April 2010

Those who’ve known me for more than ten minutes are aware of my tendency to be less than graceful (and that’s putting it mildly). A friend of mine found this video–I think it was made just for me. Enjoy!

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Alphabet Soup For the Graphic Designer's Soul

As I discussed in last week’s blog post, “Owning Photoshop Doesn’t Make You a Graphic Designer,” design is about much more than knowing the latest software. The real meat of this profession is in knowing how to use the tools effectively to communicate visually.

A friend’s husband recently finished a six-month course in Adobe CS4 and wanted some objective feedback on his portfolio. The following is an edited version of the message I sent after reviewing his work. All names have been changed to protect the innocent, as well as the criminals.
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Dear Newbie,
While I appreciate the fact that you’re taking steps to improve your technical skills, it is clear you haven’t been exposed to the basic principles of graphic design. Here are a few things you can do right now to improve your chances of landing a job in the design field:

But first, are you experienced?
I see a good bit of pro bono work in your future. Research non-profits in need of a logo update or website revamp. Hit up your friends for gigs jazzing up their Twitter backgrounds. Take any opportunity that presents itself to practice, practice, practice! You should be having dreams of logos (and Comic Sans nightmares).

Get thee to a library, post haste!
Get your hands on as much reading material as possible, both on- and offline. You don’t have to stick to graphic design either. There are endless sources of inspiration in books on interior, landscape and industrial design; not to mention architecture, painting and photography.

Got it bad, got it bad, got it bad… I’m hot for teacher.*
Take more classes, but not software classes. Check out your local university or community college for informal courses on everything from corporate identity to web layout. It also wouldn’t hurt to take a drawing class while you’re at it. Believe it or not, many of the basic elements of design such as line, shape, color and texture can be learned and practiced without a mouse! (Shocking, isn’t it?)

Separating the wheat from the chaff
I have one last word for you Newbie: Antidisestablishmentarianism. Just kidding, the word is Typography. I can’t stress this enough: A deep understanding and respect for type is what separates the pros from the rest. Furthermore, new designers with typographic skills have a considerable advantage as they enter today’s competitive workforce. The essence of graphic design is communication, and we communicate through language. New designers often treat text as an afterthought—a side dish—when it should actually be served as the main course. (I believe most words are vegan.)

