House Industries Rich Roat spoke on what House Industries does best type as well as many other portions of the company past and present. I found it interesting that House Industries did so many different projects from clothing to film. All of these components to there business have one thing in common  and that is the craft and attention to detail in everything they do. 

Details can make or break any project. This is one thing I have learn first hand time and time again. Seeing how cool and fresh something can look by paying attention to detail inspires me to really want to strive for perfection even more. Watching Rich go through project after project each more impressive then the last was extordinary and sets a standard that as designers we can do anything we want as long as we do it well and with intent. Seeing all this great work inspired me to go with an idea and perfect it making every last detail exactly as I extended it and not making sacrifices. 

While Rich was speaking it also was clear to me how much he loved what he did. That every single project they did whether the results were successful or not there was some enjoyment there. A story of some sort. I found this very uplifting that even though there will be things that do not always turn out for the best that they are learning experiences and that as long as you like what your doing and do your best at the very least you are learning from the experience. 

The House Industries talk was overall very inspiring and gave me a greater appreciation for things that are still done by hand. The talk also gave me motivation and a better appreciation for the details in the projects I do. It showed me that thinking about things a little more and making them how they are intended to be and not giving up will create an overall better design. 

Marc English comes on screen with he beard and cowboy hat and starts drinking he gin and tonic. He has already done what he has set out to do with us. Give himself an identity, a personality that we can all remember as his own. 

Watching Marc as he answered the questions sent to him I realized that everything he did from  his actions to the words he choose were all an extension of his brand. As a soon to be graduate of graphic design and going though my own braining quest. I realized that as a designer are work while important is no the only part of what makes us who we are. While our portfolios and identity systems look nice, it’s important to show our personality as well. As designers we ned to take it to the next level and extend what we put on paper needs to be translated through us. Ask ourselves how do we make what we design come to life through us and vis versa. 

Throughout the discussion Marc made a point that stuck in my mind that we have the ability to learn about anything in our careers. That we have to be curious and eager to explore the world. Our careers are so unique and that we do not have to stick to one subject matter in fact we can know a little bit about everything. Marc really inspired me to get gear and curious about everything that learning never ends and to take every opportunity.  

Typeradio discussion with Martin Majoor.

In the Typeradio interview with Martin Majoor he asks the question what is the difference between redesign and new design. In his discussion he makes the point that if you have a design and have an idea to make it different why not just create a new design. This point boils down too how far do you have to design something before it is new. 

Majoor talks about this briefly with the idea of redesigning a typeface and how he prefers to just create a new design instead of making “updates” to an old one. His point of view of this matter rings true with me as well that instead of always trying to update why not just redo. Why not create something that is your own and has reference to something rather than just updating. 

This idea of redesigning over making a new design or visa versa is a concept that is based upon the situation. As a designs is it our responsibility to know when a small tweak is growing into a much larger project? Do we also have the responsibility to know when the project needs a tweak verse when it needs a whole new design. There is a lot to consider with redesign and making sure that the design still stays true to the original design. 

Form project to project these things can change though there are times when updates are necessary especially with the technology and all the new experiences that can be created. However with the point that Majoor is making has to do more strongly with type and type being this timeless thing that does not need to be updated but referenced too instead. I think here is where I can agree with him. That typefaces should be left how they were intended where they can drive inspiration for years to come. 

An interview with Bob van Dijk

This week I listened to a podcast from type radio with Bob van Dijk. What really struck a cord with me was how he likes to create stories with is work and although he can be criticized for being over decorated he does not seem to care. Along with this he mentions how he tries to not take himself so seriously. This two things combined were very strange to hear in a talk about design. Most of the time when listening to designers talk about their work you hear about how they take what they do seriously and the process that goes with it. However in van Dijk world he seems to always keep himself happy with projects and somehow manages communicate not only what the project is suppose to but also as another element to it.

This idea that the line between artist and designer is so thin can ring so true for many designers. Not necessarily in the sense that one can draw, paint or sculpt that makes it a thin line but the idea of taking your own personal ideas out it. Van Dijk talks about not taking yourself seriously or your work seriously but to just creates and has fun with it, but at what cost? He has managed to be successful at keeping his own ideas in, but is that something everyone is capable of? Creating work for a client can be tricky finding that balance between giving them what they want and keeping it true to your aesthetics. This is something I know myself I struggle with and constantly find myself in this internal battle of what I think looks good verses what will solve the problem better. Getting to attached to an idea and not knowing when it is not working seems to be the biggest hurdle that I myself face.

Listening to van Dijk’s interview did inspire me to bring more of myself to my designs and that not everything one does has to be so serious and there are many ways to look at design. That not everyone see’s they same thing the same way and that is part of the beauty of design. 

