Inspiration can be a tricky subject – when you happen to need it most, it may be unreliable; yet when you least suspect to find it, you will likely be surprised. This month we asked a few members of our creative culture the pressing personal question: Where do you go to find inspiration? Here is what they said…
Tony Shidla
In this profession, inspiration is all around us. The positive chemistry between 2 people concepting together is electrifying. I feel the solutions that are discovered are exponentially more creative — it’s like 2 people to the 10th power! In Creative Reviews, my team dissects each design, passionately debates the triumphs and the challenges. As the idea is honed, I am excited to see it near improve and evolve. At a photoshoot the Creative has a vision, the Stylist brings the food to life, and the Photographer prepares the perfect setting. You can feel it when everything comes together and produces the perfect shot. Working with AE’s is always an exciting dynamic. They see things differently than Creatives and ask questions that push and pull a design to test and strengthen the solutions. Our Production team inspires us all to “design with the end in mind” when we build our talk about files to clients, so in the end, the consumer is able to see the final design on shelf as we intended it to be.
People I choose to be with. This is what inspires me.
Websites I find inspiring:
Jen Soik
I think our last post on inspiration covered a lot of the usual candidates for inspiring design blogs, so I thought I’d try to cover some other places I look for inspiration.
I would say music is a huge inspiration to me, as it is for a lot of designers. One inspiring site I’ve come across lately, DesignersMX, a site where some of the top designers in the industry stream their own mixes. @DesignersMX gives away listener invites on twitter periodically, so catch them if you can!
When I’m not listening to music on headphones, I’m going to concerts. Something about the loud music, lighting and performance makes me feel really inspired. If I can’t make it to a show, I go to the next best thing: Lost in Concert, a Chicago-based blog that captures the music experience through photography and writing.
At work, I often get off the computer and flip through pages of the books I have at my desk. I have several and I’m always looking for more. I get up and chat with coworkers and sometimes go shopping. I find that it helps to look at the products you’re working with. Seeing what the consumers see or want to see.
After work, I get a majority of my inspiration through AIGA Minnesota. By attending educational events, networking with other designers, and volunteering on the board of directors, I gain a ton of insight and passion that I bring back to my work.
and just for good measure here are a few of my go-to design blogs:
Rich Dahlen
The first thing that comes to mind is the internet. You can go there to find anything. Period. But since I remember the days before computers I still like magazines. Mother Earth News, Popular Mechanics, Juxtapose, Wired. I’m torn between the old and the new.
- My son’s artistic style.
- Dinner with whole family.
- Seeing my 99 year old aunt still living on her own.
- Investigating my ancestry.
- Just hearing my wife’s voice on the phone.
- Walking around the Minneapolis lakes.
- Getting hugs from my nieces and nephews, the young ones give better hugs.
- The emails I’ve gotten from kids and parents around the world who have built skateboard halfpipes from plans I put on my website.
- Ah, Road Trips. The open road represents exploration, freedom and leaving everything behind. Even day trips work.
- A down and dirty, crying, blues song that cause me to get out my harmonica and play along.
My day-to-day relationship with God is above all the most important element in my life for when I spend time with Him, I am convicted, forgiven, encouraged, healed and truly inspired.
Oh, and no-top, no-door, wind in the hair, crankin’ rock and roll Jeep days.
Trent Johnson
One of my favorite theories on design is that it’s simply about connecting the dots in new and interesting ways – the more dots you have at your disposal, the more ways you can find to connect them. Due to this line of thinking, I am constantly seeking out new ways of looking at the world and collecting as many new reference points as possible.Whether it’s traveling, which is far and away my favorite way to develop new experiences, or diligently sifting through my robust collection of RSS feeds (currently the feed count is around 377), I simply cannot stop seeking new ways to compulsively expand the breadth of my knowledge base. Finally, when it comes to drilling down on a particular subject or trying to get into the mindset of a particular audience I personally tend to rely heavily on the dependable practice of scouring through lifestyle magazines. Due to their monthly turnover, they tend to be up to date on current trends and a great way to instantly get a glimpse into what kind of typography, photography, and vernacular a particular audience comfortably finds appealing. Overall this practice of collecting references stems from lesson I learned growing up as an avid drummer – “learn everything you can, then forget it all and just play.” I just want to play.
Some of my personal favorite sources of inspiration lately in no particular order include: Esquire, Donna Hay, Sunset, Bon Appétit, Transworld Snowboarding, Surfing Magazine, tastespotting, convoy, and the work of Matt Armendariz.
