We can create: Design conference

Just got back from the We can Create design conference in Auckland. Speakers from around the world got on stage and told us about their creative process. The presenter, Kiwi comedian Radar, got the ball rolling by mispronouncing design lingo, saying things like ‘I'm really into font’ and ‘So what exactly does a typographist do’. The first speaker was Kris Sowersby who designs typefaces to crush on. He talked about how he is like a magpie. He collects all things shiny and beautiful, eats it all up, then imitates it. Another speaker was a guy called Rafael Rozendaal, a digital artist from Brazil. He primarily created digital art for viewing on the interweb. His work mixed amateur visuals with complex thinking. The next day the first speaker to stand out was from Kessels Kramer in Holland. Their philosophy was a blend of humor, innovation and bravado. One of their stand out campaigns was for the Hans Brinker budget hotel which leveraged its lack of services as a positive. Another was a collection of photographs of a mysterious blurry shape that was slowly revealed to be a very dark dog. Following that was couple of presenters who had some pithy comments perfect for regurgitating here. The first was from Karin Fong of Imaginary Forces, an animation studio. She said that ‘a great way to test the success of a design is to see if it can be used for another product, if it can then its too generic and needs revising.’ The other statement was by the German designer Hort who said that ‘acknowledging your limitations gives you freedom’. That’s about all that can be remembered.

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