When it comes to graphic design, software is a mere footnote that can be learned in a matter of weeks. The principles and elements of design can take years to master, and only the determined will make it. Good luck Newbie, and remember: If you want to design, you’ve got to do the time. Class dismissed.
~~~

*Coming soon… ProfessorWeenie’s Graphic Design Lessons for Beginners. This series of pdfs will teach the basic principles of graphic design and is meant for folks with little to no design background. That might include small business owners or PR/marketing folks without designers on staff. I’m also hoping for at least one astronaut.

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I own exactly 2 tools: a hammer and a screwdriver. Fortunately Mr. Weenie has nails and a saw, so I’m pretty sure I could build a house if I wanted to. Now that I think about it, I also have a box of pens and an art degree, so I’m fairly confident I could draw up a set of blueprints as well. Wow, that would really save us a lot of money!

So how many architects/builders/potential neighbors have I insulted/terrified so far? Probably the same number of graphic designers living in constant fear of the CEO’s Macbook-toting nephew, Zach. Having a kitchen full of pots and pans doesn’t mean I can cook (just ask Mr. Weenie), and owning Adobe’s Creative Suite doesn’t mean you can (or should) whip up a company logo on your day off.

Back in the day, graphic design involved sharp instruments and precision. (Early career injury during internship; circa 1989)

Having the right tools for a job is important, but using a tool without the skill, knowledge and experience to back it up only leads to inferior work (and possibly an unexpected trip to the emergency room).

Some tools, such as computers, change over time (The hammer? Not so much.), but the purpose for which we use them generally remains the same. What used to take an hour with an X-Acto knife and rubber cement (translation: scissors and glue) now takes less than a minute with a few clicks of the mouse. In fact, the tools of graphic design have become so simple to use, even a rocket scientist (or my niece) can do it. Does that mean it’s okay for your assistant to produce a  flier for the company picnic? Absolutely. Should you outsource the annual report to your dentist? Probably not.

It’s true, graphic design can be great fun, and I’m extremely lucky to be doing it for a living. However, the journey from crayons to laptop didn’t happen overnight. Years of design courses, low-level production jobs, corporate soul-death and a graduate degree from the University of Learning Shit the Hard Way have gotten me to this point. Graphic design tools are only as powerful (or dangerous) as the designer behind them.

Now, step away from the mouse before someone gets hurt.

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Abstract expressionist Mark Rothko wasn't intimidated by no stinkin' blank canvas. He laughed in the face of emptiness. Unfortunately, not everyone appreciated his genius, including his mother who insensitively noted, "Well even I could do that!"

Okay, so I’ve been sitting in front of a blank screen for about 20 minutes (or a year and a half if you want to be literal), trying to think of something earth-shatteringly profound to say in my first blog post. I have an irrational fear of blank space—the beginning, the unknown. All the possibilities leave me, well, speechless.

I’ve been like this for as long as I can remember. Even in high school I’d find myself staring down a piece of loose leaf paper like it was my mortal enemy. (For those of you born after 1980, that falls somewhere between the stone tablet and a touchscreen.)

I have the same problem when I’m about to start a new design project. Sitting in front of a blank monitor kinda freaks me out, so I use a trick I picked up when I hit a brick wall of writer’s block while working on my graphic novel, “The Talking Horse,” in the 2nd grade.

I walk away.

That’s right, TeenieWeenie knew something most folks take years to learn; that sometimes the best decision is to go do something else for a while. Granted, in 1974 that “something else” may have involved spinning in circles until I fell down, but the point is not lost on me today. Mini-me knows that if the time isn’t right, I shouldn’t fight it. I’ll only wind up frustrated, depressed and drowning my sorrows in a vat of Cool Whip with chocolate sauce and Ding Dongs. But I digress.

Weenie's Early Career: Cover Design for "The Talking Horse"

It’s one thing to walk away when the time isn’t right, but it takes guts, faith and a  bit of masochism to walk back and finish the job. I have no problem walking back to my desk to finish a design for a client, but doing work for myself… well, I agonize so much over it, you’d think I was responsible for balancing the national budget. TeenieWeenie knew how to do it, and it’s time I took a cue from that fearless kid.

This blog is new, and I have no idea where it will go or what it will do. I’ve been “meaning to do it” for over a year, worrying that it won’t be good enough; that people will think it’s stupid or narcissistic or worse—boring. I’ve done too much thinking and not enough doing.

One of the main reasons this site has moved along at the rate of a tectonic plate is because I can’t seem to get my portfolio in the shape I want it to be in for public consumption. I have a terminal case of perfectionism, and it’s making me look anything but perfect. I keep saying that the cobbler’s children have no shoes, but it’s getting pretty hard to pull off this charade. After all, my dad’s a Jewish doctor in Austin, Texas and hasn’t been responsible for my footwear in years.

So, my portfolio is incomplete, my writing is all over the place, and I don’t entirely understand how WordPress works. I’m scared I’m making a huge mistake by putting myself and my work out there, but it’s finally time for me to listen to my inner Weenie and walk away. This time, however, I’m not walking away from doing something; I’m walking away from doing nothing.

That’s who my role model should be. To hell with Oprah and the Dalai Lama—TeenieWeenie lived in the moment, and if that moment called for writing, she wrote. If it called for pepperoni pizza dipped in creamy Italian dressing, she high-tailed it to Mr. Gatti’s. And if ever a moment should call for me to step away from it all to spin around in circles until I fall down, well, get out of my way. Now, pass me a Ding Dong.

A day at the beach is the perfect remedy for a severe case of creative block. (TeenieWeenie; circa 1974)

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