i want to go there - how to find your path as a designer
TRANSCRIPT
-MynameisMitzieTestaniandI’manillustratorandinteractiondesigner
-TonightIwanttotalkabouthowtofindyourpathasadesigner,andgiveyousomeadviceIwishIwouldhavegottenalongthewaytomyownpath.
Portfolio Building Workshop AIGA Upstate NY / 01.28.14 / Syracuse, NY
Tina Fey Comedienne, writer
I want to go there.
AccordingtotheHarvardBusinessReview,10yearsafterwegraduatecollege:
-20%stayinourchosenfield-Only3%remaininasimilarjobandindustry-Ararepersonlandsinthefirstjobthattheywillloveforever
-Infact,manypeoplearedisappointedwhentheyfindthemselvesdoingalotofproductionintheirfirstjob,andnotalotof“design”work
-Useyourfirstjob(s)toexperimentandtobuildbridgestowhereyoumightwanttogo
-Learnaboutbusiness,too.Theyjustcan’ttakethetimetoteacheverythinginschool(there’sagreatpostbyDavidAireyon“whatdesignschoolsarelacking.”Googleit.)
-Learnhowtofail(gracefully);it’sasaferplacethanthroughfreelancemistakes
Your First Job Doesn’t Really Matter.
Jodi Glickman Harvard Business Review
-Inmyexperience,it’syourfirstportfoliothatdoesn’treallymatter,becauseitshouldbechangingregularly
-Goalofyourfirstportfolioisonlytogetyourfirstjob(or2)
-It’ssupposedtoshowyouknowthefundamentals:typography,hierarchy,grid,composition,andunderstandingofcolor,andawidevarietyofapplications(hopefullydeepandnotjustpostersorbookcovers)
-it’sHEAVILYartdirected,itdoesnotnecessarilyshowthatyouknowhowtothinkorwhatyou’recapableofonyourown
-It’sfilledmostlywith“lessons,”not“real”applications-Togrow,trytakingonmultipleroleswheneveryoucan(whichisarealityintoday’seconomyanyway)
-Thiswillhelpyoutodiscovernichesthroughawidevarietyofprojects.Maybeyouwillworkwithahiredspecialistforfilm,animation,illustration,sound,photography,responsivewebsites,etc.)Fromthere,youwillmeetpeoplewhocanhelpyoutofindresourcesforaspecializedpath
-Inmyfirststudioexperience,wetookonahugerangeofworkandIalwaysfoundthatmyfavoriteprojectsinvolvedillustration.Butmyillustration,wastoobroadtodoitprofessionallyatthetime.Itwasagoodlessonandstartedmeonmypath.
You’re only as good as your last [project].
Paula Scher Partner, Pentagram
-Onceyouwanttospecialize,sayingnotothewrongworkwilltakesomediscipline.Anditwillbemoredifficultthefurtherentrenchedyoubecomeinthe“wrongpath.”
Butsayingyestotherightprojectseventuallypayoff:-JessHische’scareerskyrocketedaftershedidasideprojectforfuncalled“DailyDropCap”
-Ialsohaveafriendwhohasapassionforhandletteringbutwasreallyrestrictedinherjobdesigningforanenvironmentaldesignfirm-soshemadeahobbyofletteringforfunandposteditinplaceslikeletterplayground.com.Sheenteredcompetitionsforlettering.Shepostedthingsshedidforfunonherown
website.Shewasliterallycalledoutiftheblueandrecruitedforajobbecauseofherletteringportfolio.
-AnotheralumnfrommyschoolgotherstartfromsellingherworkonEtsy.Herworkgotbetterandbetterandnowshedoesalotofpublishingwork
Jessica Hische Letterer, Illustrator and Self-Described “Avid Internetter”
I am not a web designer.
Soevenifyou’renotthatgoodinthebeginning:-KeepinmindthatkidswithnoexperiencearemakinggreatYouTubevideosandindie-bandposters,silkscreenTs,websites,etc.,sodon’tletlackofexperiencestopyou
-“talentisonething,driveisanother.Acombinationofbothiswhatisgoingtomakeyousuccessful.”—HemantAnatJain
-It’sokaytoshowexperimentationinyourportfolioevenunfinishedwork(youcanputitintheback—makesureit’ssignificantenoughtoshowthedraft.Youcanmoveitupasitimproves)IwasonceaskedifIhadanything“edgier”toshow,aftershowingaLOTofwork.Theunfinished“experiments”iswhatgotmethejob.
