What WNW Member Emiliano Ponzi and MoMA have created is not just a picture book but a reminder of the educational benefits of understanding how your surroundings work from a young age, and recognizing the humanity behind design decisions.
Read MorePart Speakeasy & Part Speak Out, The Lady Factory Exports Empowerment
Earlier this week, a one-of-a-kind "pop-up museum" appeared in San Francisco. Named "The Lady Factory," it's part speakeasy, part speak out. Clemence Pluche tells us why it was the perfect time for "a super-shareable, ultra-Instagrammable set of installations embedded with stories and subtext about women’s real lives in 2018."
Read MoreWNW MEMBER DIANE LINDQUIST GUIDES GURL MUSEUM DAYS
WNW MEMBER DIANE LINDQUIST GUIDES GURL MUSEUM DAYS
As the temperature and humidity rise in the coming months, you'll be desperately searching for air-conditioned escapes with cool marble flooring. You should be thinking museums. And if you're a "gurl" in LA, you can hit up the best museums and galleries with your own "gurl" gang. WNW Member Diane Lindquist is the founder of Gurl Museum Day, which includes both organized field trips to the latest exhibitions and installations, and a branded magazine that celebrates female artists, their journeys, and girl-focused exhibits.
In our interview below, Diane offers generous insights and openness into her creative background, in part shaped by the loss of vision in her right eye at a young age due to retinoblastoma. "In the years after surgery and treatment, I had many tests to make sure the cancer had not returned. The tests would be made up of shapes, color palettes, and other cognitive exercises. It was during this time that I began to develop my creative background."
She also shares the impetus behind GMD and its growing headcount. "My gurl friends would tease me about the galleries and museums I would visit. So I invited them to go with me. The next museum we went to they invited their friends and, soon enough, I asked everyone to document their experience on Instagram using the hashtag #gurlmuseumday. After a few more museums, other girls began to ask for information about how to be included. During one night of spontaneity–and lack of sleep–I developed the branding and website and GMD was born. I later discovered that only 5% of female artists had their work shown in reputable galleries and museums. That set in motion a series of events that deepened my mission to increase those numbers."
If you're in Los Angeles, you can learn more about GMD here and below. And New York, stay tuned for when GMD officially becomes bicoastal.
Tell us a little bit about your creative background. Who is Diane Lindquist and how did she get here?
The story of Diane Lindquist starts in the city of stars, Los Angeles, a city where there are many shiny bright lights, but for me those lights were a bit blurry at first. At a young age, I started to lose vision in my right eye. It started out very minor and it quickly worsened. I can remember feeling so confused by what I was seeing that I would bump straight into walls. It turned out I had retinoblastoma (a form of cancer) in my right eye. My parents were immigrants, working-class, and this was something beyond their understanding and reach. If it wasn't for my mother's love and determination I might not be here to tell this story. With her help, I fought and survived cancer, but it took my right eye. I spent countless nights in the hospital, making friends with other kids with cancer (many of whom lost their battle) and developing a sixth sense — what I call my "killer fine eye.”
In the years after surgery and treatment, I had many tests to make sure the cancer had not returned. The tests would be made up of shapes, color palettes, and other cognitive exercises. It was during this time that I began to develop my creative background. I had to wear eye patches, which weren't a friendly look for other children. I would dwell in the sounds, colors, and type around me because I lacked the vision I felt I needed and missed. I tried so hard to capture as much in my memory. Over the years, I always felt a creative spark within me. Coming from a humble background, I still felt a need to be practical.
At the age of 16, I started working. I had excelled in strategy and liberal arts in high school, so it was natural to pursue them in college. I put myself through higher education by working nights and I also set up a backup plan. While design is my passion, I decided to hedge by earning a BS in Marketing and a minor in Graphic Design. The world needs designers, but I felt like marketing was a skill I could always support myself with. Afterward, I worked my way from a junior to senior designer. I taught myself web design, later UX/UI design (with some established education) and so on. While I have come a long way, I will always be learning. I think one has to be constantly learning to be successful.
How would you describe your creative style? Do you recognize a signature style that links all of your projects, or do you try to excuse yourself and approach each project as its own entity?
