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SELF PROMO SECRETS Adrian Shaughnessy reveals his essential guidelines for designers
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IMPROVE PRESENTATION SKILLS
Why getting on the speaker circuit will boost your profile and sharpen your pitching abilities
Skip Dolphin Hursh
spring 2015
editor’s letter Self promotion, not unlike advertising, can go one of two ways. Besides idea and execution, a lot of it comes down to attitude. Are you shouting through a megaphone and hoping someone listens, or taking the time to craft a unique message that not only expresses you as a designer, but is tailored perfectly to your audience? That’s at the heart of our Special Report this month. On the topic of advertising, be sure to check out our exclusive video interview with Dan Wieden, filmed at Design Indaba in Cape Town. He discusses the unique blend of weirdness, chaos and fierce independence that have made Wieden+Kennedy what it is today. Conferences like Design Indaba, OFFSET (see our event report), TYPO, OFFF and the forthcoming What Design Can Do, all fuel a thriving speaker circuit for the most engaging members of the design community to feed back their wisdom and experience. As our Industry Issues piece attests, you can learn a lot more from them besides. Graduate show season is a big deal for us here at CA, and we’re gearing up for our annual tour of the UK in search of the best creative talent to watch. See page 75 for our listings of all the top shows. Next issue, we’ll be exploring the secrets of great character design and lifting the lid on how to put together a world-class exhibition of your work. And of course, don’t forget to submit your very best branding work to our Brand Impact Awards – entries close 18 June.
keep in touch with…
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Nick Carson Editor
nick.carson@futurenet.com
featuring
florian schommer
Our cover is by Florian Schommer, a designer with a passion for illustration. Since graduating from Düsseldorf University of Applied Sciences in 2013, Florian has been living in Hamburg, where he co-founded kjosk. www.kjosk.de
sue murphy
Sue is an Irish art director and designer, currently working at Wolff Olins. She studied advertising in Savannah, Georgia and currently spends her days as a creative partner to brilliant brands in New York City. Sue reveals the story of her career ascent on page 66. http://howsueisnow.com
Christoph Niemann
After 11 years in New York, Christoph moved to Berlin in 1997. His work regularly graces the cover of The New Yorker and he’s the author of several books. He offers sage advice in our special feature on public speaking, over on page 60. www.christophniemann.com
Emily forgot
Emily Forgot is the moniker of London-based graphic artist Emily Alston, who embraces the odd, the everyday and the sometimes surreal in her visual language. Follow her creative process as she produces illustration for the quirky Rumpus Room Bar, over on page 95. www.emilyforgot.co.uk
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casey blackmore
Since joining Taxi Studio back in 2011, Casey has established herself as a designer who brings creative ideas to life in beautiful ways. Join her over on page 91 as she develops a distinctive visual motif as part of a liqueur branding project. www.taxistudio.co.uk
Meet the team Future Publishing Ltd, QUAY HOUSE, THE AMBURY, BATH BA1 1UA Phone 01225 442 244 Fax 01225 732 275 Email hello@computerarts.co.uk Web computerarts.creativebloq.com
Nick Carson
Editorial
Production & DISTRIBUTION
editor After putting his house up for sale, Nick took a break in Scotland and stayed in a traditional gypsy caravan. The most exciting event for him this month though was surely the return of Game of Thrones.
Jo Gulliver Art editor jo.gulliver@futurenet.com
Printing: William Gibbons & Sons Ltd Finishing: Celloglas Distribution: Seymour Distribution Ltd, 2 East Poultry Avenue, London EC1A 9PT, Tel: 0207 429 4000 Overseas distribution: Seymour International
jo gulliver
Tim Hardwick OPERATIONS editor tim.hardwick@futurenet.com
Circulation
Rich Carter Designer richard.carter@futurenet.com
SUBSCRIPTIONS
Nick Carson Editor nick.carson@futurenet.com
Julia Sagar, MARTIN COOPER AND BEREN NEALE COMMISSIONING editorS julia.sagar@futurenet.com martin.cooper@futurenet.com beren.neale@futurenet.com SAMMY MAINE and alice pattillo STAFF WRITERs sammy.maine.@futurenet.com alice.pattillo@futurenet.com
Contributors
Rob Alderson, Zaneta Antosik, Casey Blackmore, Pam Bowman, Tom Burch, Matt Edgar, Emily Forgot, Tomas Fryscak, Stuart Henry, Skip Hursh, Minni Lakotieva, Gary Marshall, Michael Molfetas, Diana Mulvihill, Mat Roff, Florian Schommer, Adrian Shaughnessy, Snask, FranklinTill, Stuart Watson, Tom Woolley
Advertising
For all ad enquiries please contact: SUZANNE SMITH Account director suzanne.smith@futurenet.com
VivIENNE CALVERT Production controller Mark Constance Production manager
Art editor Jo has been at the mercy of serious foot blisters recently. She had to take the bus to work and be chauffeured everywhere. Her highlight this month? Unsuccessfully being chatted up by a taxi driver.
JULIETTE WINYARD Trade marketing manager: 07551 150 984
charlotte lloyd-williams Direct marketing executive charlotte.lloyd-williams@futurenet.com
Tim HarDwick
OPERATIONS editor Tim spent the Easter holidays quantifying himself with an activity tracker and a digital scale. Two tantalising conclusions were gleaned from the accumulated data: 1) Exercise is good for the heart; 2) Beer makes you fat.
