One Minute With

Author Archives: Conor O'Driscoll

About Conor O'Driscoll

Conor O'Driscoll is a designer and writer, who writes for AppStorm.net. He also enjoys writing about himself in the third person.

One Minute With… Darren Booth
August 2, 2012 4:31 pm Leave a Comment

Hi Darren, thanks for taking time to chat with One Minute With. Tell us a little bit about yourself and your work.

I’m a freelance illustrator and letterer. I’ve been freelancing since 2001 and some of my clients include Coca-Cola, McDonalds, Random House, Penguin Books, Target, ESPN and Sony Music. I live in St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada with my wife and son.

Walk us through a typical day in the life of Darren Booth.

Wake up around 9am. Eat breakfast with my wife and son and then head to my studio. Take a million breaks to play with my 1 year old son and give him a few zurberts. Lunch at 12 and then back to work. Wind down for dinner and family time at 5pm. Then around 11pm I’ll work for a few more hours on either client work or personal work. Bed at 2am.

How did you get into design? Was there a defining point in your career, and if so, how did it shape you as a designer?

Like many folks in our field, I attended art school. After a fundamentals year, I knew without a doubt that illustration was the right area for me to study. Graduated and immediately started freelancing. I struggled earning enough for the first few years so I got a job intercepting criminal communications as a wire tapper for one of the largest police forces in Canada. (Not the most likely job for an art school grad, is it?) I continued to freelance while working that job and after a few years I left it to freelance on a full-time basis.

My defining moment came before my career even started – it happened about 6 weeks into art school. I always thought I was going to head into the Animation program when I started college, but once I started seeing projects on display from the Illustration program, I instantly knew that was what I wanted (needed) to do for the rest of my fucking life. From that point on, that’s all I focused on.

How do you approach a new project? What’s your creative process like?

Once I get briefed from the client, I just think about the project and let it marinate. After that, I’ll start thumbnailling some ideas until one feels right. Then I’ll create a proper sketch and send it to the client. I NEVER send a sketch to a client that I don’t like because, of course, that would be the one that would get chosen and then I’m stuck creating an image that I’m not overly thrilled about. That’s a pretty fast way to start hating what you do for a living, imo, and drawing pictures for a living is a pretty good gig so I try not to fuck that up. Once the client chooses a sketch, I’ll transfer the image and slave over it until all of a sudden it’s completed.

Your work has a very distinctive organic, collage-y look to it. Where do you get inspiration?

Thanks. Yeah, my work is acrylic and collage, 100% analog. I feel like such a dinosaur for working traditionally. Occasionally I’ll create a digital piece, but I fucking hate the process. I need to feel the brush hit the canvas, or dig through collage pieces and fit them all together by hand, etc. That’s the stuff that keeps me interested. I consider inspiration anything that makes me react in a positive way before I even realize why I’m liking it.

And whilst we’re on the subject of this unique style of yours, was this something you intentionally tried to develop, or something that evolved naturally? In an industry so full of talented people, how important is it, in your opinion, to have a style that separates you from the rest?

Near the end of art school is when my style began to gel together. Before that, it was a lot of learning and experimenting with different approaches or techniques. Eventually all that experimenting just mixed into something that looked somewhat cohesive and it’s evolved slowly over the years to what it is now. Having a style is important but it’s definitely not necessary. I’d say having good work is more important than having a style.

If, in some Freaky Friday-like situation, you could live the life of another designer, illustrator or creative, for a day, who would it be, and why?

Paul Rand. I like people who are straight shooters.

What design tools could you not live without?

Scissors, found papers and glue. I could survive without a pencil or computer.

And finally, what tips would you give to anybody who is looking to get started in design?

Be patient because the first few years aren’t easy. Also, don’t be a jerk.

Thanks Darren!

Many thanks to Darren for sharing his thoughts with OMW. I had a lot of fun talking to him, and I hope you love the interview as much I do!

Why not check out Darren’s site, and follow him on Dribbble and Twitter?

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One Minute With… Greg Christman
July 30, 2012 3:43 pm 1 Comment

Hi Greg, thanks for taking time to chat with One Minute With. Tell us a little bit about yourself and your work.

First off… thanks for having me! It is an honor to be here among friends and people I really admire. Secondly…I’m spending way more than a minute on this. False advertising Conor!

I’m a designer, illustrator, typographer, husband and father based in good ol’ Philadelphia Pennsylvania. I grew up in Allentown (yes, the same place Billy Joel wrote that shitty song about) so I’ve lived in PA my whole life. I generally just try to keep myself as sleep-deprived and busy as possible – much to my wife’s chagrin. I’m excited to see what the effects of this will be on my body as I get older. Also – because it takes up a large portion of my life – I’m pretty obsessed with RoboCop.

Walk us through a typical day in the life of Greg Christman.

Depending on when my kiddo gets up, I’m generally awake between 5:30 – 7 am. I like to start the day off right by changing what is most likely a poop-filled diaper. This works to my advantage since I don’t drink coffee. After that I’ll do a bit of work, queue up a few posts on My Cat is a Dick, check emails, shower, get dressed and then hop on my bike for the ride to the office. I work with a bunch of super talented people making things pretty on the internets. After losing multiple games of foosball throughout the day I head home to hang with the family. Eventually everything settles down and I stay up way too late making stuff and drinking beer for very little money. It is both awesome and a terrible business model.

How did you get into design? Was there a defining point in your career, and if so, how did it shape you as a designer?

I knew in high school that I wanted to be a designer. We had a great art/design program – thankfully, because I was a total fuck up in all other aspects of academia. I passed most of my classes by drawing pictures in the answer fields and hoping the teacher would give me a half point. Shit, now that I’m typing this my wife will probably yell at me that my son Oliver will someday read this and we won’t be able to discipline him for screwing around in school. Hey, future Oliver: “Get to your room and do your homework.”

I also blame punk and hardcore music for my interest in design. I was in bands all throughout junior high/high school/college. Designing for my bands and my friends’ bands was always a big passion for me and it continues to be. I have a ton of friends still touring/playing and I’m always honored to work on a music project since I don’t have much time to play music myself these days. Helps me to still feel connected to that aspect of my life.

How do you approach a new project? What’s your creative process like?

Step 1: Think of a dick and fart joke

Step 2: Draw said dick and fart joke.

Step 3: Profit.