It took me a while to figure this out. My creative style is a combination of clean, stand-out designs with a fresh, bold, modern, and minimal aesthetic. I use lively colors, a synthesis of my Mexican-American heritage and love of Swedish minimal design. My creative style is completely different for projects I work on. I really try to keep a piece of my style within each project while I create designs that are based on what the client's or users needs are.
What was the impetus behind GURL Museum Day? What’s the project all about?
GURL Museum Day (GMD) stems from my childhood. I didn't have many opportunities for recreation, but at school, we had field trips. The first museum I visited with my teachers was The Holocaust Museum in Los Angeles. I was about eight years old. For those who have never been, it's very impactful. I felt shocked and learned so much during my visit. The exhibition was fully interactive (with videos and other interactive installations). It evoked so much emotion in me. The empathy I felt struck those feelings I had from children teasing me for wearing an eye patch or even the rejection of my father's approval (since I was not 'normal' to him). I remember tearing up, touched deeply by their struggle. It also opened in me the desire to learn more about others through the conduit of the museum experience. Thus my love for museums and galleries carried me through my teenage years. When I could, I would use holidays to visit them. I learned about creating and exhibiting work. Some prints I made were shown at an LA River Gallery and, to my surprise, they were featured in The LA Times. I sold out half of my digital prints, which was a new thing for me. This also led me to volunteer in the expansion of the Downtown Los Angeles Art Walk, where I was seeing art reshape the inner city. My gurl friends would tease me about the galleries and museums I would visit. So I invited them to go with me. The next museum we went to, they invited their friends and, soon enough, I asked everyone to document their experience on Instagram using the hashtag #gurlmuseumday. After a few more museums, other girls began to ask for information about how to be included. During one night of spontaneity–and lack of sleep–I developed the branding and website and GMD was born. I later discovered that only 5% of female artists had their work shown in reputable galleries and museums. That set in motion a series of events that deepened my mission to increase those numbers.
Can you give our readers and potential GMD attendees an idea of what a Gurl Museum Day looks like?
We have GMD Tours monthly, currently in Los Angeles (coming soon to New York). The day begins with meeting at a selected spot (usually in front of the museum). Gurls start arriving and we allocate thirty minutes of meet 'n greet. There we make a collective circle and I introduce myself, welcome them to GMD, and pass out name tags for gurls to write down their Instagram handle (towards the end I like to collect them in a printed promo piece to make sure I tag the girls in the photos I take). Then I ask two to three questions: (1) What are you passionate about? (2) Your most recent obsession or (3) Your favorite artist or type of art? This really gets all the gurls to open up and loosen up. Then we enter the gallery or museum. Sometimes we have a docent, sometimes we do a self-guided tour. It's fun to see all the gurls talk to each other and bond over art. The last thirty minutes we usually say where we are going next, say our goodbyes, and hit up the gift store (of course)!
Of the museums and galleries you and your gurls have visited thus far, which ones do you recommend most highly? Which exhibits sparked the best discussions afterward?
The Broad is the brand spankin’ new museum of Los Angeles. It’s been all the rage and it doesn’t disappoint. My favorite gallery in LA is Ace Gallery. Most people don’t know about it but it’s amazing space. The beginning of the year we went to the Annenberg Space for Photography’s Skylight Studio for #GIRLGAZE. That generated a lot of conversation and interest because it was a range of photography in the perspective of females views. We talked about how powerful and important it was to feel represented within each photograph.
Was a magazine always an integral part of this project or did it come about later on?
It’s wasn’t at first. However, after sharing this with so many girls, it clearly became the most needed part and I was happy to find collaborators that wanted to assist in the development. I partnered with Erin Remington. She’s an art curator and blogger at AFINEREYE. She helps with the interviews and the rest of the development of GMD. The magazine is strictly focused on sharing stories of gurl artists. Supporting their journeys or reviewing exhibitions that are related to girls.
In what ways has this creative undertaking surprised you and challenged you?
I had done other projects, but they were planned out and systematic. This developed organically and every step has been a discovery both creatively and strategically.
Will you be planning a good number of air-conditioned museum trips this summer to escape the L.A. heat?
Oh yes! Summer in LA is the best. Everyone wants to go out and it’s the best time to visit galleries and museums. We have a whole year planned out. We are heading to visit Hauser Wirth & Schimmel, MOCA, MOLAA, Blum & Poe, & CAAM, to name a few. We are also planning to expand to New York by the beginning of summer.
