Design Context
Design and Illustration are separate disciplines if you study them separately, but in terms of communication, one needs the other. There is a difference between just drawing and illustrationg as it is essentially communication, as is design.
He said he would definitely turn down a job that he saw as unethical or socially irresponsible but this doesn't always mean the type of client. For instance he did some work for Coca - Cola but because it involved promoting charitable organisations there was a certain amount of compromise. You can become demoralised by this industry if you take the stance of 'its a job at the end of the day' because you will do anything as long as you get paid. 'Dont be a whore Lisa', he said unto me.
Some work needs to be taken more seriously than others. A menu for a bar wont change the world but a design for Oxfam needs to be more carefully considered. This made me think about whether or not I want to keep doing the subject matter of my FMP because I keep changing my mind whether i want to do deadly serious things to change peoples minds about stuff, or just have fun.
Advice for PPD
A varied portfolio is good to show you can work across a range of problems, but also show strong points of you. It should be a I asked if you should show thought processes and development as well as final products and he said if the process is a strong point of you and your work then yes.
Have my own website which has links to facebook, a flickr feed etc.
Doing work that will end up in the public domain is good because it ensures you get your work seen by loads of people. Its actually more valuable for a non-designer to like your work as they will usually be the ones who need to understand and like it.
Advice about my work:
Because I am stuck and panicking about my FMP (the gender brief) I asked him for some advice on what tone of voice it should take as e does a lot of work which is aimed at young people. He said don't patronise them and just making something 'exciting' is lame. something tongue and cheek would probably work well as it doesnt sound like the voice of someone condescending. Ultimately i nedd to think what i would like to see as a young person.
If I were to sell the I love/i hate stuff I need to make it different from anything else that is out there. There is generally not a lot of money to be made in merchandise and stuff like this so i think i would keep it up as a hobby.
As I am in a period of creative block I asked him if he ever gets this and he said yes but he gets some design books and magazines out for inspiration and then he always gets an idea. I think getting ideas quickly is something that comes with time and experience.
Advice about industry:
Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign are essential. Don't say you are proficient in other software if you are not. I asked if it matters that i hate web design and he said i may have to do it at some point so it would be good practice to set up my own website. If you just think of it as a brochure or something printed then it may become less scary because ultimately someone else programmes it and you just have to do the design.
These days he thinks its better to be small rather than a big company, especially with the credit crunch. His company has a strong ethic of personal relations with clients and collaborators and i like this. I think i would like to work for a small company or collective as it does seem to get less personal when they are big. There is a saturation of design studios at the moment but there is also a lot of work as well.
I think he could tell that i am a scaredy cat and he said confidence comes with time and I need to be pleased with my work so I can tell future employers about it. 'People swarm to confidence.'
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