Make Seriously | Design and Life

Please Welcome Our Newest Host!

He’s the hostest with the mostest. Over the weekend an agreement was made with a good friend of my to co-contribute at least on a temporary basis, but maybe a more permanent one as well. Keep your eyes and ears open for changes to the site and for posts from someone other than myself. Be prepared for awesome.

The End of an Era

Last night, Ashton Kutcher (@aplusk on Twitter) did something remarkable. He showed the world (or at least the developed world) a truth. It’s no secret that the newspapers are dying. Blogs have become the standard source of media for millions, and news outlets moved their print articles online to stay relevant. The problem they’re finding, however, is that there is no viable business model if they want to maintain their business the way it was run before the online takeover.

Take the New York Times, for instance. Most of it’s content is completely free via the web, but consumers still have to pay for a print version. So what do even loyal customers do? Keep the content, ditch the bills. It’s great for the mass market, and it’s improved readership. But what this move can’t do is pay the bills for the reporters around the world who contribute to the Times. In other words, these businesses can’t keep their models and still hope to compete, much less thrive.

So what amazing thing did Mr. Kutcher do last night? For free, via video, competing against one of the largest media outlets, he streamed live video of himself to thousands of people across the world to declare victory in a competition for market share. Mr. Kutcher had one million followers before CNN. What’s so big about that? For one, Ashton doesn’t have a television station, video producers or a worldwide network to help him get followers. He has Lil’ Kim on YouTube, he has PDiddy on Twitter, and he has the know-how to use social media to create an enormous following without having to spend a dime. He showed that he, as a single person, can hold more clout than a media conglomerate.

So what does this mean for the media? It means their business model is threatened. I would even go as far as to say it was obliterated last night. If we were to look at the cost of production for battle between the two, there would be a huge discrepancy. CNN has to pay contributors, staff, camera men, writers; they have a whole lot of people working to push for the win. Ashton Kutcher had himself, a bunch of free software and a lot of community influence. He’s not the only one. Of the top ten Tweeters, seven are individuals and two are media outlets. In case you’re not convinced, here’s the whole list. The crazy thing is, it’s not just major celebs on the list, there are up and coming stars in their own right littering the top fifty influencers. That’s hundreds of thousands of followers for relative unknowns. And they’re competing with the likes of CNN, The New York Times and NPR. Did I mention for free?

So the business model is bust. Kutcher declared “check!” last night, and now it’s up to the media to decide how to respond. Wave a white flag? Bonzai rush down the hill? Or maybe, just maybe, they’ll rethink the strategy all-together.

Dining Out for Life

No, it’s not one of those charmingly witty titles I know you all love and adore (right?)

No, this is something actually reasonably important, especially if you live in or around Indianapolis (although it applies to other cities who are participating). On Thursday, April 30th, Indy will host it’s 15th Annual Dining Out for Life. Loads of area restaurants will be donating a portion of their lunch and dinner bills to the Damien Center and hundreds of people living with HIV & AIDS in our area. These restaurants will be donating 25%-50% of your bill for a great cause. Afterwords, they are hosting the first “After Party” at forty five degrees to celebrate and announce who raised the most money.

This event is part of a large number of events over the next couple of weeks including the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure on Saturday (downtown) and Relay for Life on Friday (at Ball State) as well as the Extreme Food Drive and Extreme Home Makeover the last couple of weeks. Indy is a beautiful, generous city and this is your chance to take part in another community building effort.

And, if the cause doesn’t drive you, perhaps some of the great locations will. My favorites on the participating list include Cafe Patachou, Adobo Grill and the Palomino. For a full list of restaurants and more details on the event, visit http://www.diningoutforlife.com/Indianapolis

Why Music Shouldn’t Be Allowed at Work, Part II

This is to supplement and help explain the “Why Music Shouldn’t Be Allowed at Work, Part I” comic. My colleagues noted that I like to chair-dance to music. This went on for about twenty minutes before they started filming me, so this is the end of the dance attack. It was much better for the first few, or so I’ve been told. The end is the most humiliating part.