Who/what are your biggest creative influences?
As far as designer legends and greats, I admire and respect: Susan Kare, Aaron Draplin, WNW Member John Maeda, Paul Rand, Saul Bass, Jessica Walsh and Stefan Sagmeister. There are also many designers out there that are equally amazing and talented like Mig Reyes, Janet Longhurst, and Tobias van Schneider. I also find inspiration other ways from companies, products or agencies like HUGE and am heavily into art and culture. I have a whole list of female artists. At the top is Barbara Kunger, Maria Lassing and so on.
What’s next for you? What are you working on now?
I have another project called Compassionate Landspace. This is a collection of visuals—posters and social cards—created and donated by designers that encourage empathy in the name of fairness, equality, and progress. Our goal, as a collaborative effort, is to allow a different type of visual messaging in our current landscape with compassionate visuals to be used by marginalized communities, organizations, protestors and the general public who aim to share the same message. I am working on another collaboration project and just hoping to expand GMD in different exciting avenues.
What do you do when Not Working?
Galleries and Museums… no really! I still go to so many opening receptions (aside from the ones we do with GMD). I am highly addicted to coffee, but as I like to say, “Coffee is addicted to me!" I enjoy visiting and collecting coffee shop experiences. I am also a mentor and love those relationships dearly. We can only shape our industry if we share our knowledge.
Who are some WNW Members whose work you admire and why?
Lately, I admire gurls who are in a cross-disciplinary sector between a designer and artist such as Tuesday Bassen and Gabriella Sanchez.
Anything else you’d like to add?
Thanks for sharing my story!
Are you a WNW Member with new work, exhibits, products, or news to share? Email us!
SABINE DOWEK TALKS MOMA, DESIGN RESEARCH & CREATIVE QUESTIONING
SABINE DOWEK TALKS MOMA, DESIGN RESEARCH & CREATIVE QUESTIONING
WNW Member Sabine Dowek worked in MoMA's graphic design department for four years before going freelance. We were excited to learn how such an experience could speak to the concepts of research, conversation and celebration that drive graphic design. And Sabine delivers in our interview below. The Brazilian-born and New York-based designer tells us, "For an exhibition, the best research was often talking to the curators, engaging them in conversation, asking questions—that is where a point of view is revealed. That point of view is what drove the curator to spend years of their lives extensively researching and developing a subject matter, so it's a pretty special place to start from. Asking questions always helps." Sabine's ability to discover the creative passion behind great curators, artists and their works as a means to unleash her own is what defines her stellar contributions to MoMA.
Sabine also tells us about other go-to venues for inspiration in the form of New York museums, galleries and jazz clubs. Sabine adds, "The word 'working' can be limiting, in the sense that when you are not, you are still aware and observing things happening around you. These observations later manifest themselves during the creative process in several different ways." Take the time to fully appreciate Sabine's work, and you may be lucky enough to see it later manifest itself during your own creative process.
Tell us about your creative background. Who is Sabine and how did she get here?
I am a designer originally from Rio de Janeiro. I’ve lived in New York since 2006 (except for a short stay in São Paulo last year).
Before even knowing what graphic design really was, I was passionate about drawing. My father owns an extensive collection of Bandes Dessinée (Franco-Belgian comic books). He taught himself how to draw by redrawing scenes from his favorites books. I used to do the same, attempting a child-like version of Spirou (a popular character beloved in France/Belgium). I was never great at it, but continued to draw and paint until going to college. During my last year in college, I realized my education had been quite insubstantial and felt unprepared to practice the profession. I transferred to SVA in New York. I recall having a similar feeling then upon graduation, perhaps to a lesser degree and despite the fantastic education I received. I realize now this feeling has stayed with me until today, and I suspect it always will.
How would you describe your creative style? Do you recognize a signature style that links all of your projects, or do you try to excuse yourself and approach each project as its own entity?
I think there is definitely a shared sensibility across my work and that continues to evolve over time, but I wouldn’t call it style. As an illustrator, having a style is helpful, but as a designer, the visual expression should be informed by the specific and singular needs of the client or project.
Jazz Interlude
What drew you to this subject?
The Jazz interlude is a bi-annual fundraiser to benefit the Friends of Education at MoMA and to raise funds to acquire African American art. Jazz music is fascinating. I would often go to the Village Vanguard and be mesmerized by the musician’s improvisation skills. And they always seem to have so much fun playing.
