When I left art college in ‘84, skin-tight jeans and big hair were in and everyone was talking about the latest gizmo from Apple. Turn the clock forward 26 years and it appears that not much has changed.
Then, as now, the creative industry was buzzing with the possibilities promised by new technology. But no matter how advanced the technology becomes, the foundations of good communication remains the same.
Recently I was invited to West Kent College as a guest lecturer to meet the students on their HND Graphic Design course. First I had a whistle-stop tour of their portfolios. Magazine design, information graphics, website design, illustration, photography, typography… and in amongst the 20 or so portfolios, it was the IDEAS that made the difference.
Ideas are gold dust in our industry. It doesn’t matter how pretty a brochure, ad, exhibition stand, website… looks - it needs to connect with its audience and spark the required reaction. To unearth these ideas the creative industry needs designers, copywriters and art directors who are fired-up by great ideas, people that love breaking moulds, making headlines and creating the stuff that makes everyone else say “I wish I’d thought of that”.
It’s easy to be hypnotised by shiny colours and slick design execution, but you need more than this to get tongues wagging and tills ringing. And I’m pleased to say, there are still designers coming through West Kent College that
‘get it’.
After looking through their portfolios, it was question time:
“What do you do when a client insists on running with an idea you don’t like?”
“Where do you get your creative inspiration?”
“Do you ever run out of ideas?”
“What do you look for when employing a graphic designer?”
“How do you make sure you don’t get ripped-off as a freelancer?”
“How important is it to work in London?”
After an hour and a half of intensive grilling, I had just enough energy left to chat with HND course leader, Sancha de Burca and BA course leader, Tim Bones about the challenges they faced. We all came to the same conclusion; that as exciting as advances in technology and design software can be, the students with inquisitive minds and a love for cracking briefs with intelligent ideas, are the ones that succeed.
Good luck to everyone at West Kent College who will be graduating this summer.
West Kent College Graphic Design Course leaders,
Tim Bones and Sancha de Burca