Christine's Design Blog

Confession: I don’t know a lot about graphic designers outside of the U.S. I don’t know a lot about graphic designers outside of New York, for that matter. But I do recognize that I’m lucky to be in New York, to be able to run around town and see all the talent and people that I’ve seen so far. Having said that, it’s so uplifting to see how my list of heroes is constantly growing like a preteen. There’s always somebody new to be in awe of, and so many kind souls to want to befriend. As a whole, I think that designers and creative people are very nice people.

Last night I met my first British designers at AIGA/NY‘s Small Talk (my first Small Talk, as well!) with Tony Brook and Adrian Shaughnessy. Going into the Bumble and Bumble space in the West Village to volunteer, all I knew about the two was that Adrian had written How To Be a Graphic Designer Without Losing Your Soul, which was first recommended to me by my UCLA Extension teacher Jeff Aguila a couple years ago.

They started out by introducing their work individually. Tony (below) runs a studio in London called Spin.

The work that he showed was really beautiful with a modern edge. This is one of my favorites, for Channel 4 in the UK. Like many of Spin’s other works, it uses simple forms to create something great. I loved the way that Tony said the clients kind of thought that it looked like somebody holding up a middle finger, but they liked that aspect of it. (Note cultural difference. It’s great.)

But Tony really seemed to light up when he talked about the books that Spin has worked on. He is a big collector of books, and he said that he enjoyed working on books the most. Then he met Adrian.

Here’s Adrian talking with a slide up of How To Be a Graphic Designer. He explained that after years of working at Intro, a studio he co-founded in 1989, he grew more interested in writing and thinking about design than doing it. Since then, he’s branched out to work independently as ShaughnessyWorks. This book was a result of his growing interest in writing, as well as his desire to address less-discussed aspects of running a studio, such as how time find clients, how to deal with sticky situations like payment, and so on. He said he decided to not design the book himself, which made him a paying client (to his friends) for the first time. (I actually admire designers who take a step back to let somebody else design their books, because I feel like the content gets a better chance to thrive. I love the design of this book — I began reading it just this week, after sitting on my shelf for months, and I’ve spent hours admiring the layouts.)

So the two have combined forces to create publishing house Unit Editions. Well, I’m not sure to what extent it can be called a publishing house, but the focus of it is to create meaningful books in design. Tony told a funny story in which he took his business plan to the bank to get a loan, and the man looked at it and said, ‘I cannot give you a loan for this. But if you wish to buy a car, we can give you a loan.’ So Tony said, ‘I’d like to buy a car.’

Adrian recognized that it’s quite a time to consider going into publishing when technology and the internet is what it is now. But he said that there are two reasons to make books in this age: 1. Yes, you can find everything you need on the internet. The problem is, you can never find it a second time. 2. When you’re working in design, you’re more than likely to be working on your computer monitor. Because your monitor is busy with whatever you’re working on, it’s nice to have a book open beside you.

So the first book published by Unit is Studio Culture, which takes a look at the ‘secret lives’ of studios. Including images and interviews of designers worldwide (among which are Milton Glaser and Paula Scher), the authors gave a glimpse of the contents during their presentation. This project is also a good example of how these new publishers intend to find a way for their books to have a relationship with online content. People were asked to submit images of their studios online, and via WordPress and Flickr accounts, the process of creating this book became a chance for interactivity with readers and contributors. Adrian said that yes, he’d always heard about how wonderful the internet is and how much potential it has, but after experiencing it for himself, he’s amazed by the scope of it. Post-publication, the internet is also an advantage to create updates about studios in the books that may have changed, closed or relocated since, and perhaps such supplementary content can be distributed free online or offered for $5 for a small booklet.

The book’s special edition comes with three options of different colored jacket sleeves. The book itself is also beautifully designed, with no giant title or editors’ names, which is actually why the jacket is applied the way it is. I bought a copy at a discounted price of $25, and chose the sand color because when I asked the two designers’ wives which their favorite was (they were selling the books themselves), they said it was this.

The spine is so beautifully simple (Tony spoke praises of the spine as well).

The authors were kind enough to sign copies. I told Adrian that Nina and I thought they were the sweetest presenters we’ve heard speak, and he said to Tony, ‘Did you hear that? They think we’re the sweetest.’ Then he added, ‘We’re not. We’re not very nice really,’ to which Tony said, ‘Speak for yourself!’ I told Adrian I was reading his other book, and Nina and I got into a conversation with him about how the things in Studio Culture are such a dream for us at this point. He said, naturally, that the best thing to do is try to get into a studio first to see how it operates. When I asked him if he has any advice on how to actually get into a studio in the first place, he said to read the part in How To Be a Graphic Designer Without Losing Your Soul that addresses this. He emphasized that it’s very important to do it right, to present yourself in the right way, and to approach people properly.

They really were the sweetest and most understated designers I’ve heard speak to an audience. Perhaps it’s their innate Britishness or maybe it’s something else, but they were such a joy to hear and speak to. Their next project with Unit Editions is going to be a book about super graphics, which we learned are giant graphics that go on buildings and other large structures. I can’t wait to see that!

-edit-

I forgot to include one of my favorite stories that Adrian told. He said that Erik Spiekermann said that he wished to build his ideal studio setup, which would be circular. Anyone who visited the office would have to walk through everything else to the midde of the circle to get to the receptionist and common areas, like a kitchen/break room. Then in the next level of the circle you’d have the workers and on the outside would be the idea-makers and conceptualizers. Spiekermann would sit in this outer part, and you’d be able to see everything, so that he can yell to anybody from where he sits. The way Adrian described it, it was very funny and sounded highly controlled. Imagine all the staring you’d get when you walk to the middle!