But in reality that’s a pretty loaded question. Each project is different. Sometimes I’ll go straight to Illustrator and the first thing I do is “it.” Sometimes it takes hours and hours of sketching. I really enjoy breaking a project down to its simplest form and then building it up from there.

Your design work spans a load of fields, from logo design, to illustration, to print design, to lettering, and so on. If, in some horrible hypothetical universe, you could only do one of these things, which would it be, and why?

That’s a tough one… I’d probably have to go with lettering. My friends Alex Liebold, Eric Swartzwelder and I have been working on Context Type Foundry for 5 years but life/work keeps getting in the way. We have roughly 30 typefaces in various stages of completion and it’s looking like this project will be a reality in the near future. I often find myself doing a single custom letter for a project and then I end up finishing the entire typeface that night instead of working on the actual project. I’m pretty sure I have ADD.

Much of your design work has a slightly retro, organic feel to it. Where, who, when or what inspires you?

Honestly I’m mostly inspired by my friends. It’s a cheesy answer but I really am lucky to be friends with so many talented people. It motivates me to push myself and keep creating as much as I can. I draw a lot of inspiration from comedy as well. Most of the personal pieces I do tend to have a bit of humor to them. And since I’m super awkward and could never do standup, I tend to just doodle pictures of boobs and wieners and stuff.

If, in some Freaky Friday-like situation, you could live the life of another designer, illustrator or creative, for a day, who would it be, and why?

Ray Harryhaussen. I’ve always loved stop-motion animation and movie special effects in general. I wore out my tape of “The Seventh Voyage of Sinbad” as a kid. There’s just something so magical and real about that old style of film making. Anything can be created with CGI now, but it took a lot more creativity and imagination to figure out how to do those special effects before the advent of computer graphics. Which is something I think is making a comeback now, whether it be the return to vinyl/analog recording for music or the hands-on nature of letterpress with design. I love seeing the artist’s touch. Makes it feel more personal.

What design tools could you not live without?

Weed.

And finally, what tips would you give to anybody who is looking to get started in design?

Do what makes you happy and don’t just settle for a paycheck. If you have to put in the extra hours, do it.

I think as designers we do this because it’s a passion. I mean, clearly it’s not just for the pay. Even when I’m not designing I’m thinking about design. If I totaled up the hours I spend on a project against what I’m actually being paid for I might as well work at a minimum wage job…and I’m completely fine with that. Don’t get me wrong. I love money. I just love a good final product more. Again, terrible business model. I’m gonna go drink a beer.

Thanks Greg!

Thanks so much to Greg for giving us an insight into his world! I really enjoyed talking to him, and found his answers really interesting!

Why not check out Greg’s site, and follow him on Dribbble and Twitter?

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One Minute With… Matthew Manos
July 26, 2012 3:14 pm 1 Comment

Hi Matt, thanks for taking time to chat with One Minute With. Tell us a little bit about yourself and your work.

Hi! I am a recovering graphic designer that has evolved into a full-time design entrepreneur. I currently lead strategy and business development for verynice (my company), in Los Angeles, and I get a kick out of coming up with ideas for things that I don’t have time to do. I see business as a medium that is no different than Photoshop, Illustrator, or a tube of paint – just another form of creative expression.

Walk us through a typical day in the life of Matthew Manos.

My days are generally packed with talking to people. Because my role within verynice has shifted from Creative Director to this more “executive” kind of role, I spend a lot of times in meetings. It sounds lame, but I actually love it – I see it as a performance art. Often times I’ll assume different personas when talking to people. It makes my life more interesting, more theatrical. I see personas as a medium of design, too. That is about 40% of my day.

Aside from meeting with people, I spend a lot of time designing, but never within one category. Sometimes I’ll find myself making a logo, sometimes an app, sometimes a business plan, sometimes a product, sometimes an experience. I really like being all over the place. If I’m doing one type of thing for too long I go a little crazy. This is probably another 40% of my day.

The final 20% of the day is flexible. I’m currently working on launching a new company, am dreaming about writing a comic book, am dreaming about writing a booky book, and am working on launching a whole new series of initiatives within verynice, all related to the relationship between design, education, and entrepreneurship.

How did you get into design? Was there a defining point in your career, and if so, how did it shape you as a designer?

My design career actually started through my interest in painting. At a young age, I was always obsessed with landscapes and abstraction. This interest eventually evolved to become my first company – a painting business that produced artwork for people’s homes based on their personality and the space it was intended to hang. Over the course of two summers, I sold close to 150 paintings. This experience showed me what it was like to work with people to produce art. I then learned that design was very much about that, too, and signed up for a design class during my senior year of high school. Armed with a pirated copy of Photoshop, I reached out to a local non-profit organization, Wheelchair Skater, to design some stickers for them – they became my first pro-bono client. This really was a game-changer for me because not only did this little venture of mine introduce me to design, it introduced me to entrepreneurship. Turning point 1/3.

I then studied Design Media Arts at UCLA where I became more and more fascinated with the tangibility of design, and the power of communication, in general. Eager to try the things I was learning outside of the classroom context, I volunteered for over 30 student organizations, and really built upon my freelance career as a web designer, graphic designer, animator, and video editor. Excited by the idea of taking this freelance career to the next level, in 2008, I started to draft ideas for what my ideal design firm would be. Over the course of the next year, I launched verynice, but simultaneously took on a ton of internships so that I could get a first-person perspective on how some of LA’s greatest designers were running their companies. These internship experiences shaped me as a “business man,” but also confirmed my hypothesis that there was a need to innovate in the social sector. Turning point 2/3.

After UCLA I hopped straight into grad school at Art Center College of Design, where I studied Media Design for two years. This entire experience was eye opening to me, and confirmed a lot of the struggles I had been having with the design industry, and that is this: To say that websites, posters, logos, etc. are what encompass the role of designers, is to miss out on millions of other places the mind of a creative can go. It was at Art Center that I really came to terms with who I am as a designer, and how I see design’s role evolving. Turning point 3/3.

How do you approach a new project? What’s your creative process like?

Restriction defines my creative process. Many of my personal art and design projects from the past 3 years or so have started by setting a series of rules for myself. The first time I did this was for my senior project at UCLA, titled “Mandolin & Unicycle,” a project in which I gave myself 10 weeks to learn two things I have always wanted to learn, simultaneously. The rules I set were these:

– In 3 weeks, learn a song on the mandolin.
– In 3 weeks, learn how to ride the unicycle straight, for one block.
– In the remaining 4 weeks, learn how to play the song while simultaneously riding the unicycle.

