Re: Experimentation & Process

For years I have been creating stuff (invitations, announcements, flyers, etc.) for family, friends and small start-up businesses and non-profits. My inspiration for an idea always came from what they desired. I was introduced to the Pub Design program by a former student because she knew how much I loved graphic design but she also knew I never had formal training. After my first project in Typography I, I felt I had no business in this program. I had no idea what I was doing. I started out looking at assignments as work, homework to be exact so I went in on a project like ok I just have to get this done. But once I started looking at them as new ways to be creative, I think I took the pressure off of having to get it done. I began to embrace the thought, hey this can be fun! By the end of the semester I started producing much better pieces, partly because I developed a new approach to tackling design assignments. After taking Creative Concepts last semester, that process has developed even more. I still start out like mostly everyone else with an idea but instead of just jumping on the first thing that comes to mind, I look for alternative ways to produce the end result and not just jump to the obvious, easy, plain and simple. I also seek inspiration from creative works by others on blogs and websites like, You the Designer and Graphic Mania. Here is a great example of logos you may enjoy, 40 Clever logos that combine 2 concepts into one graphic.