HOW Design rocks Hot-lanta Fresh off the heels of the annual designer’s trade and technology conference produced by HOW design magazine and let me tell you, what a trip it was! Over 3500 designers and creative professionals rocked hot-lanta this June with the annual HOW design conference. The conference serves as water-well for hoards of talented creatives who step away from the computer monitor once a year to refresh and rejuvenate. After shelling out a small inheritance to attend the annual conference, one is greeted with all things essential to the graphic designer's creative arsenal. This year’s theme was “refresh” and they certainly delivered on that promise with a schedule brimming with informational seminars, technology info sessions and vendor booths full of resources essential to keep a cutting-edge graphic designer at peak performance. Sessions included topics on color trends, case studies from a leading packaging design studio and self-promotion in the digital age. A most memorable session, however, turned out to be an inspirational one entitled “Turning Personal Projects Into Paying Gigs” where husband-and-wife team Dora Drimalas and Brian Flynn creatively become their own clients by designing and selling toys, posters, housewares and even a magazine, Super7. The latter half of the session focused on the couple’s personal exploits (Brian created a stylish tee geared towards original Star Wars fans who eventually grew up and got a real job, including himself) and how pursuing their passions have led to some highly noteworthy client projects including Nike, Apple and Sony.
I’ve often pondered what mysterious difference lies between those of us who talk about doing something and those of us who make it happen. One of the key take-away points that Dora & Brian’s session helped to illustrate is that there is no mysterious “gifted gene” that only an elite few are endowed with. The important point is to TAKE ACTION, whatever it is your heart leads you to do. That, simply put, is what separates the doers from the thinkers.
I met Dora after the session and she was a delight. Check out their webpage at: www.hybrid-design.com
K.Hill, owner of the Eclectic Design Studio, is a graphic designer specializing in direct mail campaigns for the alternative health, periodicals and self-improvement industries. She also maintains a weekly blog on graphic, product and interior design issues and trends. For more information, please visit www.eclecticdesignstudio.net or www.thedesignwriter.com. Via phone/fax at: 708.798.8644