When you were just 20 years old, you set up your design company verynice – How does running a creative agency compare to working freelance? What new challenges does it bring?

My freelance career began at age 16, and this later evolved and sort of merged under the name “verynice” when I turned 20. The decision was really intentional – I started saying “we” instead of “me” before there truly was a “we” as a way to gain quicker respect and trust from clients. It’s a sad reality, but when you are a young person in this world, people’s expectations of what you are capable of are quite narrow. They don’t judge you on what you have done, and what you have accomplished. They judge you on where they think you should be, given your age. So the shift from “Matthew Manos” to “verynice” was a response, of sorts, to that struggle.

The good news is that the studio has since grown to be a home for over 100 collaborators across the globe, so now when I say “we,” I mean it.

verynice is notable for the fact that you have given $350,000 worth of pro bono work to non-profits – Tell us a bit about this idea, why you decided to do it, and how that has actually manifested itself over the past 3 years.

What makes verynice unique is that over 50% of our efforts are given away for free, to non-profit organizations. This was a conscience decision from the very beginning – the hope to really disrupt the way the design industry operates, from an economical standpoint. Non-profit organizations in the United States allocate a total of 7.6 billion dollars for design and marketing expenditures, annually. Yes – annually. Above all aspirations, I really hope verynice can be seen as an inspiration to other design firms, proof that pro-bono can be a part of every day business. Imagine what could be accomplished if organizations had a spare 7.6 billion, every year. There is some amazing possibility and potential for impact, and it is in our hands – we can make that happen.

The verynice office mascot.

If, in some Freaky Friday-like situation, you could live the life of another designer, illustrator or creative, for a day, who would it be, and why?

I am so glad you asked. I would absolutely love to switch bodies with Swiss Miss. I love the idea of being able to manage a bunch of small things that are all my own – not attached to any client or agency. That was the direction I had always wanted to go in, and it is starting to happen, but it just takes time and patience.

What design tools could you not live without?

People think I am crazy, but I could not live without the sticky notes application that comes free on Macs. I have hundreds of these. It seems chaotic, but it all juts makes sense – this is where my business plans are, my ideas, brainstorms for new creative projects, my finances, everything. Extremely dangerous, 100% not safe, but hey – it works!
I also could not live without my Moleskine notebook. Every project I take on is first sketched out with pen and paper in my notebook. I just love how messy they get, and how worn they become over time.

And finally, what tips would you give to anybody who is looking to get started in design?

In design school you will often be told what design is, the types of mediums it is comprised of, and the value it can have on society, or in business. I encourage anybody who is just starting in design to be open enough to define all of those things for yourself.

Marketing and design is shifting significantly, and the role of designers, right now, is drastically different than it was during those Mad Men days. We are entering a future in which every thing around us, from the sidewalks we walk on, to the cities we live in, to the hats on our head, can be mediums for communication and engagement. Because of this reality, discovering problems and solutions will become a very difficult task. The role of a designer will soon not be to produce materials, but instead to define and discover the root of a problem that cannot be seen with a naked eye. Be open to that possibility – it is an exciting one.

Thanks Matt!

Many thanks to Matt for sharing his thoughts with OMW. I had a lot of fun talking to him, and I hope you love the interview as much I do!

Why not check out Matt’s site, and follow him on Twitter?

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One Minute With… Rich Thornett
July 23, 2012 7:58 pm Leave a Comment

Hi Rich, thanks for taking time to chat with One Minute With. Tell us a little bit about yourself and your work.

I live and work in Salem, Massachusetts. I’m married to a wonderful, witty woman and have two beautiful-but-bonkers children. Professionally, I do product design and software development at Dribbble, a community where designers share screenshots of what they’re working on. It started out as a side project with my friend and neighbor, Dan Cederholm, and has turned into a full-time job and adventure for both of us.

Walk us through a typical day in the life of Rich Thornett.

My routine is pretty boring, but you asked… :)

I don’t have a boss and my office is a short walk from home, so in lieu of commuting, I hang out with my kids during the morning while they eat breakfast and get ready for school or camp. Lately, we’ve been reading Harry Potter during breakfast. (I told you this was exciting.) Having the flexibility to optimize my time with the kids has been one of the best things about working for myself.

Once they’re out the door, I exercise – typically I run or play basketball. Then I shower and head to work. So I get in a bit late, but I haven’t fired myself. Yet.

I spend the rest of the day working on all things Dribbble – responding to email (it’s frightening how much time I spend emailing of late), bug fixes, product planning, new development, and recently, carrying heavy things as we moved to a nifty new office that gives us room to grow.

When I get home at night, I hang out with my family – dinner, playtime, bedtime. I don’t have a lot of spare time for much else, but I’m a pro basketball junkie – I spend too much time reading basketball blogs – and I’m working through my Netflix queue. Breaking Bad and Supernatural are recent faves.

What led you to becoming a developer? Was there a defining point in your career, and if so, how did it shape you as a dev?

What led to me becoming a developer? The Web. I graduated from college in the mid-90s and took a few research assistant jobs out of school. I was very naive about careers and assumed I would do something in academia or research-related; that was all I knew. I was plodding through Excel spreadsheets when the Web came along and blew my mind. I decided to learn how to program and build web applications for a living.

I majored in Economics and Philosophy and had no background in computer science, so I had a lot to learn. I started teaching myself to code and enrolled in a Master’s program in Information Science. To this day I’m not sure what information science is, but it was a nascent discipline and, in large part, I was able to design my own curriculum around internet technologies and programming. I spent a ton of time in a very nice computer lab in Chapel Hill, North Carolina where I taught myself Perl, PHP, Java and SQL.

With more foresight, I would have gotten computer science training much earlier, but the master’s program got me immersed in application development. I shudder to think where my career would be had I not gotten caught in the Web.