Artist Profile: Dane Benton

This is the first of what will hopefully become a series. Dane Benton is currently a Visual Communications Design major at Anderson University as well as a good friend of mine. He’s originally from St. James, MO, but is looking to move to Indy (yeah!).

MS What’s going on in the design life of Dane Benton right now?
DB Right now there’s a lot going on in the life of Dane Benton, period. I’m wrapping up my degree in Visual Communication Design at Anderson University, and trying to see what’s around the bend in the professional world. It’s a really bittersweet time in my life as I look forward to the future, because I’ve really loved college. As far as design work goes, I’ve been spending some extra time redesigning my personal identity components and business system, and have had the opportunity to design some wedding invitation systems for friends. I’ve also been working on some small(er) jobs for the university that have been good opportunities to pursue some of the ideas that fill my head.

MS What excites you?
DB Everything. I know that’s one of the most expected answers in the book, but I genuinely enjoy life, and the many opportunities it offers every day. I’m a big fan of chipotle, new running shoes and nearly anything with an apple logo. I love color and typography, and when the two are executed in a cohesive way, I’m to the moon. I am most fond of solutions that make me think. We live in somewhat of a rudimentary time, and knowing that someone is forcing me to consider a different approach excites me. I’m a big fan of the genuine things in our world, whether that be letterpress printing or a really good laugh, I love surrounding myself with those things.

MS Who inspires your work?
DB My grandmother, who is a quilter. Growing up I watched her pull all these components together and make something beautiful with them.I give her credit for my desire to be a designer, because she inspired me then and she still does today. In my normal process, I pull inspiration from a ton of different sources as I go about my work. I am inspired by culture, and the people around me, and design solutions that make me say “I could’ve done that,” (even though I know it took the designer days, if not months, to achieve the solution).

As a student, I’ve been inspired to work collaboratively with my design cohort, and my roommate, Joshua, is among that group. I think we inspire and push each other to do as good of work as possible, and there are many nights that we’ll be winding down and launch into a critique or conversation on design that will keep us up for a couple more hours. As far as other designers, I look at a lot of designers’ work, and some of my favorites are people like Bradbury Thompson, Paula Scher, Stefan Sagmeister, Paul Rand, Maira Kalman and Michael Beirut. Oh yeah, and Josh Taylor…

MS What’s your take on the design world right now?
DB I think the design world is being forced to be really creative about the way we do our work right now. Budgets are smaller, expectations are higher and we’re forced to adapt to those changes. We live in a society where a lot of people think they are creatives because of a small knowledge in digital photography and programs like Photoshop where people can learn just enough to be somewhat dangerous. I don’t mean to sound snotty, but there is a reason that people go to college to learn those skills, and I think as designers we’re really having to put it on to show the knowledge and creativity that is (hopefully) perfected with a degree.

I think we live in an exciting time in design as interactive and multi-media design becomes more influential and expected in our society. Social media is taking over and I think it isn’t necessarily a bad thing. We have to find ways to connect with one another amidst our crazy schedules, and social media adapts to our lifestyle in that way.

Sustainability has also become a big focus in design, and I honestly think it’s about time. As designers, we really set the tone for our clients, and if we can adopt environmentally-friendly thinking in our process, it will only encourage our clients to do the same. It’s okay for us all to have our opinion on this subject (because I know there are many) but I think it’s a good move forward for ‘ole mother earth.

MS Any future aspirations?
DB Yeah. A lot of ‘em. I think the most common aspiration I have, though, is to make a difference in the world. Whether that’s the world that I interact with daily or the world as a whole, I try to be an example and do something good every day. Some of my other favorites, though, are:

• Running at least a half marathon
• Earning an MFA in Graphic Design
• Writing a book
• Hiking the Grand Canyon rim to rim (which should be happening next fall!)
• Visiting China
• Being a Father
• Retiring somewhere warm

MS You are currently exhibiting at Converge in Anderson, what are your thoughts about the show?
DB Honestly: I’m so, so, thankful to be a part of the exhibition. The work that composes that show is incredible, and knowing that I have a part in it is awesome. More than the work, though, I’m blessed to be amongst the fellow artists that have composed the group. They are great individuals who I’ve been encouraged and supported by through the process, and I’ve really enjoyed the entire process of the exhibition. I think the work is amazing, the space is well considered and it is definitely an impressive body of student work. If you haven’t been - get to it by May 1!

