Words of Advice for Young Designers

It is no secret: the 2018 Adobe Design Achievement Awards was a great success with over 8000 submissions received from over 90 countries worldwide. Students submitted a variety of different works across the three overarching segments: Fine Art, Commercial and Social Impact. Thanks to our Pre-Selection panel, around 2400 semifinalists were selected to move forward to the Final Judging round.

At the Final Judging on 10–11 August in San Francisco, ico-D took the opportunity to interview the finalist Judges to find out more about their own process as professionals in the field of design, and to gain some expert insight on what Judges find most compelling about students' work and if they have any advice for them as future professionals.

Featured Interview with Kristine Arth:

How and where do you find inspiration for your work?

I generally understand the feeling I am trying to express in my work. To help me gain inspiration, I usually start by taking long walks. I'll take my camera with me, and make a music playlist that reflects the feeling I'm trying to convey. While I walk, I'll take a lot of inspiration photos of the textures I find in nature or in architecture, along with color palettes and silhouettes that speak to me. I am looking for things that I couldn't make myself, but that, for whatever reason, I am drawn to when I stop and look at the world around me. I'll often use this walking session as the jumping-off point for a mood board, a visual reflection of the feeling that I am trying to create for a project. I also like to play my soundtrack during the design process, as it helps me remember where I was and what I saw or smelled during my walk. It’s a great memory trick, bringing the design process to a lived, sensorial experience.

What would you describe as your biggest success and your most notable failure?

It's a tricky question, because I think my definition of success and failure may be different than others. I've worked on projects that epically failed but won design awards and led to other major projects, and I've worked on enormous global branding projects that, if I'm being completely honest, didn't allow me to flex my creative muscle as much as I would have liked simply by the nature of the work. My biggest achievement, though, is recently leaving a CD role at a major design studio to take the leap of faith and begin my own studio, called Lobster Phone. We'll see if this ends up being a success or failure, but given how much I've already learned in the process, I can at least move forward with no regrets.

What advice would you have given yourself at the very beginning of your design career?

In a way, I wish I had taken less advice early in my career. I spent a number of years doing what I thought I needed to do, and designing the way I thought I needed to design, in order to be successful. In the end, it took me letting go of all of those voices and honing in on my own style and approach that helped me get to where I am today. Young designers shouldn't be afraid to be themselves, and if you can, find an employer that will give you the room to play and explore.

What advice would you offer young, budding designers when composing their submissions for the ADAA?

There is a fine balance between being technically skilled and being wildly creative. Do work that perfectly expresses that balance. Make it an authentic representation of who you are as a designer - this is a big opportunity, and you want to make sure that, if you win, your work reflects what you want to be doing. And, most importantly, have fun! The judges know if you love the work you submitted or not, because we were all you at some point.