Hemant Anant Jain
Creative Director, Albion, London
Are you making your own opportunities or making excuses?
-Howcanyourworkshowpassionifyou’renotexcitedaboutit?-It’seasiertobeexcitedandshowsome“wow”ifyouarespecializing-Plus,wouldn’titbewonderfultolovewhatyoudoeveryday?-Standupforyourpassions/yourpath,evenifyou’rebetteratsomethingelse-Ifyoucan’tgetanopportunityatwork,doitontheside.-Itmytakealotofpractice,butyoucangetthere,eventually
Craig Ward
WordsArePictures.co.uk
Passion and ideas: without those any portfolio is empty, even if it’s full.
Whydoesspecializationmatter?
-Asanewgraduate,knowthat62%of
jobsarepostedtonichejobsites
-You’llgetreallygood(importantsince
graphicdesignishighlycompetitive,
withaseeminglylowpointofentryfor
amateurs,ie:crowdsourcing,Elance,
easyaccesstosoftware&tools)
-Advantagewhenpittedagainstamore
experienced“generalist”designer
-Youcanchargemore
-Thisdoesn’tmeandoonly1typeof
project:ie:handlettererscanworkon
allkindsofprojectsfrommagazines,to
foodpackaging,clothing,wayfinding,
theaterposters,etc.,buttheirmain
focusisinperfectingtheirlettering.
-Competitionwithsimilarniche-
specialistswillbecomeasmallerpool
andsowillyournetworking
Firms that specialize, thrive.... Focus in up to two areas (in terms of...mental capacity).
David C. Baker Principal, ReCources
-Thelawofattraction:likeattractslike-Fillyourportfoliowiththetypeofworkyouwanttodo,notnecessarilytheworkyou’vedoneatyourfirstjob(s)orinschool
-Getthestuffyoudon’twanttodoagainoutofthere,soyouwon’tattractthewrongopportunities
-Themorerepeatclientswiththewrongprojects,theharderitwillbetosayno
-Youmayhavetocreateyourownopportunities(volunteer,freelance,personalproject/self-promotion)
-Thestrongeryourportfoliobecomes,themoreyourclientbasewillgrow
-Soonyouwillhaveenoughworktocustomizeyourportfolioforspecificinterviews(i.e.allwebsitesorallpublishingpieces.)
When was your last serious relationship?
40 Days of Dating www.fortydaysofdating.com
-Itmaybetemptingtoputeverythingyoudointoyourportfolio,whenyouaregettingstarted
-it’sbettertohaveasmallportfoliocomposedofafewofyourbestpiecesrathervs.abigportfoliocontainingalotofmediocrework
-Choosepiecesthatcanbegoodtalkingpointsduringaninterview.
-Keepitfresh.Asanewgraduate,yourgoalshouldbetoaddtoyourportfolioatleastevery3to
6months(obviously,bigprojectslikewebsiteswilltakelonger)
-Don’tbeafraidtocontinuallyupdateyourbestpiecesasyougetbetter
-Trytoreplaceallofyourstudentprojectsinthenext3-5years.
Jacob Gube
SixRevisions.com
A great design portfolio contains only your very best work.
-Thefirstthingyou’regoingtomiss
afterschoolwillbecritiques–
especiallyifyoufreelance
-Ifyou’renotagenerouscritiquer
now,learnhowtobe—thatincludes
listeningandregularlyparticipatingto
others’critiques
-Critiquingskillsaretheonlywayyou
willbeabletokillyourownworkthat’s
notworking(especiallyconsidering
whatyouwillhaveinyourportfolio
whenyougraduate(Remember?Lots
of“lessons”¬“real”work)
-Befriendotherswhocancritique
mercilesslyforanobjectiveopinion–
&keepintouch
-Ifyoustarttosucceed,spendyour
timeworking,notboastingaboutiton
socialmedia
-Acritiquenetworkisalsogreatwhen
youaretryingtodiscoveryourniche
andneedpracticetalkingaboutnew
workinyourportfolio
-Yourcritiquerscanincludeformer
employersyoureallyrespect(andit
canleadtofreelancewiththem)
It’s really healthy for a creative person to be...pushed.