MS What about your own work in the show?
DB Who, me?… I’m still processing the way I feel about my own work. I took a really personal, vulnerable route to the pieces and it didn’t really hit me until a few minutes before the show opened how much I’d put myself out there. I think I learned a lot about myself as I was creating these pieces, and I thought about my past in a lot of new ways because of the work. I think that our lives inform our personal work a lot, and it was nice for this to be almost a reverse effect, as the work started informing my life. I went about the pieces in a totally new way, creating collages rather than traditional graphic design - but it’s been so rewarding to create the work in this manner as it really made me slow down and re-work, sometimes in a matter of days. It’s so easy to apple + z in InDesign, but this took time, thinking, and critique that slowed the process tremendously. All in all, I’m really happy with the way the work came out, and it’s become a bit of a step forward for me. I’m acknowledging where I’ve come from, what my life has been like, and with that I’m able to move forward to the unknown. A lot of people are afraid of what’s next, but I’m really excited to see what it may be.

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A special thanks to Dane for agreeing to be the first in the series! If anyone else is interested, just leave me a comment somewhere with a link to your portfolio or a way to contact you and I’d be glad to get something started.

Now: Pay Attention Class:

Things have been crazy at the MakeSeriously headquarters lately (located, appropriately, inside my skull). But fret not, there will be content coming as well as a new feature I’m hoping to do monthly. The plan, anyway, is to do an artist profile and this month’s will be featuring designer Dane Benton, who’ve I’ve mentioned before. So do stay tuned, and if you’re interested in being profiled in future months, let me know. Now for the regularly scheduled programme:

There’s a fellow in Britain by the name of Charlie Brooker. He writes for The Guardian and is one of those funny guys across the pond who can approach something very American and in a dry, curious way reveal that it’s completely absurd. Of course, this is America so we have lots of the absurd. About 40% of the Stumbles I make are popular primarily because they are absurd. Sure, it’s amusing and well worth seeing. But it’s neither useful in any utilitarian way, nor is it practical. What’s a bit frightening, however, is when people actually listen to the absurd as though it’s sane or rational. Unfortunately, the prime-time American media fits the “absurd” category pretty well, and here’s the humorous Mr. Brooker to raise an eyebrow at it:

It goes without saying that we should be paying some attention to the way things are presented to us as well as listening to the content. Marshall McLuhan is a name tossed around a lot lately because of his 1967 work “The Medium is the Message”. One of the ideas of the medium being the message can be summed up like this: the way an idea is presented, the medium that it is messaged through, is more important than the actual content. It’s something I think we all can understand in a visceral way, and that’s part of what makes the media so absurd. And dangerous. Think about the most passionate speakers you’ve heard. As they get moving, you don’t just hear and agree with them, nodding your head in silent assent. You begin to feel something. And that something is the result of the medium, the presentation itself rather than the words. To compare, it’s like a religious experience where the devotee must enter a state of emotions through worship. The medium of worship helps create the connection, it develops the visceral reaction.

The danger is when we confuse the visceral reaction for reality. There are times when it is real, when the passion is good. When Dr. King gave his “I have a dream” speech, I think few would call it inappropriate to feel passion for that speech. But the thing to consider is that Hitler spoke with a similar passion. The difference in the two was the message, not the medium and the danger is to confuse those two. That’s where Brooker’s commentary should make us all pause: are we hearing the message or are we confusing it with the medium? It’s called the news, but is that what they’re actually presenting? Are they pulling on our emotional side in hopes of persuading us to do something for them? They are good questions to ask, especially as the increasingly absurd television news media becomes more profitable and popular despite a decrease in quality and content.

Oh, and Brooker is hilarious.