Live In An Unbound World
This is the Althea Jones' Sandbox.
Sometimes you may think I built a sandcastle to be envied. Sometimes you may think it is pile of dirt. Feel free to visit my sandbox, regularly, and see what I made.
Let's just say that my parents never worried about what I was doing. I would tell them everything, whether they wanted to know or not.
AIGA Article on 'Art Vs. Design'
My opinion is that design is calculated to some extent and should be. To be cost efficient, it has to have defined formulae. I work in an industry with many technical designers and it is like working with a group of stereotypical cheerleaders trying to become homecoming queen. There is so much politics, because they want to be artists and unique, rather than design engineers. Design can have creativity, but too much creativity can mean more cost, in mass production.
For self indulgence, it is okay to be artists and designers at the same time; but when it comes to the commercial world…you have to decide and perfect what you are.
There is nothing new anymore, we are just trying to find a better way to do things. Designers can be created, yet Artists are born. Both need to be developed and perfected. I do not claim to be an artist, but I will claim to be a creative design professional.
A great story from the AIGA Website
My own first time
By Steff Geissbuhler, Chermayeff & Geismar Inc.
So there I was, standing in the large lobby of the Marketing and Promotion Department of J.R.Geigy (now Novartis) Pharmaceutical Corporation in Basel, Switzerland, awaiting the arrival of Max Schmid, the head of the then-famous design department. The receptionist asked me to wait for Mr. Schmid who would come down by elevator to pick me up.
I was very nervous, clutching the handles of my homemade, oversized portfolio—made out of large DIN 01 boards and glued canvas spine, corners and handles, containing all my original drawings, posters, photographs, booklets and other school work. It was my first personal interview after receiving my diploma from the Basel School of Design.
The elevator doors opened, Max Schmid came towards me and I started to walk towards him when suddenly the bottom of my portfolio came unglued and everything fell to the ground, sailing slowly—for what seemed forever—in all directions along the polished surface. My large drawings and boards took off across the floor like curling stones, going and going. I turned bright red and bent down to gather everything in a hurry. But Max stopped me. He suggested that we should just walk through the work and discuss the pieces where they had landed. Letting the chips fall where they may, or the Swiss equivalent to that.
As other people arrived in the lobby, some commented on my work, while Max and I walked through my accidental exhibit. Max had turned my most embarrassing moment into a humorous and interesting display, making it clear with his spontaneous reaction that it was the work and me he was interested in, not just the packaging. As a bonus I also got the job.
I had to start somewhere, just like you. This experience also serves as an introduction to what I’m looking for in a portfolio.
