Submitted by Elizabeth Roche on the 2014 summer session program in London, England sponsored by the Department of Art…
This first week has been amazing. Meeting Jay Mitchell from 1883 magazine was eye-opening. Jay had three months of formal design training and has his own magazine. Without even a typography course, Jay creates amazing editorials and “sculpts” body copy around his images and headlines. I have never thought of design in this way before. “If you play it safe, you’re never going to be noticed.” Knowing what looks good is what design is about.
Johnson Banks and hat-trick today. These two design agencies differed in the way they are run, but both studios spoke of the importance of words in this field. Michael Johnson described Johnson Banks’ work as design that crosses borders and strategy made visible. Over at hat-trick, Rory gave us some great pointers: 1. work hard 2. work with good people 3. the devil is in the detail 4. think fast 5. don’t avoid the obvious 6. trust your instincts 7. think big 8. think small 9. don’t give up 10. do more. Do more (my favorite piece of advice so far).
