What originally drew you to being a graphic designer?
When I was younger I started making fliers for friend's parties in LA. I didn't really realize what it was, mainly just a way to hand out some info with an address and things going on at these "events". My friend's cousin owned a small press so it enabled me to get things printed for relatively cheap. I didn't think much of it at the time, but I got sucked into this whirlwind underground party scene and continued this as some sort of hobby.
Somehow I came back to it a few years later when I was doing photography for a small studio and they asked me to make a little booklet and it brought me back to those days I made those fliers. At this point I realized that this was an actual profession, and something I enjoyed doing. Seeing these things printed and seeing other people react to it, it became addicting.
Do you feel you face any prejudices as a young designer? Do you have to work harder to convince a client to trust you, whereas an older designer may not have those issues?
Hmm, that’s an interesting one. I would say yes and no; it's a bit hard to define. I think some clients are nervous to work with younger people because of their insecurities with letting someone, who may be more prone to taking bigger risks, handle such a big part of their image. So as a result of that, they may be more supervising or wanting to control the result a lot more.
However, there are times I work with clients that really don't care about age. They just want something created, and they like the work i've done in the past which allows them to trust my judgment. Interestingly enough, I have been hired by clients who really love the work I do, but then want to interfere with the process and do it their way which again I think stems from some sort of insecurity. I think I have superseded that prejudice by now, but I can see a dichotomy from when I was younger, making things a bit more naively, to where I am now. I attribute that to life experience and confidence with what you do. I believe this comes off in one's work and people can read into it.
We recently interviewed Hannah Metz, she said she felt her creativity was a bit starved living in Los Angeles. You made a move from L.A. to Amsterdam recently, do you feel like your more inspired in the Netherlands?
Yeah well, I believe the work I am most interested doesn't serve a large market in Los Angeles. There are some great people doing work there, but the market is tiny and getting exposed to it is a feat in itself. I definitely feel more inspired in Amsterdam than I do in LA; in a way it had become too safe for me. That's my hometown and I grew up and lived in the same city. I think that would be tiring for anyone in the world and I just needed to expand my horizon a bit.
Being somewhere foreign to you, I believe, lets you analyze things at a distance somehow, and you get a greater appreciation for life and what it has to offer. I think if you stay in one place too long, any place, it just gets old and stale. I think I can count on one hand the people I know that truly love the place they were born and grew up while still living there. I find it kind of romantic in a way.
How is the role of design and designer vary in Europe, as opposed to their role here in the U.S.?
It's similar to that in the states, yet there are also some very big differences. Namely that the arts here are supported much more on a public level here, where as it seems to largely be a private affair in the states.
This translates into the arts getting more money, which enables people to create more. Museums and galleries receive government stipends to put on shows, which need people to create, which provides work for designers. Artists also get stipends from the government if they apply for it. It all translates into people not having to rely on having a mundane job to support their passion. I hate saying that because money is the catalyst for some of the worlds biggest problems; but at the end of the day food costs money and you can't barter for food yet.
Because of the language barrier, do you find yourself relying on graphic design more? Having to follow the icons and symbols of the city in order to fully understand what is going on? Or at least understand it a bit better.
I think this might hold true for other countries, such as when I lived in Germany. The Netherlands, and Amsterdam specifically, is such an international place that is engrossed with American culture and the language that it's just a bit too easy to get by. They watch American movies and television, not to mention that English is a second language, so it's not a fair assessment. If anything I rely on [typographic] design less, because I can't necessarily read what it says (yet). I do find myself just interacting with people more however and asking questions, which has been the easiest way to integrate.
The world is so connected now that I don't see much of a visual difference. Take New York (JFK) airport for example, the signage was designed by the same group who designed the signage for Schipol and Frankfurt airport. So even the ports to the city share the same visual language. In a way I guess I rely on signage like that more, but not more so than I would in the states. Green means go and Red means stop both here and there. Transplant me into a city like Fukuoka and then it will get interesting.
You are known for your progressive use of typography and your type skills as a designer. Are there any specific designers or design books that influence you?
I admire the work of various designers and artists, which are hard to pinpoint into specifics, but I would say I enjoy the efforts by the likes of John Berger, Robin Kinross, Martin Kippenberger, Karel Martens, and Dieter Roth to name but a few.
If you could give one piece of advice to your fellow designers, or aspiring designers, what would you tell them?
I would say to be realistic about the scope of design and what it is. There are many designers out there that will push this capitalistic point of view about the "profession" of graphic design and how lucrative it can be. I think there is more to it than making a business tycoon some more money he or she doesn't need.
In the end, you should be doing something you feel passionate about and something you love. If you love making money, Lawyers get paid FAR more than designers do. Don't be fooled by the hyped up notions of graphic design. What are you doing, why are you doing it and who is it for?
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