Jacob Escobedo VP/Head of Design of Cartoon Network’s Creative Group
-Don’tbejealousofsomeoneelse’ssuccess,beinspiredifthey’vefoundtheirpath.Butremember,it’sTHEIRpath.Findyourown.
-Don’tcompareyourworktoothers’,yourpathshouldbeunique
SomemoreVictorewisdom:-“Ifyourworkappealstoeveryone,thenitmovesnoone.”
-Yourownvoicecomesthroughwhenyoumakethe
workYOUlike.-Onceyoudothis,thenlookforyouraudience
James Victore
independent artist and designer, New York
Everyone poops.
-Evenifyoubecomeamazingatyourpath&craft—youstillneedtobeabletoworkwellwithothers(whetherfreelanceoronateamordirectlywithclients)
-Explainhowyoucollaboratedonapiecewhenyouinterview
-Talkaboutyourprocess,yourroleandhaveonecompletecasestudyorsetofprocesssamplesready.Orhowaboutafullsheetwithcompletelydeveloped&differentidentityexperiments?
-Evensketchbooksaregreat(tohavewhenaskedtoshowyourprocess)
-Talkabouttheproject’schallenges-Howdidyouimpactthesolution?-Givecredittoeveryoneyouworkedwith-Makesurecreditsarelistedonyourwebsite,too
Michael LebowitzFounder & CEO, Big Spaceship, New York
We don’t believe in rock stars.
-Keepinmindthatmostpeoplewanttoseeyourworkbeforetheyseeyou–itmightevendecidewhetherornotyougettheinterview.
-Theflipbookisan“optional”interviewtoolnow-Leave-behindsarealwaysuseful,especiallyifitreinforceswhatyouspecializein.
-Ifyouwanttoworkonyourown:Googleyourfavoritedesignerwhoisonasimilarpathyouwanttobeon.Seewheretheyareactive(Etsy,Society6,Zazzle,Krop,CreativeHotlist,etc.)thiswillgiveyouanideawhereyoucantry
-Emailpastprofessorsorsucessfullformerstudentsthathavefollowedasimilarpathtoyoursandasksmartquestions(don’twastetheirtimewiththingsyoucanfigureoutonyourown.)
-Takeadvantageofcrossmarketing(linkedin&behance&AIGA)
-Entercompetitionsonceyouloveyourwork,butdon’tletitchangeyourwork(don’tcompareyourself.)
Andy FackrellExecutive Creative Director, DDB Group, New Zealand
I haven’t seen a physical book for a year. [2013]
-That’sitfromme.Thispresentationwillbeuponslidesharelater(withmynotes)
-feelfreetoemailmewithquestionsifwedon’[email protected](putAIGAUpstateNYPortfolioBuildingWorkshopinthesubjectsoIdon’tspamfolderyou!)
Thanks.
Mitzie Testani Illustrator and interactive designer / [email protected]
Your First Job Doesn’t (Really) Matter HARVARDBUSINESSREVIEWhttp://blogs.hbr.org/2011/10/your-first-job-doesnt-really-m
I am not a web designer. JESSICAHISCHEhttp://jessicahische.is/thinkingthoughtsaboutwebdesign
Why Breaking Free From Expectations Is The Key To Good DesignFREERADICALS
http://www.psfk.com/2014/01/paula-scher-pentagram-istock.html?utm_content=buffer59c4d&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer#!teFSW
40 Days of dating http://fortydaysofdating.com/about
Interview: Jacob Escobedo THEGREATDISCONTENThttp://thegreatdiscontent.com/jacob-escobedo
A dozen common mistakesDAVIDC.BAKER http://www.aiga.org/a-dozen-common-mistakes/
16 Tips to Improve Your Design Portfolio & Get HiredWEEKLYDESIGNGRINDhttp://weeklydesigngrind.com/design-portfolio-tips-and-advice/
10 Essential Tips for Creating that Killer PortfolioDESIGNSOJOURNhttp://www.designsojourn.com/10-essential-tips-for-creating-that-killer-portfolio
Breaking In BYWILLIAMBURKSSPENCERhttp://breakinginbook.com:Over100AdvertisingInsidersRevealHowToBuildAPortfolioThatWillGetYouHired
Specialization: a designer’s key to success in the future DESIGNBLENDERhttp://www.graphicdesignblender.com/specialization-a-designers-key-to-success-in-the-future
Sources