As for a defining point in my career, I think it’s Dribbble. The site has gotten a lot of notoriety, but more personally, it reawakened the urge to OWN my work. I got into programming to build applications for problems I cared about and to craft solutions that reflected my values. After more than a decade of working at startups and blue chips, my biggest frustration has been seeing so many projects fail or fall short due to deficits of taste, will or decision-making by product owners; or by the absence of a product owner. Many companies fail to realize the importance of having someone with taste and judgment at the helm of a project, someone who understands the past, present and future of a product, and its relation to the business. As John Gruber put it: “The quality of any collaborative creative endeavour tends to approach the level of taste of whoever is in control of the project.”

I’m not good at visual design in the sense of choosing specific colors, type, etc, so I never thought of my self as a designer. But in every role I’ve had, I’ve been obsessed with copy, information design, feature selection, page layout, visual weight, messages and signals conveyed to users, application form and function, and business models. This, to me, is product design.

Playing that role is what I’ve loved most about working on Dribbble. Whatever the future holds, it’s difficult to imagine playing a role without that level of strategic input and authority. It’s truly thrilling.

Dribbble is a site built for a very creative, very web-savvy userbase. Do you think this makes it harder to work on, when you are under scrutiny from so many people with experience of developing similar platforms? Or does your community aid the development of Dribbble?

Good question. This is definitely a double-edged sword. Getting the word out about Dribbble, growing the site and having great content has definitely been aided by the fact that our users are so savvy and talented. But criticism can be very harsh, and there can be drama at times. I certainly have much thicker skin than I did when I started this project.

But overall, it’s a big win for Dribbble to have the community that we do. The site has been used by millions of people, it earns revenue that feeds our kids, and we’ve heard from many users that it’s changed their lives due to personal connections made and and work opportunities received. To get this kind of response to software we’ve built… it’s a pretty amazing thing. I’m eternally grateful to our members who make this thing go.

Obviously, Dribbble is a community-driven site. How does the way people use Dribbble now compare to how you and Dan initially conceived it? How do you think Dribbble will evolve, both as a site and as a community, in the future?

I guess this was naive in retrospect, but we had no idea there would be so much interest and drama around Dribbble’s Popular page. We created it when we had a small number of users as a simple entry point into the site – showing well-received work seemed like an obvious place to start for the uninitiated. We figured members would focus on their following page (a la Twitter), or exploring the site through tags, search and other browsing features. But, love it or hate it, a lot of people seem to care deeply about who and what appears on that page.

I think some see the Popular page as an endorsement of what is GOOD DESIGN, and when they disagree, they get upset. But it’s actually a reflection of what is trending. I’ve toyed with the idea of removing that page altogether, but not sure I’d survive the riot that ensues. We’re damned if we do, damned if we don’t at this point. But it’s damned interesting :)

From the extended basketball metaphor, to the fact that you and Dan use the site just as regularly as the users, Dribbble is very much a site with a personality. How important is it to you to keep yourselves from becoming a faceless company?

I think that Dribbble’s personality comes from a) our members and b) product decisions we make. We do participate in the community, but intentionally try to keep low profiles on the site (not always possible for Dan since he’s well-known). The site exists to feature its members and their work, not us.

It was important getting started that Dan’s name was attached to the project. It will always be important that we make good product design decisions with our user’s interests at the forefront. Does it matter that people know the names and faces of who’s behind the site, particularly as we grow? I don’t know. I think the key is to make sure the site is working well for users. As time passes, and as membership and our company grows, I suspect that the quality of the service we provide will matter much more than our names and faces.

If, in some Freaky Friday-like situation, you could live the life of another designer, illustrator, developer or creative, for a day, who would it be, and why?

I have a bit of a developer/designer crush on Shaun Inman. He’s a polymath who seems to excel at every aspect of product design. He has all sorts of interesting ideas for projects and teaches himself whatever it takes to build them. He’s a guy with great vision who’s been able to ship many successful products (Mint, Fever, The Last Rocket, etc).

Lately he’s been creating 8-bit iOS games, shots of which he posts on Dribbble – I’m always excited to see what he’s coming up with next. I’m not even a gamer, but his work is fascinating to me. I’d love to spend a day in his mind to see what he’s thinking about and working on.

What tools could you not live without?

Ruby, Ruby on Rails and the ecosystems they have spawned I’ve done web development in many languages. Ruby/Rails is the best thing that’s ever happened for webapps IMO. The combination of rapid application development and high quality practices that Rails ushered into the mainstream completely changed the game.

PostgreSQL
Best. Database Ever.

New Relic
Essential for monitoring web applications. (But don’t tell our biz contact over there.)

Google + Stack Overflow
Search is still the killer app for developers IMO. I can find the answer to any question, often in a matter of seconds, often on Stack Overflow.

And finally, what tips would you give to anybody who is looking to get started in the big bad world of web development?

Be strategic. As you learn, make it a goal that your code or designs get used. Side projects are a great way to learn, but they’re even better in the hands of users. It puts you in the position of learning to solve problems for _people_ and gets you visibility in the community.

The resume of designers and developers has evolved from paper to an amalgam of blog/Twitter/GitHub/Dribbble/LinkedIn/etc. But it’s easier than ever to build and deploy software products, so that should be part of your resume, too. Try to build something – or team up with someone to build it – that ultimately has a URL where people can use or see your work. Pointing people to your creations is tremendously satisfying and the best resume of all.

Thanks Rich!

Many thanks to Rich for sharing his thoughts with One Minute With. I really enjoyed his answers, and I hope you love the interview as much I do!

Why not check out Rich’s site, and follow him on Dribbble and Twitter?

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One Minute With… Rob Clarke
July 19, 2012 3:08 pm Leave a Comment

Hi Rob, thanks for taking time to chat with One Minute With. Tell us a little bit about yourself and your work.

My pleasure… I’m a British typographer and designer based in Clerkenwell, London. I spend most of the day and sometimes night designing logos and custom fonts. My clients are varied – I work directly for clients and also together with design and advertising agencies… Oh, I’m also happily married with two wonderful children.

Walk us through a typical day in the life of Rob Clarke.

I’ve got to be honest, I’m not a morning person, but I am quite strict with myself over punctuality. I get to my studio around 9.15am, a quick cuppa and I’m off… I try to ease my way into the day, tweeting, reading blogs etc, but then pick up the pace until the end of the day. I say end, it’s more like end of the day shift. After putting the kids to bed I begin the late shift at about 8pm… I think I need to address my work/life balance!

Photo by Dave Brown. Like, the one off The Mighty Boosh. No seriously.

