Semi Permanent: Auckland 2013
We made our annual trip to the Semi Permanent design conference in Auckland. There were a few themes that got repeated across the speakers. I'll repeat them again now. Firstly, make mistakes. Learn from them. Celebrate them. Enjoy the serendipity they provide. Second, be curious and relish experimentation. Thirdly, seek out inspiration. Let it inform (not dictate) your work. Fourthly, don’t shy away from being bold and different. No guts, no glory. Fifth, collaborate and allow the creativity of others to inspire and inform your work. And sixth, Follow your own vision and pursue self-initiated projects. Their success can inform commercial work and lead to new opportunities. And seventhly, work hard, don’t get lazy. Heres some more specific commentary on the designers. Sandra Dieckmann likes animals, art as catharsis, escapism, memories and experiments in scale. She creates juxtapositions of big and small. Huge flowers looming in the distance, gigantic cats walking across rooftops, and bears living in a shrunken birch forests.
Toko is interested in how our cultural landscape informs our work. They like to deconstruct then reconstruct an image. They are interested in the space where thoughts and ideas collide. Tradition and experimentation, rules and anarchy, art and application, static and dynamic, aesthetic and conceptual, function and expression, boredom and beauty.
Digital Kitchen likes to celebrate a sense of discovery and exploration. To take joy and wonderment in new things. They suggest breaking from stifling habits by inviting ‘chaos to take us down paths we hadn’t imagined.’ They said to always have a point of view and to think of yourself as a trusted partner in contributing to your clients brand.
P.A.M. likes designing to themes rather than the style of the moment. They believe that ‘Strange feelings are the most important thing’. They ‘are interested in things steeped in mystery, things that cannot be explained’ ‘Mystery is a nice ambitious place. Magic happens there.’
Check out this work for Dodge Journey by Digital Kitchen – Lifes a journey not a destination: https://vimeo.com/47497347