Advice for GD Students

I recently read an article from the designer/illustrator Frank Chimero about his advice for GD students. The full document can be found at http://frankchimero.com/writing/2010/advice/. It was entertaining to read, and even though most of it was the same advice that I've been hearing since starting in my program, it was still good to read through. It summed up some of my own experiences and provided some good reminders that I can take away with me. Here are some points that I liked:

"The things your teachers tell you in class are not gospel. You will get conflicting information. It means that both are wrong. Or both are true. This never stops. Most decisions are gray, and everything lives on a spectrum of correctness and suitability."

This lesson is learned very quickly in my program. It is an especially frustrating one to learn too. I might design a logo that, to me and one teacher, is pure perfection, but to other faculty is boring or uninspired. They'll give me different advice because they have different backgrounds and like different things. As maddening as it is, I've learned to do what it is that I love (while keeping their suggestions in mind), and being ready to defend any creative decisions that I make.

"Libraries are a good place. The books are free there, and it smells great."

I've always loved libraries, but since I've used them primarily for fiction over the years, I often don't think to go there to look for research materials. You could say that I've gotten lazy. So much of my time is spent on the computer that the internet is my automatic go-to resource, whether it has the best information or not. This is definitely something I need to keep in mind.

"Success is generating an emotion."

This is something we're told really often. Consumers buy products because of the emotional response they have to the package design. A successful painting is the one that stirs up emotions in the viewer. Even negative reactions can be a source of success if the goal was merely to gain attention.

And finally...

"If you say “retro” too much you will get hives and maybe die."

Just because it made me laugh.