How did you get into design? Was there a defining point in your career, and if so, how did it shape you as a designer?

I actually wanted to be a computer programmer – I loved my ZX Spectrum! But I guess I was always pretty good at drawing and was thankfully guided towards art school where I first became interested in graphic design.

I studied the work of Eric Spiekermann in my final year at university and was invited to go out to Berlin and meet the typographic guru. I don’t think I need to explain, but the guy is inspirational.

I guess another significant moment was that I finally plucked up the courage to leave my first and only job, as an assistant to a calligrapher, and go it alone. This threw me right in at the deep end, but proved the challenge I needed to kick start my career.

How do you approach a new project? What’s your creative process like?

It varies… I work on all stages of a project from initial ideas through to little tweaks. I would say a very important part of the process is research. You can’t underestimate a good percentage of time spent on getting under the skin of the brand you are working on. Then I start frantically doodling – I find you can be more expressive and creative when scribbling something down quickly. After this it’s a combination of Illustrator and sketching until finally refining as vectors.

I think more than anyone I’ve interviewed on the site to date, your list of clients is just phenomenal – PC World, Rowntrees, Dulux, Hovis, to name just a few. How do you find working with such big brands? How does it compare to smaller client work – Which do you enjoy more, and why?

Ha ha… I don’t really worry about the size of the brand, it’s just marks on paper at the end of the day. However working on big brands can be rewarding. It’s great to see your work up there in big shiny lights. Going to the supermarket can be a pain for the wife and I’m constantly reminded of work when watching TV. However, the bigger the client, the bigger the committee. The design can become diluted and lack the original spark – or the opposite and become too tricksy. I definitely enjoy the freedom of working for small clients.

You are now obviously best known for your lettering and branding work. Did you approach the industry with this niche in mind, or did it simply evolve? How important is it, in your opinion, to have a niche in an industry as large as ours?

Nowadays I believe it is very important to stand out from the vast crowd and I guess subconsciously I did seek a niche. I was never into becoming a bit-part in a huge company. I’ve always been interested in actual designers themselves, the personalities behind the work. Twitter is great for this, there seems to be a growing community of niche designers out there.

If, in some Freaky Friday-like situation, you could live the life of another designer, illustrator or creative, for a day, who would it be, and why?

Does it have to be a designer? Can’t I be a footballer or a rock singer? …Okay, maybe Jonathan Ive, sorry Sir Jonathan Ive… what a cool dude. Do I have to explain why?

What design tools could you not live without?

My Moleskine diary which combines as a sketchbook. I’m a list maker and a doodler and I take it everywhere.

And finally, what tips would you give to anybody who is looking to get started in design?

Take a look in the mirror… are you ready for hard work? The initial years in the industry can be tough but if you are passionate it will click into place. The key is to grow a slightly thicker skin and obviously enjoy yourself.

By the way, if anybody wants me to expand on any points or ask any other questions feel free to get in touch!

Thanks Rob!

Thanks a million to Rob for talking to OMW! I really enjoyed interviewing him, and found his answers really interesting!

Why not check out Rob’s site, and follow him on Dribbble and Twitter?

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One Minute With… Neil J. Rook
July 16, 2012 3:00 pm 2 Comments

Hi Neil, thanks for taking time to chat with One Minute With. Tell us a little bit about yourself and your
work.

Hi there, well thank you for the great opportunity! I’m an illustrator and designer, London born and bred. I really love colour and pattern. When I’m not illustrating or designing I can usually be found in Selfridges committing bankruptcy or on the phone apparently.

Walk us through a typical day in the life of Neil Rook.

I’ll usually wake up and have a cup of tea while reading my emails. I’ll check a few blogs, Tumblr etc. I’ll then make a list of things or projects I need to work on that day. I’m a big fan of lists and post its. I like to work on a few things at once, so I’ll regularly chop and change between projects during the day. I think if you stare at something too long you can start to resent it so it’s always good to take a break and refresh your eyes.

How did you get into illustration? Was there a defining point in your career, and if so, how did it shape you as an illustrator?

My education is actually in fashion design, but it never felt completely right. I was more interested in creating the graphics/illustrations than the construction of garments and my tutors agreed. I wasn’t bad at it, I was just a lot better at one than the other and it was obvious. Once I’d graduated I considered my options and decided to go down the illustration route. I was incredibly lucky and my first ever paid job was for AOL. After that I got myself an agent and the rest is history!

How do you approach a new project? What’s your creative process like?

It varies from project to project but normally I’ll take a day or so to think about some ideas, develop them a little and draw some terrible sketches/notes and go from there. A lot of times though I’ll get stuck in right away and just follow my instincts. I think that’s the beauty of being able to work digitally. A lot of times I’ll start off with one idea and finish with something completely different.

You’re involved in both design and illustration – Which do you prefer, and how do you think the two fields differ?

I think illustration gives you a lot more freedom to be a little crazy. Design always has the underlining that it needs to serve a purpose so it must have a balance of crazy & practical. With illustration you can just be as bonkers as you like. There aren’t really any rules to illustration, I’m not a big fan of rules.

Your work has a fun, fresh feel, with a geometric twist. Where do you get inspiration?

I’m really inspired by colour or shape, pattern especially. I really love the old Disney illustrators like Mary Blair and Eyvind Earle. The artwork Eyvind Earle did for sleeping beauty is gorgeous, every still is a piece of artwork. I’d sell my right arm to own an original, only then I couldn’t work, so maybe my left arm? I’m always inspired by London too. It has an endless source of inspiration whether it be museums, fashion, architecture, anything. It’s a great place to live as an illustrator.

If, in some Freaky Friday-like situation, you could live the life of another designer, illustrator or creative, for a day, who would it be, and why?

Since I was a teen I’ve always admired Paul Frank. I love the fun aesthetic the brand has and how it doesn’t take itself too seriously. He managed to take his love for illustration and apply it to so many different things and make a great business out of it. If I could have even a quarter of that success it would be c’est magnifique! I’d be a very happy man.

What design tools could you not live without?

The most obvious thing would be my iMac or illustrator. Without them I probably wouldn’t even be doing this or have a career which is quite scary isn’t it? Is my brain considered a tool?

And finally, what tips would you give to anybody who is looking to get started in design or illustration?

