How to be a graphic designer without losing your soul addresses the concerns of young designers who want to earn a living by doing expressive and meaningful work, and who want to avoid becoming hired drones working on soulless projects
134 191123 How To Be A Graphic Designer Without Losing Your Soul by Adrian Shaughnessy
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191123
GAMBAR COVER BUKU/
GAMBAR PENDUKUNG LAIN
BOOKCLUB
How to be A
Graphic Designer
without Losing
Your Soul
Intro-03
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Introduction
Chapter 1. Attributes needed by the modern designer
Chapter 2. How to find a job
Chapter 3. Being freelance
Chapter 4. Setting up a studio
Chapter 5. Running a studio
Chapter 6. Winning new work
Chapter 7. Clients
Chapter 8. Self promotion
Chapter 9. The creative process
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“What is this book about?”
Introduction
Who it’s aimed at - What it offers - Its philosophy - The author -
What’s the difference between this and other graphic design books?
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Adrian Shaughnessy is a graphic
designer and writer based in
London. He is a senior tutor in
Visual Communication at the
Royal College of Art and a
founding partner in Unit
Editions a publishing company
producing books on design and
visual culture. Scratching the
Surface, a collection of his
journalism, has recently been
published.
Introduction - The Author
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1. This book combines practical advice and philosophical
guidance to help independent-minded graphic designers deal
with complicated problems faced by designers who work.
2. The key aspect of this book is from the phrase 'without losing
your soul' in the title of the book, which is to write a book
designed to help people who believe that:
+ Graphic design has cultural and aesthetic values
+ Become graphic designers because we are interested in the act
of personal creation
+ Design is the best when sound designers are allowed to register
and not urged for good and equality
Introduction - What is this Book About?
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The Author provides a series of instructions and encouragement to
readers to help make work life more enjoyable and useful. He
wants to help you become an effective and self-reliant graphic
designer without losing your soul along the way.
Introduction - What is this Book About?
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The first sentence is a conventional summary of graphic design.
The second part provides the key to producing meaningful and
expressive graphic designs: "cues and puns and symbols and
figures of speech, cultural references and perceptual conclusions”
are elements that gain authority and resonance in work.
Chapter 1. Attributes needed by the modern designer
s
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Chapter 1. Attributes needed by the modern designer
s
The important things
for a designer are:
1. Cultural
awareness
1. Communication
1. Integrity
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Chapter 1. Cultural Awareness
Cultural awareness is very
important for modern
designers and most
designers are people who are
aware of culture.
Without constantly scanning,
researching, and absorbing
what is happening around
you, you cannot become a
successful designer.
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Chapter 1. Communication
Graphic design is non-verbal
media.
The way designers present ideas
is as important as the ideas
themselves.
Convincing clients that your ideas
are right and that their money is
spent wisely, requires a large
number of carefully formulated
arguments.
Presenting work to new clients,
and to clients who cannot design
literacy, is one of the most difficult
tasks facing designers.
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if you want your opinion as a designer to be taken seriously, you
have to allow the client's opinion too. In other words, there must be
a balance of interests.
Chapter 1. Communication
Communication is a two-way
street. and that your client has a
perspective that you need to
listen carefully to get directions
and messages that are not
spoken.
And listening to this is the first
communication rule for graphic
designers.
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Chapter 1. Integrity
Maintaining integrity in a
merciless modern business
climate is difficult. For
designers, integrity is often a
bargaining chip.
But the only way to do a really
good job is for designers and
clients to form partnerships and
explore all angles together in a
trusting and open way.
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Chapter 1. Integrity
In the following chapters we will discuss more worldly matters. But
without the attributes of cultural awareness, communication skills
and professional and personal integration, you will not grow as a
designer.
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Chapter 2. How to find a job
‘I want a job where
I have a lots of freedom and
get to do award-winning stuff”.
+ A list of employment options
+ Work in a studio or work in-house for a firm?
+ The advantages of ‘apprenticeship’
+ Where to look for a job
+ How to approach studios
+ Do’s and don’ts
+ Interview techniques
+ The personal portofolio
+ What do employers really want?