A weekend with Rob and Sandy

During the couple of days spent with Rob and Sandy there was much to be learned. The first thing I learned from them was to not back down. That what we do is legitiment and as Graphic Designers we deserve the pay we ask for. They explained to us that we are communicators and without our skill sets that communication could be less than what its potential is. They also explained how we are anomy sis problem solvers and that if we can solve a problem and it’s so good that people recognize it has better than before than our job is done.

 They also talked about their inspiration at Kendall. During this discussion it was they talked about how their inspiration comes from where they been. There is something true about this and everyone uses their own interest in their work and their own experience to how they approach things. That you learn lessons about yourself over time and that can affect your process and way of thinking. Experiences can help you define and refine your style and way of thinking. Causing use to grow as designers.

The last thing that really inspired me throughout their talk was one of the last points they made about their sketchbooks. That we should do something that communicates our thoughts without solving problems.  Getting thoughts out on paper through writing, sketching or even making a collage can improve our design work by exploring new techniques and things we didn’t know we were capable of.

The couple of days spent with Rob and Sandy was an inspiring and gave new ideas about how to go about design. 

An interview about being authentic.

The beginning of the interview is a quote from Victor Papanek that gives his opinion on how advertising design is harmful and phony. Kessels agrees with this statement explaining how he enjoys the authentic things in life and the reasons he started his own ad agency. He expresses this love for authentic things can be seen clearly in his photo collection books which he discusses throughout his interview.

The irony of this interview is how Kessels loves the idea of real authentic moments in life, but runs an ad agency, an industry that can be filled with propaganda and completely unrealistic ideas. His take on advertising is completely different from most in the same line of work. Taking in clients that he finds have merit and not doing it for the money is something few agency do.

Kessels photo collections are the most interesting part of the interview. First taking about how he takes polaroids of his children when the have bloody noses or black eyes to get the authentic moments in life. He really lives by this idea of authentic moments not only in his work but also in everything he does. Not one thing is sugar coated everything is just as it seems. That idea is something as a society I do not think is seen often. Watching a commercial or seeing a print ad everything is so perfect. This idea that not every story has a happy ending is one not explored very often and I found very interesting. Kessels also talks about how series of photos that tell a real story are not ones that happen on purpose most of the time a real story just happens and cannot be staged.

This idea of being authentic relates to design and that always making sure there’s a reason for doing something that nothing is done purely for the fact that it looks good and others will like it. Always making sure it tells a story of what the product or experience is. 

Kris Sowersby on Typeradio

In the interview with Kris Sowersby on typeradio he is asked the usual questions, but it’s the question about rituals that really made the interview worth listening too. He answers the question by saying everyday is a ritual from things he considers to be related to design to others that do not. However, when the interviewer makes a comment about how type design can also be a ritual the answer makes a turn from the less generic to something more thought provoking.

 Type design as one big ritual opens up this idea of process and how every designers can go about things a different way and come up with solutions to similar problems. Process is so important to a design and how technical one gets can really show through in the end product, especially in type. Some designers such as Sowersby start off with a scattered process until they find a groove and then stream line it with experience.

This interview also briefly explains how Sowersby got “discovered” through and Internet banner. This really shows how powerful the use of Internet can be and how saturating ones environment can be really helpful to ones career and bringing opportunities. Being a student still it is really important to understand this concept of using what is around you to put your work out there and make connections with the design world.

 The interview overall created some thoughts on process and opportunities both which have such in importance to a design.  

An interview with Ellen Lupton. 

In Lupton’s interview she is asked if she is religious or not. She explains that design is her religion and that she imposes her beliefs onto the people around her. Explaining that this newfound religion carries a moral code and ethics that lead to creating solutions to problems that occur in everyday life. This belief makes every decision a design one from the conscious to unconscious and that decisions that were once conscious become instilled in us and become the unconscious and start relate to our aesthetics as designers. These rituals or decisions in life are things like the decisions to make the bed and implement the feeling of order and cleanliness or not make the bed and save time but also have to deal with the mess all day.

Lupton briefly commented on how having children changed the way she goes about things including design. This possibly alluding to the fact that how one goes about design can change with what life throws at them.

Ellen who is also a accomplished author and writes many books on design and typography comments on how design and writing are connected and weave in and out of each other. With both being a mean of communication it becomes a way of getting her point of view across to through multiple audiences in multiple mediums. For her there is not option between them and that both are tools to reach people and couldn’t possible choose between the too. Whether she is publishing a book or a design she is communicating and idea or belief about design as a whole.