Learn your craft well and never stop learning it. If you are always learning you are constantly evolving and design & illustration always need to change and evolve. I’m always learning new things, even if its only a new keyboard shortcut. That and practice. Practice makes perfect and if you don’t practice something how are you ever going to learn it?

Thanks Neil!

Thanks a million to Neil for sharing his thoughts! I really enjoyed interviewing him, and found his answers really interesting!

Why not check out Neil’s site, and follow him on Dribbble and Twitter?

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One Minute With… Matt Kaufenberg
July 12, 2012 2:59 pm Leave a Comment

Hi Matt, thanks for taking time to chat with One Minute With. Tell us a little bit about yourself and your work.

My pleasure! I’m a full-time freelance illustrator living in Minnesota with my wife and two kids. I used to work full-time as a freelance web/print designer, but eventually decided to pursue a career in illustration since that’s my real passion. I’ve been doing it for about a year and a half and it’s going great.

Walk us through a typical day in the life of Matt Kaufenberg.

Normally I wake up around 8 (although I’ve been working on getting up earlier), head downstairs and hang out with the fam for a little bit. Then, with some coffee, I’ll go through my new emails and follow up on any potential work. Then it’s time to start working. I normally work on 2-3 projects at a time (unless there’s a pressing deadline, then I’ll concentrate on that). Working at home, it’s nice to be able to take breaks and read books with the kids or play outside for a bit. I normally work until around 5. Then I’ll have dinner with the wife and kids and after that, depending on my work load, head back to work for another hour or so. Sometimes work keeps my up late, but I’m trying to create a more normal working schedule so that i can spend more time with my family and enjoy the evenings.

How did you get into illustration? Was there a defining point in your career, and if so, how did it shape you as a designer?

I’ve always had a love for drawing. I filled NUMEROUS sketchbooks and went through many reams of paper as a kid. When I was fifteen, I won a local art scholarship and ended up being mentored by a fantastic editorial cartoonist by the name of Trygve Olson. It was an amazing experience and fueled my passion for a career in illustration.

How do you approach a new project? What’s your creative process like?

I start with research, looking for anything and everything concerning the topic I’ll be illustrating. Then I like to look around for inspiration. Although the internet is a great source of inspiration, I also enjoying looking through children’s books, vintage album art, listening to music, and anything else that might spark an idea for the project.

You’ve worked on some great personal projects (Most notably, your Illustration-a-Day blog) – How valuable is it, do you feel, to keep personal projects alive along with client work? Do they help in getting more client work, do you reckon?

I’d say it’s extremely valuable to work on personal projects. Sometimes during client work you can hit a creative wall and working on something for myself often helps me break through it and reignite my passion for the project.

You also do a whole bunch of collaboration work (The Essentials Of and Epic Armory, for example) – With a community so tight-knit as ours, how important is it, in your opinion, to constantly get involved like this?

Very important! Freelance illustration can be a very solitary job, and at times leave you feeling worn-out creatively. I find that connecting with other creatives and collaborating on projects can really refresh your creativity and bring back that excitement of drawing, which can diminish when working alone.

If, in some Freaky Friday-like situation, you could live the life of another designer, illustrator or creative, for a day, who would it be, and why?

I’d love to switch lives with a Hollywood film editor for a day. Besides illustration, I love editing film. There’s such an art to it and I find it very enjoyable. If I could try that out professionally for a day, it would be the cat’s pajamas!

What design tools could you not live without?

I’d be lost without my Cintiq, it’s an amazing piece of hardware. I also couldn’t live without Photoshop or Sketchbook Pro since I use them every single day.

And finally, what tips would you give to anybody who is looking to get started in illustration?

Find things you’re passionate about and illustrate those things. When you’re passionate about an illustration, it shows, and potential clients will see that. Also, post on your blog or website on a consistent basis. Things get old fast on the internet and one of the best ways to get new clients is by posting new work.

Thanks Matt!

Many thanks to Matt for sharing his thoughts with OMW. I had a lot of fun talking to him, and I hope you love the interview as much I do!

Why not check out Matt’s site, and follow him on Dribbble and Twitter?

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One Minute With… Erin Fuller
July 9, 2012 2:43 pm 2 Comments

Hi Erin, thanks for taking the time to chat with OneMinuteWith. Tell us a little bit about yourself and your work.

Thanks for having me! Humbled. Honored. Happy to be here.

Whelp, my name is Erin Fuller – designer, music junkie, and last-but-certainly-not-least mom to a very busy 4yr old boy. I’m also a co-producer/founder and design maven for The Shitty Barn Sessions. I currently live in this magical little village nestled in the driftless area of Wisconsin called Spring Green – which is home to FLLW’s Taliesin, American Players Theatre, THE SHITTY BARN(!!!) and The House on the Rock. Been here for 9 years and love it… BUT, recently gave up the full-time independent designer gig and now commute an hour to Madison everyday for my rad job as a senior designer at Planet Propaganda. SO! This summer, I’m packing my bags and moving (back) to Madison to cut my commute to enable spending more time with my kid and be closer to stores that are open past 6pm.

Walk us through a typical day in the life of Erin Fuller.

I’m a single mom and get up when my son does (between 4:45 and 6:30am). He’s fairly suspect of getting dressed, eating breakfast and brushing his teeth most every morning so the aforementioned tasks can take anywhere from 5 to 50 minutes depending how cooperative he’s feeling. If you don’t have kids, imagine trying to put pants on a chicken…its kinda like that. When he’s taken care of, I make myself presentable and prep the both of us for the daily commute into Madison (about 1hr). After battling rural traffic (comprised of tractors and people who consistently go only 45mph ALL. THE. TIME.), I drop the kiddo off at preschool and make my way downtown to Planet Propaganda; eat breakfast grab a sip of coffee, check e-mails and start the work day. Its typically pretty busy so I usually eat something resembling lunch at my desk and am always surprised how quickly the 5 o’clock hour rolls around, which is when I battle city traffic back across town to pick up the kiddo, resume mommying duties and do the reverse 1hr commute back home. Then it’s dinner, bath, bedtime stories and cuddle time. After my son’s down – If I haven’t fallen asleep while tucking him in – I grab a glass of wine, listen to music and do one (maybe two, if I’m lucky) of 7,000 things that need my attention – which usually fall into one of the following categories:

• house work (bills, cleaning, etc)
• work work (anything I didn’t get a chance to finish at work during the day)
• freelance work (Furthermore Beer)
• Shitty Barn duties (poster designing and 2012 poster series curating/project managing, social media stuffs)
• exercise
• pick up my guitar & pretend I know how to write songs
• go see live music
• fritter away time on interwebs hangouts #fb #twitter #nprmusic #musicblogs #tumblr #flickr #last.fm

Typically fall asleep between midnight and 2am every night. Rinse. Repeat.

