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“There was a Time when iT was thought that design had an impOrtant role in sØciety. It could tell people meaningful information or try to improve our ways of living. Today we seem to have forgotten that design has this possibility.
+ The kind of work that designers seek are the ones for the coolest sports companies, not the ones that will have the most effect on society or add most to culture.
+ It is time for designers to realise that design is not just something ‘cool’ and that design is also not just about money. $
Q. What were your early design influences? What drew you to graphic design? A. Record covers. I was really into music when I was young. It was a form of rebellion and also a way to relate to the world. Record covers enhance your enjoyment of music, the graphics make the whole experience more meaningful in some way. Also when I was younger I was always upset about American influence on the creative world. I wanted to look at my own culture, whether it be art, music or typography. Q. Do you feel that your education (design or otherwise) influenced the way you work now? A. I went to art school but it was more the spirit of the time that influenced me. However, I am very much a designer that is a product of the London schools (St. Martins, RCA) that I went to. I don’t think that is bad thing. I think all design schools should have strong philosophy even if the students choose to reject it in the end.
Q. What were your earliest design commissions?
We need to take our profession seriously and engage in cultural and critical discussion about what we are doing and aiming for. The modernist idea that designers are transparent messengers with no opinions of their own is no longer valid. x We cannot just do our design and say issues such as unethical work practices are not our problem. Ø We cannot say that a lack of meaningful content is not a problem. If we want the respect and attention we think we deserve, then we need to think about what happens to our work when it is seen in society and about the kind of work we want to participate in.
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A. I’ve been designing since the age of thirteen, ever since I won a design competition for the cover of the school magazine. My art teacher really made me a graphic designer. It was an influential win. The prize was a 50p book token. I didn’t really know what ‘design’ was but it was something I really enjoyed. It wasn’t until I was about 20 I realised that the critical context of graphic design isn’t as simple as ‘get a commission, do the job for the client as best you can’. It’s a whole lot more complex than that. It was actually difficult to survive after I left college. But it’s important not to get deflected from what you really want to achieve. Q. How do you think design has a social impact? A. Design shapes the environment. It helps us interact with and perceive the world. In fact, graphic design has always been a method of social change. Throughout history leaders have facilitated social change through the distribution of printed word. It really is that simple. Q. What are the benefits of polarising your practice, in terms of political and commercial work? How does your political work relate to the rest of your design output? A. There is not necessarily a divide. Both feed off the other, both are creative areas that influence each other. However it is important to spend time doing noncommercial work. It is good for the creativity of the company. And it works the other way round too. Commercial work can inform non-commercial projects. Our stance has affected the commercial work we take on. We can’t be hypocrites – shout about something and do the opposite. Q. What is the ideal relationship between designer and client? A. To like them is quite important and feel happy to be working with them. The client should respect graphic design and not see it simply as a service. It has cultural validity too. Q. You have worked with music clients, including David Bowie. Do music clients have demands that
are very specific to their field?
Design STILL has the potential to change society and we should start remembering this once more.” + Jonathan Barnbrook
A. In this age of big record companies the marketing department has too much say. They do research before commissioning a design which often completely defines the solution they want, so it has become a very predictable area. Often the designer doesn’t even work directly with the band. With David Bowie though it was just him, so we had a close relationship. To get a decent design I think you have to work with a band that is so small that they are prepared to take chances or so big that they can tell the record companies exactly what they want. Q. What is your favourite font and why? A. The logical answer to that is that there’s no such thing as a favourite font, it depends on the usage. But to answer in completely non-logical way it’s Perpetua by Eric Gill, a British stonecarver and font designer. I like that it comes from absolutely his universe. It is of the time, true to its own surroundings and has his tone of voice. All of these things are very important to me when I design fonts. Q. What is the significance of your exhibition, Friendly Fire? A. Hopefully it motivates other designers and students to do non-commercial work and to show they can survive not sacrificing their principles. I want to convey that graphic design has something to say and is culturally valid form of expression. © Design Museum, 2007
“Quote-unquote” nicholas z macrae