Final output:
Exploring the categories of the latest D&AD awards was a bounty of inspiration. This was my first time exploring the awards and it’s completely mind-blowing to see the level of work being produced globally.
Upon my first glance of the design categories my mind immediately expanded. There were categories I hadn’t considered could be as part of the design industry.
Some particularly intriguing categories were:
Art Direction | Casting | Creative Transformation | Direct | Experimental | Future Impact | Impact
Press & Outdoor | Side Hustle | Spatial Design | Sound Design & Use of Music | Writing for Design
I imagined what could possibly be inside some of the more unusual categories to see if the descriptions accurately matched my vision.
I also explored some of their Youtube channel and found some interesting talks with designers in their process.
10 different types of graphic design practice:
Animation | UX | Typography | Sound design
Illustration | Branding | Video Production
Copy writing | Book Design | Data visualization
When invited to think of a piece of design that crosses or breaks boundaries I immediately thought of Sketch, London.
Sketch is restaurant in London that invites artists to inform not only the interior design of the dining room, but also it’s menu, and atmosphere.
Formerly, David Shrigley dominated the main dining room, and now it’s artist Yinka Shonibare’s turn. He created 14 pieces of art specifically for the new restaurant, and so the decor and menu is refreshed to reflect the art, and continuing the collaboration between the artist and their culture.
The digital presence of sketch is an experience on its own, but makes perfect sense conceptually when so much of the dining experience is driven by art.
The website is equal parts baffling and fun. Instead of perusing a menu, you’re invited to play with digital food, stacking and dropping a roast chicken or petit-four on a pile of plates.
Sketch London’s category-breaking digital presence:
EXPLORE THE WEBSITE >>
Boundary crossing social media presence
I noticed an unusual and interesting pattern on Instagram that reminded of crossing categories and how brands can show up. Fashion house Chloe posted only inspiration and influences to their Instagram for a period on months last year. Here are some of my favourite expressions.
Readings and Lectures
The Effect of Globalisation on Design
Kjell Ekhorn’s video really got me thinking on influences, being influential in the digital age, and how it feels to have people replicate your work. It reminded of a very popular artist and graphic designer among musicians, Robert Beatty. His popularity in demand for his work has made him somewhat of a is a reluctant muse, and a critic of the culture of demand. His style was heavily influenced by airbrushed album art of the 70’s and 80’s, and the animation style of Monty Python, but he interprets it in unique and thoughtful outputs, custom for each artist. It’s also his signature style, that he developed organically out of a true love and respect from those influences.
Beatty’s cover design for Tame Impala’s Currents
On this twitter thread he shows the influences he gathered for a recent work, and then the final output. You can see the influences in the work, but nothing is a replication.
The final output
Harriet Ferguson’s talk really invited me to ponder my own relationship on the global design scale:
- Shared semiotics vs. local interpretations
- Is inspiration turning into imitation
I live in a city of half a million people, but it’s fairly isolated from other bustling areas. The largest city from mine, in Montreal, a 12-13 hour drive away. What would my practice look like if I was closer or further from larger cities? How do I participate in design trends now?
With apps like Canva making design more accessible, I find that trends cycle through at a much more frantic pace than ever before. Any time a major political event happens, Instagram becomes a sea of Canva-templates of watered-down, over-simplified info-graphics.
I’ve noticed a movement of anti-design in opposition to these trends – which are absolutely a trend in itself, but with a hint of being self-aware.