Of course, there are days when my son’s with his dad, in which, life is pretty much the same – except I get to reliably sleep past 6am, work a bit later, and tend to more than 1 or 2 things on my never-ending list of to-dos (all the while walking around like I’m missing a limb because I miss my kiddo something fierce).

How did you get into design? Was there a defining point in your career, and if so, how did it shape you as a designer?

I started out as a music major in college and never considered doing anything else with my life. Ever. Of course, then I got to college, was tempted by something called a social life and decided spending 25hrs a week in a practice room wasn’t for me. Because music had always been one of the most important parts of my life, I had already amassed a healthy collection of CDs, gig posters, and other music stuffs so, almost by osmosis, design already seemed pretty near and dear to my heart.

Design is a VERY big part of my life, but to this day, music is still my no. 1 boyfriend. He gets all my free time on the rare occasion there’s some to spare. In an attempt to balance out that equation, 3 years ago, I started The Shitty Barn Sessions with a few friends, which, for me, perfectly marries my love of design AND music. As proof of concept, we had 5 shows the first summer and this year we’re up to 43(!!) so I enlisted the talents of a few local design friends to help out with the poster series. Its been great to see it all come together and the performing artists are always very appreciative and impressed by the work. Soon, I’ll be putting together a web page highlighting the art and designers participating this year in hopes to amplify the design component of the sessions (stay tuned). The barn gig is an absolute labor of love and I would do nothing but that full-time if we made any money on it. But, we’re breaking even(ish), slowly making our mark and the performers are consistently calling us some iteration of the following testimonial: “The best & most humble venue in WI right now,” and I’m pretty darn content with that.

How do you approach a new project? What’s your creative process like?

Depends on the project, but typically, I like to get the low down, do some initial research and then marinate for a while. I’ll pull any relevant samples from my Tumblr archive and seek out new sources of inspiration that are more relevant to the project. Then. Type. Ohhh beautiful type….(I normally don’t disclose this information to the general public but seeing that this is a design-centric site, fairly certain I’m not alone when I proclaim my serious lust of letterforms). Ok. So. Where were we? Yes. The best part, type. So. I try on a few typefaces/styles to see what fits the bill for the particular project. Then it starts to grow from there.

I’ve been thinking A LOT about process in the past few years (particularly how the design process parallels/crosses over with creating music) but that’s gonna eat up at least 30 minutes…So, next time your in Madison, lets get a drink and discuss this topic properly.

You work in numerous fields, from web, to print, to branding, to packaging. If, in a hypothetical universe that, for the sake of your career, we’ll hope doesn’t exist, you could only work in one of these fields, which would it be, and why?

PRINT. FOREVS.

The boundaries. Its tactile qualities. The nuances and artifacts exposed in the process. The smell of fresh ink….

You have a marvellous typography-centric retro style, with many geometric elements – Where do you get inspiration?

I pull a lot of my type-driven inspiration from vintage packaging, print ads and ephemera. If the internet didn’t exist, I’d be living in amongst a pile of ticket stubs, mid-century packaging, hand painted signs and postcards picked up from antique stores. Lucky for me there’s a healthy online community for such addictions so that’s where I go to source out points of inspiration. About 2 years ago (pre-Pinterest explosion) I started a Tumblr (mentioned above) as a place to store all my inspiration. It’s been, and continues to be, a great tool when I need a jump start or reference material.

If, in some Freaky Friday-like situation, you could live the life of another designer, illustrator or creative, for a day, who would it be, and why?

Honestly, I don’t know. Myself 10 years ago? I’d def. have a few words of advice for her like, “Have more confidence in your work,” and “trust your instincts,”…. alas. Did I just dodge that question??

Ok, ok. If I could live another life and got to choose, I’d for sure skew music. Bob Boilen‘s got a pretty kick ass job…. Patti Smith? David Byrne? It’d be pretty kick ass to be Sharon Van Etten, Annie Clark or Leslie Feist at this point in their careers.

What design tools could you not live without?

ADOBE ILLUSTRATOR (and Photoshop), my Mac, a large monitor, reasonable computer speakers or headphones, music, volume control, the internet…

And finally, what tips would you give to anybody who is looking to get started in design?

Never stop learning. (And to borrow from above) Have confidence in your work. Trust your instincts. Be earnest. Don’t use Papyrus. Ever.

Thanks Erin!

Many thanks to Erin for taking some time to talk to One Minute With. I loved having the chance to interview her, and hopefully you enjoyed reading it!

Why not check out Erin’s site, and follow her on Dribbble and Twitter?

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One Minute With… Kern and Burn
July 5, 2012 3:29 pm Leave a Comment

Hey Jess & Tim, thanks for taking time to chat with One Minute With. Tell us a little bit about yourselves and your work.

We both recently graduated from MICA (Maryland Institute College of Art) from the Graphic Design MFA program.

Jess: My background is in interior architecture. I decided to make the switch to graphic design when I was realized I loved to spend more time branding projects then drawing architectural details. I think I made the right decision :) I tend to bring a lot of the structured thinking, planning, organizing, emailing etc. to the team (probably a nod to my architecture background) and why I’m the most definitely the “Kern.”

Tim: I’ve always made things and hopefully always will. I received a fine arts degree in undergrad and then ran a small design firm and gallery in Lancaster, PA with two partners called The Infantree. I left there to come to graduate school, and I’m really proud of how the partners have grown the business since my departure. I like to think about design as my way of providing opportunities for others. I like drawing, and getting things done while others are sleeping. I guess I’m the “Burn.”

Walk us through a typical day in the lives of Tim Hoover and Jessica Karle Heltzel.

We’re currently working on the Kern and Burn book while simultaneously job-hunting, running The People’s Pennant, and freelancing — just because we graduated doesn’t mean the work stopped! There’s probably no typical day for us. Grad school (and life shortly after) is probably the craziest, lack-of-routine lifestyle you can get. Our norm is us hustling to get a million things done each day while throwing in a slice of pizza and a beer here and there.

