Badass Ideas

Last Wednesday I visited the graduating Design Students at my alma mater James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia. I really enjoyed my visit, the students were inquisitive and (judging by the work displayed in the hallways) very talented typographers and creative thinkers. The conversation raised many interesting questions and started some engaging conversation.

Since I was in school “Creative Hotlist” has been the destination online when seeking employment opportunities for the overall creative industry (not just the web industry). Their online description is:

Creative Hotlist: Job Searches, Portfolios and Recruiting for Graphic and Web Designers, Writers, Photographers and Illustrators.”

When I do a basic nation-wide search on this site my results include all sorts of different occupation titles. All but a very few of these job descriptions require some knowledge of web or interaction design, and more than half are in the web industry.

While at JMU many of the students asked about “PDFs” as a means of sending their work to employers. I found this very interesting because every place I have worked since graduation has had a minimal requirement of an online “web presence” for consideration of any design position. Other alumni who were present seemed to think that PDFs were a fine practice for sending out work, and having an online portfolio was really more of a “web designer” qualification or an addition to your overall portfolio. This advice concerned me so I asked a designer who worked at a predominantly print studio what they expect prospective hires to send and the response was what I expected. They told me they accepted PDFs, but often did not even look at them or consider them because a web portfolio is more convenient to view when looking through tons of applicants. It also shows that the applicant is versatile. Should we as an industry advise students that the bare minimum is acceptable?

With so many jobs in the creative industry moving towards the web, shouldn’t there be less of a divide between the idea that there are “web designers” and “print designers”? Shouldn’t the basic understanding of interface & interaction design, user experience and information architecture be a requirement for all seeking design jobs and not just those seeking web jobs? Should the industry not try and encourage students to stay ahead of the curve and strive towards the future.. (even if it is a little more work and sometimes really uncomfortable for those old-schoolers)?

I’m not writing this post as a way to alienate those who don’t understand those concepts but to inspire them to broaden their horizons and realize design is design no matter what the media. The creative industry runs parallel to advances in technology and in the future there will even be more lines blurred between print and web. So why not get a jump on it?

I sat down on Saturday morning and put together a resource list in response to many of the questions I was asked on my visit to JMU. Basically I went through my feed reader, & books … and typed it up into wordpress until my eyes bled. So there may be some room for improvement, if you take a look at it and have suggestions for additions, feel free to comment or contact me. I hope that the list serves as a helpful starting point for anyone approaching the exciting industry of Web Design.

It’s hard to decide on how many pieces to showcase in your web portfolio. As a designer I know there are lots of factors that go into choosing the work you decide to display… versatility, creativity, exciting clients, recent challenges, technical capabilities, and experience. While I had been advised in the print world to limit my work to 10-12 pieces it is incredibly common to find web portfolios that feature 25+ projects. As a web designer it is very tempting to add EVERYTHING one may have done, especially when the web provides an interface that makes it so easy show years of experience in just a few clicks. So how many pieces of work should a web designer include in their online portfolio?

I have asked tons of designers, art directors, and creative professionals for answers and had lots of discussions. While the answer is a matter of opinion, the most impressive response was from Greg Johnston the Senior Vice President and Creative Director of Ogilvy PR‘s Creative Studio in Washington DC. Greg is an old school Bad Ass (Matthew Carter style). He knows his stuff, has a pony tail, rocks out, and has played a leading creative role on many big-name accounts that make me drool. I asked Greg to sum up his response for this post because it is the best I have heard yet, not only because he has the experience to back it up, but because he provides solid reasoning.

I just saw someone’s portfolio who had brought a lot of stuff to show. I gave them a break because they were from out of town and wanted to make sure they “didn’t forget anything in case they needed to show me more of their work.” That’s usually a sign for me that someone thinks that all their ideas are good ones.

Editing your own work is probably the hardest thing to do. Your work is like your children––you love them all equally. So you have to really remove yourself from all the special circumstances that lead you to create your ideas. Yeah, like I said, it’s tough.

I believe you should showcase 10-12 samples of your BEST work, regardless of how you got there. That’s all I show after 27 years of creating ideas. (And I believe just because you’ve been doing something for 27 years doesn’t mean you’re good at doing it.) My best work. Some of it I did over 20 years ago, because the ideas still hold up. Some of it I just did last month.

Having looked at hundreds of portfolios––online and offline––I usually can tell after 5-6 pieces if someone is good. I judge their work not only on the quality, but their ability to know the difference between really good work and stuff that’s just OK. You don’t need to show everything you’ve done since kindergarden. That’s what Mom’s fridge is for.

Be hard on yourself. Be objective. Act like you know nothing at all about what you had to go through to get to that idea. Now you ready to edit your own work.

