OFFSET Sheffield
Studio Laucke Siebein
Studio Laucke
Siebein specialise in identities, book and web design. Laucke and Siebein
see
themselves as illustrators using typefaces rather than typographers.They do not
consider their work as having a process instead it is a complicated zig zag.
About creating
- They believe
that there are multiple layers of meaning in design and within their work.
- If you create
things you are vulnerable as people may not like your work.
Practice
- Only look at
work that is half a century in the past to prevent copying and to gain original
ideas.
- Identities are
dynamic and things you have to work hard for in order to realise.
- For the studio
books are the most complicated to design as the idea has to translate to the
relevant form. When designing a book the designer never has all of the content
which means the designer has to make a series of complex compromises to create
the book cover. Working with artists is sometimes hard because they are
headstrong and their disciplines are very similar.
- The Studio only
ever uses three typefaces within their work Futura, Gill Sans and Akzidenz
Grotesk.
- For them
Modernism is not beautiful until it is explained why it is beautiful.
Pitching
When pitching
to a client the designers never talk about their discipline because the client
will not understand this. Instead they talk about the story behind the work as
the client will be able to engage with this. For them a good story = a good
project.
In Germany when
pitching an idea you are competing against other people so you may not get the
job. This in their view keeps the market open and liberal.
Steve Simpson
Steve Simpson
creates illustrations that use limited palettes, patterns, high detail and hand
lettering which are seen on packaging and have a whimsical appearance. When speaking,
it was clear that he had been on a journey in order to find his ‘style’ and his
place within the industry. Initially he started working with lino which he
would recreate digitally as well as collage with fabrics and textures. He was
influenced by hand lettering from the 1950’s which for him had more character
and looked like work had been put into it. He also believes that too many
designs are purely functional rather than designed for form. For him his likes
and dislikes are of equal importance as it helped him to work out what
direction his work would go down. His cartoons were more appealing to a wider
group whereas his new ‘style’ was too particular and niche. His story
highlighted the importance of being experimental within your field in order to
find what you like to create and to draw inspiration from things you enjoy and
understand what you don’t like and how this can influence your work. The role
of industry in deciding what work is ‘suitable’ was also interesting. In some instances,
a piece can be acclaimed but as a style can be deemed too niche to be
commercial.
Moving Brands
When listening
to Moving Brands it was clear that there is a culture of experimentation within
the company which allows them to learn new things and be creative in new ways. The
company focuses on creating identities for businesses, products, brands and
experiences. When pitching to company’s mood films are important in conveying
what the agency thinks the brand stands for. Through this a story is conveyed
about the company and helps the agency to decide how it behaves as a brand. The
use of ‘sprints’ in this situation are helpful in creating, refining and
deciding on the best outcome for the brief. The company focuses on finding
specialists within their fields so that there is a wide range of reference
points. This allows people to come up with different things when put into new
situations as they will have different approaches to the brief.
Key quotes
- ‘design has
become too ‘squeaky pants’’
(very
refined practice loses quirkiness and doesn’t challenge boundaries)
- ‘design is a
messy process that ends up beautiful’
(‘sprints’
are a dirty process where ideas are thrown out to allow the best thing to come
through)
- ‘It needs to be
equally right and wrong’
‘Be playful and
seemingly pointless’
(try
stuff, it might not go anywhere but there’s a possibility something great will
come from it)
- ‘Make new
brushes to paint with’
(make
new tools, hack and create. Make tools the company can keep generating their
identity from)
- ‘Be
unapologetically experimental. Be beautiful’
- ‘Square peg in
a round hole’
(try to
move companies in ways they haven’t explored before)
- ‘Embrace
collaboration, let clients get messy’
(when
working with in-house teams it is a chance to challenge ideas, think creatively
and bring objectiveness when looking at concepts)
The Creativity Hub
The Creativity
Hub are interactive designers and explore how things connect. ‘We make games
and play things that foster imagination, empathy and self-esteem’ in children.
Much of their work centres around these concepts as these are often hard to
teach to children within a school setting. By teaching design to children these
ideas are built into the process of creating something e.g. who will it be
for?, how can I make this better?. Through
their games they encourage children to learn new skills through play and
interaction. Design skills used in products such as The Extraordinaires also
encourages divergent thinking, problem solving and breaks down
stereotypes. Rory’s story cubes are used
as a game for children to imagine stories and allow creatives to come up with
ideas, showing how play can also be used to create new things.
Key quotes /
ideas
- ‘use creative
problem solving techniques to make better creative problem solving techniques’
– applies to their work as they help others come up with ideas
- ‘keep it human’
(people
do business with people, its best to physically engage with your buyers, go out
and work with your audience)
- ‘play with purpose’
(people
learn through play it’s an engaging and fun way of understanding new things)
- ‘Money = Fuel’
(use
what you earn to go back into new projects. Creativity Hub even donate 5% to
charities with similar values to themselves)
Pentagram
Pentagram is
made up of 21 partners with individual teams which allows everyone to still
have a creative role within the company, Luke Powell and Jody Hudson – Powell
have been partners for the last two years. Much of the inspiration for their
work comes from their own interests and personal influences. Using found
imagery in the world e.g. signs and junkshops can lead to the creation of new
ideas from existing sources. For them Sci Fi movies were important as these
often paint a picture of the future and much of what is portrayed often comes
true. There was a particular focus on the importance of embracing technology as
this makes designers better equipped to solve creative problems and keep
current. This knowledge also helps provide inspiration to start projects or is
useful when working. It is important not to limit your ideas just because you
do not understand them, instead find other people that can help realise
projects and try things out. ‘Ridiculous things might not be so ridiculous in 5
year’s time’