Jess and Tim. I’m pretty sure that Tim’s the one on the right, but don’t quote me on that.

With Kern & Burn, you set yourself the challenge of 100 articles on design entrepreneurship, in 100 days. Whilst you obviously completed this impressive feat, was it harder or easier than you had envisaged it to be? If you had to do it all over again, how would you do it differently?

It was SO much harder! When we first started the blog it was more of an internal document for us, just a way to be disciplined and post all of our research. When it started to pick up an audience we found our posts going from 200 words to 800+ words a day. We love that people were reading everyday but that just made us want to make each post better than the previous one — which meant more writing, better editing, and more interviews. It took a solid 2-3 hours a day to do each post, which on top of the rest of our work was kind of crazy. But the success of the 100 days allowed us to Kickstart the book and for that we are grateful. It made the hard work of keeping up the blog all worth it.

We timed the 100th day to land on our final exhibition opening. We were trying to write posts and install a grid of 100 images on no sleep. That was craziness. Looking back we’d probably build in a few days of padding!

We’re excited to get the blog up and running again—we have some new interviews to share that we’re excited about.

Kern and Burn is your thesis project for your Graphic Design MFAs in MICA. In an industry that changes so rapidly, how important do you think a formal education in design is?

Jess: Because I switched fields I think getting a Masters degree has been very important to the path that I’m going to take next. I’m going to steal a bit of what we wrote about on Day 45 where we asked ourselves this same question. Here’s what we said:

Getting a Masters degree is inarguably beneficial for a number of reasons. You get a chance to step back from your career and take a risk, a financial one of course, but also one that asks you to redefine yourself. You are given time to discover what you love to do, identify your strengths and weaknesses, and freedom to fail. There are also the practical benefits.

With graduate school comes a group of talented peers and faculty, both of which continually push you toward improvement. You connect with mentors daily and are exposed to a network of creatives, and all-around smart people, who are there for you to use in the best way possible—to learn from and hopefully teach some things to in return. Ultimately, you emerge (we hope) as a more well-rounded designer and person.

That being said, formal education is by no means a requirement to be successful in this industry. There are plenty of opportunities for self-motivated people to learn on their own outside of school walls. Online platforms like General Assembly and Codeacademy offer a range of great courses to learn from. Also, just starting side-projects has taught me so much about what it means to run a business and what it takes to work collaboratively.

Tim: A talented community is essential, but I believe you can find that outside of a formal education. For me, without a formal education, I may never have realized what I love doing, or even known that this type of work existed. One of our goals with Kern and Burn was to extend the types of conversations we were having with our peers at MICA to an audience that may not have the same privilege. I am very grateful for the opportunity I’ve had. I’m less grateful for the debt, but it definitely keeps me hungry and working hard. I think its important to be uncomfortable—and my debt definitely makes me uncomfortable :)

In 100 days of blogging, you must have heard dozens of designers’ stories and insights. What do you think the most valuable lesson you learnt was, and whose story did you find the most inspirational?

Jess: That’s a tough one! Here are just a few of the lessons that we’ve heard over and over again:

There are no rules.
Everyone is making it up as they go.
You can fail.
You can create opportunities for others.
You can learn as you go.
You can do what you love.

Tim: You can design your own career. I’ve always felt this way deep down, but its encouraging to hear the stories of real people who made it up as they went. The internet has really changed our profession and we can create our own momentum.

Tad Carpenter quoted one of his mentors Gordon MacKenzie, and told us, “The only way to be original is by knowing yourself.” It’s tough to be ourselves when it may look like the industry is rewarding similar styles, perspectives, or experiences. But I completely agree with Gordon, the easiest and best way to differentiate ourselves is to be ourselves. Jess and I tried to show diverse perspectives on Kern and Burn.

You’re currently working on the Kickstarter-funded Kern & Burn book, as well as having co-founded The People’s Pennant. What is it about real, tangible products that you so evidently love? Do you think it’s important to keep alive these traditions of yesteryear, rather than have everything be digitalised these days?

Stepping back from the computer to make something real — something you can touch and smell — proves to be harder and harder these days as we’re so used to staring at pixels all day. It’s just fun to get your hands dirty. I love doing press-checks to watch the ink disperse over the rolls and I love watching the pennants come off the drying rack. I think it’s pretty satisfying to hold a finished product in your hand after months of it only existing on screen. I can’t wait for that to happen with the Kern and Burn book!

It’s important if only because it forces you to think about design differently. You can’t do the same things in print that you can do on the web and ink on felt is different than ink on paper. Designing tangible objects is a welcome challenge.

Tim: It’s hard to hold seven books at a time then browse seven tabs in our browser. Multi-tasking is way over-rated.

If, in some Freaky Friday-like situation, you could live the lives of another design duo for a day, who would it be, and why?

We’ve had the privilege of watching Abbott Miller and Ellen Lupton do amazing things, and balance their lifestyles, and family. We have a lot of respect for them. It’s hard to say who would be who, but we’d be happy being as talented and as wonderful as either of them. They are however married. Jess is married. Tim is not.

Maybe the dudes from Mythbusters — but Tim’s beard is way better than Jess’.

What design tools could you not live without?

Jess: PaperMate Sharpwriter #2 Pencils. Hands-down the best pencils. I love them so much that I wrote a piece about them that you can read here.

Other than that pretty much the standard: Adobe Creative Suite (although I kind of hate Photoshop …but Tim disagrees), Field Notes notebooks (unruled), and a pica ruler.

Tim: Talented peers and my thinking couch.

And finally, what tips would you give to anybody who is looking to get started in design?

Jess: Do side projects, things that you really love. When you’re working on projects that you love it brings out the best, most uninhibited design. You don’t have to answer to anyone but yourself!

Tim: Ask questions, but don’t listen to the answers. Be curious. Be serious about learning technical skills, but be playful in your approach. Work towards a balance of thinking and making—make to think, and think to make—think with your hands, make with your mind.

Thanks Jess & Tim!

Many thanks to Jess & Tim for taking some time out of their busy schedules to talk to One Minute With. I really enjoyed chatting to them, and hopefully you enjoyed reading it!

Why not check out Kern and Burn, and follow Jess & Tim on Twitter. Similarly, follow Jess & Tim on Dribbble.

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