Which is what you should be doing every time you create ideas.

I want to thank Greg for the time he took to write all of that down, and I hope that advice helps others struggling with making those decisions. I will be taking all of his points into much closer consideration for the redesign (re-align) of this site… that I am working on right now.

Evening Tweed
Four design students got together in 2006 and started this design collective. There is type that makes me drool dripping all over this site. They have nice taste… worth your time to check out.

A Texas Designer’s Map of the World
DJ Stout, a designer from Texas was asked to participate in illustrating a map which would include designers from all over the country to illustrate their respective areas:

“Of course I was given the Southwest,” says Stout “which includes the great state of Texas and a few other insignificant surrounding states.

Stout pulled off this vintage style with uncanny wit. Love me some nice poster design.

Logo Design Love
Clean, well designed, and all about logos. What is there not to dig on with this blog? I’m a big fan of Brand New, but Logo Design Love is actually throwing a bone to the web community featuring a lot of online-only brands.

Wear Palettes
Perhaps you are in a rut using Kuler and getting fairly similar results over and over? Try this blog… color combinations inspired by fashion photography. Great place for ideas.
Via ABF

GlenzTees
I’m an old-school fan of Threadless. GlennzTees is a threadless designer who has branched out on his own. I like his designs because they are funny and thoughtful.

Aisleone
Lately I can’t get enough clean design. Grids, whitespace, and sen-serif typefaces… this blog is chalked full ‘em. Nice source of inspiration.

When in Virginia Beach Jim and I go to this fantastic little surf shop called Freedom Surf. A shop that embraces all the ideals of community that I value in a culture, they support local surfers and artists by carrying unique products and sponsoring events. Freedom Surf believes that surfing is more than just a summer activity, they promote it as a lifestyle and an experience. Though I don’t surf I still can become mesmerized for hours by the fantastic unique products they carry throughout their store. One of my favorite artists regularly featured is Andy Davis.

Andy has a very distinct style with flat two dimensional figures elongated and contorted to fluidly mimic the motion of the ocean waves. His imagery is seductively playful using rich earth-tones accented by strokes that elegantly very to sketch out rich female figures. It all looks so effortless, capitalizing on the negative space around each fantastic sketch for emphasis. In a way his work encapsulates the art of surfing, making the incredibly difficult task of catching a wave look like anyone can do it.

Andy has a clothing line called Ando and Friends that I suggest you check out here. Andy’s online presence is a pretty static one. But who can really blame him… I mean hes pretty busy with surfing and drawing. Here is an excerpt from his Bio:

If someone had invented a 25-hour day, Andy Davis might have had a website a year ago. But everyone has a choice to make. Andy’s is drawing, surfing, and spending time with his wife, Ashley, and their son, Noah. Much preferred options fora guy who admits he can barely send an email.

[kml_flashembed movie="http://www.youtube.com/v/Ahg6qcgoay4" width="425" height="350" wmode="transparent" /]
It’s easy to miss something you’re not looking for. Fantastic ad campaign, excellent message… applicable to design , the web, and life.

On multiple accounts dwellers of the off-line world have inquired about my “Blogging”. The conversations are all very similar and awkward… almost always ending with something similar to “aren’t you afraid to give your ideas away like that?”.

Maggie Mason and Heather Armstrong said it best in their SXSW panel “You get what you give”. Perhaps some see it as the “secret” but I think it just makes sense, the internet is an ecosystem, a two-way street and it works best when you participate going in every direction.

Giving surfaced as a clear theme throughout the panels at this year’s SXSW. Jim Coudal showed a clip from their Video Wall, touched on Swap Meat (which I hope to muster up the time to try and post about) and Layer Tennis, an online forum that they sponsor to match-up designers against each other for Photoshop debauchery. All of these sites serve as vehicles for giving and taking in the creative community.

Moby very candidly explained MobyGratis, a site where he gives away free music to independent film makers. I learned that it is a real pain in the ass to license music if you make a film, and he hopes to relieve some of that stress where he can. While I didn’t know much about Moby before SXSW, I am now a big fan of him (as a person)… completely uninhibited to put himself out there.

Heather Armstrong gives the most personal experiences of her life to her online community, from recounting getting fired from her job to blogging while at the Hospital suffering from postpartum depression. Heather explained that sharing the most intimate parts of her life has brought her support from well-wishers and notoriety that allows her to modestly support her family from online advertising. Winning several well-deserved bloggies and being considered the 5th most powerful blog in the world by some, Heather has earned it by giving.

I asked a developer once why he used open source software and he said “because it is free”. That guy did not get it. The web is making sharing easier than ever. Leverage it, embrace it, and give.

Check out all of my pics from SXSW 2008 here.