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In this chapter we’ll look
at finding a job in an in-house
Studio within corporation or institution, and we’ll look at ways
of landing a job in an independent design studio.
We’ll weigh up the pros and cons of each, and we’ll
Discuss ways to approach both options.
Everyone needs a job. We need job to earn money to pay for
shelter, food, books, music and other life-sustaining essentials.
But for designers there is a far more important consideration:
we need to start learning on the job, we need to gain experience.
We need to start learning how to be a graphic designer.
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Both option are equally
rewarding. Know yourself
first. Which one you prefer.
a. Independent Studio
+ - A mixture of slave camp
and an enchanted
playground. A good studio
maintain a balance.
b. In-house Studio
+ Learn the business
+ Financial security
- Work on narrow project
Chapter 2. How to find a job
# Work in a studio or work in-house for a firm?
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+ Learning more from
experienced designers
> Software Skill
> Design style
> Organize your work
> Understanding brief
> Client communication
> more ...
+ Personal development
Chapter 2. How to find a job
# The advantages of ‘apprenticeship’
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+ Luckily get picked by
impressing a visiting
designer/firm
> Be a HOT TALENT!
+ Looking for a vacancies
> Ask around
> Look in the internet
> Read the news/press
> Recruitment agency
> Internship
+ Always prepare portfolio
Chapter 2. How to find a job
# Where to look for a job
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Approach & prep well
+ Learn about the company
+ Making call
+ Make your resume,
design your letter functionally,
short, literate, sharp
and to the point:
> say who you are
> what you do
> what you want
+ Request an interview
(not a job)
+ Prepare samples of work
In-house studio
+ Show working ethic
Chapter 2. How to find a job
# How to approach studios or in-house studios
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Interview:
+ When showing a portfolio,
turn it to face the interviewer
+ During interview, talk
succinctly about your work
+ Be passionate and proud of
your work, show that you
care deeply about what you
do, but also show that you
are strive for improvement
+ Wait for the comment,
Listen and answer
Follow Up
+ Leave something (contact).
Chapter 2. How to find a job
# Interview Techniques & Follow Up
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Chapter 2. How to find a job
# The personal portfolio
Your portfolio is your shop window.
Make it as compelling and as revealing as possible.
If it’s physical: consider the size, the shape.
If it’s digital: consider the structure, make it enjoyable to view.
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They are looking for someone
they get on with.
+ Hardworking
+ Adaptable
+ Socially well adjusted
+ Show a willingness to
understand the studio’s culture
Chapter 2. How to find a job
# What do employers really want?
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Being freelance
Chapter 3.
The freelance life suits two types of designers:
+ The very able and resourceful individual with specialist skills
+ The creative loner with strong personal vision
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‘I want to work for myself’
Setting up on your own:
+ Benefits
+ What sort of clients employ freelance designers?
+ Working from home or renting a studio
+ Sharing space
+ How to get work
Chapter 3. Being Freelance
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Chapter 3. Being Freelance
#Working from home or renting a studio
As a freelancer you may be able to work from home
- in a garage, a loft of spare room, or you can rent a studio,
sharing space with other (co-working space), etc.
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+ Enables people to obtain
higher levels of employment
in isolated communities.
+ The ability to pick and
choose who the freelancer
works with.
+ Retain flexibility.
Staying small (solo).
+ Interviews a potential client
and they get to pick whether
or not to work with that
individual or company.
Chapter 3. Being Freelance
#Benefit
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+ Prepare and do everything
on your own
(design, producing, meeting,
finances, banking, etc)
+ Finding work on your own
+ Maintain your client
+ Provide your own needs
+ Take a lots of courage to
take the pressure
Chapter 3. Being Freelance
#Responsibility
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1. Creative reasons
(Does this person do
the sort of work I want?)
2. Financial reasons
(Freelancers are cheaper
than big studios)
3. Personal reasons
(Do I get along with
this person?).
Chapter 3. Being Freelance
#What sort of clients employ freelance designers