UK readers: 0844 848 2852 Overseas readers: +44 (0)1604 251045 Online enquiries: myfavouritemagazines.co.uk computerarts@myfavouritemagazines.co.uk
Licensing
Regina Erak International director regina.erak@futurenet.com
Rich Carter
Tel: +44 (0)1225 442244 Fax: +44 (0)1225 732275
Designer Rich lost the BBC 7-Day Quiz crown this month. His plot to return to winning ways in the General Election quiz took an embarrassing turn when he was caught taking notes while watching the Parliament Channel.
MANAGEMENT
Nial Ferguson Content & Marketing director MATT PIERCE Head of Content & Marketing, Photography, Creative & Design DAN OLIVER Group editor-in-chief, Creative & Design RODNEY DIVE Group art director, Photography, Creative & Design TOM MAY Group content editor
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julia sagar COMMISSIONING EDITOR
beren neale COMMISSIONING EDITOR
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sammy maine STAFF WRITER
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Culture
Trends: Paints and inks run through fashion designer Jillian Boustred’s aquatic clothing range
14
P eople: Illustrator Owen Davey invites us into his studio, and Ciarán Burke introduces Hiive
16
P laces: Ahead of OFFF Barcelona, three creatives share their favourite hangouts around the city
18
E vents: Our very own Sammy Maine reports from Dublin’s annual creative conference OFFSET
Showcase
Our selection of the world’s best new graphic design, illustration and motion graphics work 30
Insight
five self promo RuLES: Adrian Shaughnessy 22 offers proven advice on how to make an indelible mark on the design industry 26
spitting images: Art director and critic Steven Heller asks what part graphic design plays in party politics as the UK General Election looms
28 SAVE OUR DESIGN CURRICULUM: Lecturers Pam Bowman and Matt Edgar argue that the incoming UK government needs to sort out design education
VIDEO WALKTHROUGH
DEVELOP AN INTRICATE WORDMARK: How 91 Taxi Studio’s Casey Blackmore created the illustrationled branding for Kate Hudnotts’ organic liqueur range
need to know
market yourself on a budget 102 Creative ideas and practical tips for self-promotion success, whatever the state of your bank balance
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Project diaries
A new look for a real-estate start-up, art-deco inspired illustrations for a new bar and an animated virtual egg for Harrods’ shop window 83
free ebook worth £5.99! Grab the definitive guide to marketing your creative skills completely free 74
S p eci a l R ep or t
self promotion that really works
Fierce competition makes breaking into the design industry a challenge. Rob Alderson explores the art of self-promo to find out which ingredients breed success 44
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IN CON VE R SATION
sue murphy
The art director and designer reveals how she climbed the creative ladder through Skype interviews and perseverence 66
In dus tr y i ss ue s
GET ON THE CIRCUIT
From engaging your audience to overcoming nerves, here are the lessons designers can learn from the industry’s top speakers 42
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T r e nds CULTURE
WE LOVE...
Fashion Alchemy Fashion designer Jillian Boustred mixes running paints and inks to create her aquatic clothing range ainterly prints are having their moment, appearing across fashion, homewares, graphics and branding concepts. From traditional marbelling techniques that echo a handcrafted approach, to new methods of pattern generation, designers are increasingly experimenting with alternative substrates, production methods and colour combinations in order to create novel, spontaneous and uncontrolled patterning. Fashion and textile designer Jillian Boustred, a recent graduate from the University of Technology in Sydney, pushes marbled print into a more painterly direction in her Undercurrents fashion collection. Her sportswear-inspired garments act as the canvas for her artwork, which feature alchemic prints of dripping paints and running inks. The oversized artworks, originally created by dropping inks and paint onto wet paper, feel almost aquatic as the colours freely bleed into one another. www.jillianjboustred.com
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Each month, our Trends section is curated by experienced creative consultancy FranklinTill (www.franklintill.com). com puterarts.creativeb loq.com - 11 -
CULTUR E Trend s
D E S I G N ED FOR LI FE
LET THERE BE LIGHT These specially designed LED lightbulbs from London-based studio Buster + Punch turn the mediocre bulb into a thing of beauty ed up with filament bulb overkill and the lack of energy-efficient lighting options on the market, Massimo Buster Minale and the team at Buster + Punch decided to make their own. Made from patented crystal resin with a metallic-tinted glass cover, the light pipe in the centre of the bulb allows it to showcase both ambient and focused, spot-light effects, using only 3 Watts of energy. “There were a hundred challenges during the making,” explains Minale. “We quickly realised there was a reason why there were no designer LED
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bulbs on the market. LED, although great for the environment, gives off a harsh light that is impossible to control in a subtle manner.” Using this patented resin light pipe and playing with the glass colours allowed the team to make the bulb exude varying light qualities from dim to warm to crystal clear. “The community feedback has been a mix of relief and awe,” continues Minale. “Relief that a beautiful designer LED bulb now exists on the market and awe that it was achieved by a small independent company, when all the huge bulb companies all over the world have been trying to do it for many years.”
product:
LED ‘Buster’ bulb made from patented crystal resin, showcased in a selection of glass finishes. www.busterandpunch.com
COST: £39.99–£135
Stay one step ahead with our barometer of visual cool
m ainstream
Naïve handpenned marks are being applied to packaging and graphics to create a handmade aesthetic
STILL FRESH
Pastel shades and delicate monochrome grids help create a fresh, modern look for Spring/Summer 15
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emerging
Geometric shapes and patterns in copper foil block create a modern, luxury statement for branding
Illustration: Michael Molfetas www.michaelmolfetas.com
T R E N D ING
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