen?
A lot of the time, clients will not give feedback. You can diffuse this situation by using humour. Explain everything as if they know nothing.
Integrity
Cutting corners, doing things cheaply etc. is what the industry is pressuring us into doing. We have to believe in something!
Aim for mutual respect with your client. Be strong, confident and respectful. Believe in something and people will believe in you.
The world doesn’t revolve around graphic design! It is essential that we retain that openness. Clients are only interested in the big picture. They don’t care about kerning! They are more interested in what you know about them. You’re more likely to get work that way. As designers, we are really obsessed about what we do, but we are the only ones who care! The client and the world only care about the message.
In reference to how Adrian goes about doing research, he states “my life is research”.
This was one of the meatiest talks of the conference. His advice, along with his book, offers practical tips on being a graphic designers which is simply not taught in schools. Better still, he teaches it without the pomp or self-appreciation commonly found in a lot of design writing.
Creatives, Research•
on March 26th, 2009•
Frances Jackson of OPX asks the self-searching question “where do you fit in the design world?”.
She offered some useful, practical studio tips which the staff at OPX practice themselves, such as put EVERYTHING that you’re doing up on the wall in the studio. Alas I am guilty of not implementing this though I know for a fact that feedback and collaboration would increase ten-fold if I did. She also suggested quite an obvious practice we should be undertaking, which is to simply “talk about design!”, perhaps leaving the conversation of X-Factor and who’s the latest casualty on Corrie for home.
Creatives, Research•
on March 26th, 2009•
Martin Grothmaak of Projekttriangle. Martin, living and working in Germany, showcased his work at the conference which was very impressive. It was all very high-end, high-budget work.
Martin was gracious enough to speak to me after his talk and it was clear that he is a very open and honest man, even though he admits he is a German with an English sports car! After asking him how he got in contact with his clients, he stated that he was lucky enough to be one of the few who has never needed to search for work, but instead work has always come to him. Surely a sign of the quality of his work.
In his talk he announced “I like strange people. I like the way they live in their own world and do their own thing without any worldly influence”. I found this interesting as it IS strange people who pioneer new and unforeseen trends in the world.
I think he lacked confidence in his English, but he was very fluent and open in our conversation. A very nice and genuine guy!
Creatives, Research•
on March 24th, 2009•
After subscribing to these podcasts via iTunes, I have found Todd Henry’s insights and interviews with fellow creatives incredibly insightful. Having been in the industry for many years, their advice is valuable for anyone yet to enter it, offering practicle hands-on advice to keep the creative well filled. Lots to take in here with tips and on-going design debates!
Creatives, NWSAD•
on January 21st, 2009•
Today we watched Manufactured Landscapes by Edward Burtynsky, a fascinating film piece cum documentary concerning how industrial action affects the environment. It was beautifully shot and very raw in the way it way edited, giving no conclusion at all to the topic being portrayed, but rather gave brief snapshots of Chinese worker’s lives and beautiful panoramic scenes of man-made structures or defaced landscapes. The subjects of consumerism and sustainability were touched upon among a host of other topics.
The piece made me think of the final of a three part sustainability article in Creative Review’s January issue. When we pick up any store product, rarely do we consider to think the origin of the item, how it was made and where it goes after it’s use is expired. The beauty of Manufactured Landscapes was that it went through the manufacturing process from birth right until death and beyond. Burtynsky’s aim was not to offer an opinion on whether mass-made factory production was agreeable but simply delivered the facts- what he saw at various production locations throughout China such as shipping yards, industrial mines, to the slums of Beijing. If only consumers could see the stages of production in what they bought! Who made it? Why? Are they getting a good wage? What is the effect of my purchase? What happens to it after it’s discarded? Is it recyclable?
I went to PC World when my old PC laptop died on me, wondering if they could make any use of the parts or know of anywhere that could use it. After the smirk and shock of this question, the Technician replied that no, “it’s not worth it”. The pieces are too difficult to reuse and in most cases become obsolete. This shocked me. Considering the gargantuous amount of waste produced everyday which kills our environment and those who share it, am I also powerless to affect it and simply add to it?! Do we need all the luxuries which we religiously purchase to self gratify our consuming needs? Do we even need the internet and all that it brings? People seem to live quite happy lives without it and it seems to be another thing to add to the list which we now can’t live without. Even as I type on my MacBook, I fully realise that it will most likely end up in a landfill and contribute to the pollutants already put there by the various deadly chemicals used to create such items.
There are an endless amount of debates which spring up from this and I am grateful that this movie gave me an opportunity to voice them. It opens up eyes into the full and almost unimaginable scale into which a single item is made and the lives which interweave into it’s production. Surely if this was some how made visible or known to consumers, it would affect our spending habits, the quality of life of people making them and be less detrimental to our environment.