By Nick Mendez
Q: By using the Swiss style, (which puts emphasis on simplistic arrangement, attractive fonts and color relationships) what emotions do you aim to portray in your work? A: Straightforwardness. I portray the emotion of the content. Playing the content using the text as the main context. The emotion depends on that context. I like to use a lot of tongue-in-cheek elements in my work. Making people smirk or laugh, most of the time with the wording. Q: What about simplistic design do you find attractive? What drew you to it? A: It really was one of my teachers, my professor John Kane. That’ s really his style as well. I really latched onto it. He also first introduced me to being able to write text vertically.
Q: Which medium best allows you to utilize the Swiss design style? Is it advertisement, exhibitions, industrial design? A: I think in advertising it depends what the product is. I really want to work in editorial design. My dream is to work at a fashion magazine in New York. In a lot of magazines they are able to integrate text and images to make the design more playful.
Q: How do you respond to viewers who find the design style plain or boring? What do you think they’ re missing in their interpretation? A: That there’ s a lot of thought behind it. The artists are doing things in a mathematical sense. A lot of work goes into choosing colors and fonts. Q: What assets do you have in the workplace as a graphic designer? A: I have a very good sense of typography. Choosing the right font with the right project. I’m very organized and detail oriented.
Q: You mentioned you dabbled in painting during a trip to Ireland. How is painting a different experience for you artistically? A: It was a lot harder than I thought it would be. There were 16 of us in one house, and we went to class and literally painted all day long. I spent a lot of time going into landscapes and seeing how they affected me. I did a project based around houses. I noticed all the houses in Ireland are simple, but have really great color. I’m very interested in color relationships, how the houses blend into the atmosphere. Q: What about your trip to Ireland impacted your art/design style? A: It forced me to step away from the computer. And I also want to start painting again and sketching more.
Q: Will painting play a major role in your future work as an artist? A: Probably not in my career. It’s something I’ll always do on the side. I don’t think I have the discipline to do this for a living. With design you have a client that comes to you and says, “This is what I want,” and you move from there.