What inspirations helped inform this project?
Apart from being a jazz fan, the vernacular of vintage jazz albums are great. They really incorporate the rhythm and soul of Jazz. I did a lot of research on jazz albums and the kinds of graphic elements typically associated with it.
Hardest part?
The hardest part for me was the deadline. It came to us late and we had a week to figure out the design, while in the midst of many other projects. Oh, and being 9 months pregnant didn’t help either.
Inventing Abstraction
What drew you to this subject?
This was a unique exhibition. The curators, Leah Dickerman and Masha Chlenova, had the thesis that abstraction wasn’t the result of a single genius, but rather born out of the relationships between artists of that time. The curatorial team spent many years researching who knew who, and together with Columbia University created a basic skeleton of those connections which we then worked from. Being a part of such a unique concept and process was great.
What inspirations helped inform this project?
Alfred Barr, MoMA’s first director, had created a chart in 1936 mapping the development of modern art. It felt like an obvious decision to use that as inspiration for the artist network chart we were designing for the same museum 76 years later.
Hardest part?
The network chart was particularly hard to tackle. There were over 80 connections, so it's very dense and was labor intensive.
What was it like to work as an art director and designer for such an institution like MoMA? How does your approach to museum and exhibit identities differ from your approach to book cover design?
Working for MoMA was an incredible experience. To be exposed to fascinating art, work with knowledgeable people, and be behind the scenes of formidable exhibitions displaying the work of absolute masters—I feel very fortunate and grateful. Walking through the galleries before the museum opened to the public, alone with a Picasso—there was something special about it.
At the design studio at MoMA, the designers do a large variety of work—from exhibition design to printed matter to video content. You get exposed to a lot and it never got boring. Formally, the design is almost always typographically driven. While book covers can certainly be that, the concept doesn't necessarily need to exist in the typography—it can be expressed in an illustration or photograph. That opens a lot more possibilities and can be hard to get right. On the other hand, book covers have a set canvas to work from, while an exhibition may not—you can explore the natural architecture of the space, use it to engage or disrupt the design, as well as exploring different materials and animated title walls, if fitting of course.
On more extensive projects, what kind of research and preliminary explorations typically inform decisions throughout your creative process?
That really depends from project to project. For an exhibition, the best research was often talking to the curators, engaging them in conversation, asking questions—that is where a point of view is revealed. That point of view is what drove the curator to spend years of their lives extensively researching and developing a subject matter, so it's a pretty special place to start from. Asking questions always helps. What does the design and language need to do? How will people interact with the design? What are the stories that we should/need to be telling? It is often easy to lose track of this once you start designing and are in the thick of it. But I find myself always going back to these questions, making sure whatever I'm designing still makes sense, and at its best, engages with the viewer in some deeper form.
What moment or project in your career so far has made you the proudest?
Matisse is probably it. First because of the artist himself—having the opportunity to design the identity for such an incredible artist, and particularly for the cut-outs, which is such a distinct moment in his career. Second, I was thrilled we created an identity that didn’t look like the cut-outs, but instead was inspired by a key element that drove the exhibition: Matisse was constantly changing and shifting his compositions. He pinned the pieces of cut paper on the wall of his studio and as he lived with it, he would unpin and repin, modifying the composition in the process. This worked out well as we needed to develop a flexible identity that worked on many different platforms, from the environmental space to a bandage box.
Biggest career failure?
My first job out of college. That one is flashing in big, bright red lights. By the time I left that job, I was questioning whether I should be a designer at all. There were a lot of expectations on me and I put a lot of pressure on myself. I was so concerned with my boss’s opinion of me and was eager for validation, that the quality of my work deteriorated. It’s fascinating how our own psyche can sabotage us. It may seem cliché, but being afraid of failure is ultimately what made me fail. However, it's part of the process and when you do succeed, it feels really good.
What are you working on now?
I am currently freelancing at IBM. They have a new Brand design and experience team. I am working on the World of Watson event, which will take place in October. I also just finished doing a series of illustrations for Buzzfeed News.
How do New York and Brazil influence your work?
If I am to be honest, I feel New York has had a much deeper impact and influence on me as a designer. The years I have spent here, the people I’ve worked with, the stunning amount of things I was exposed to have been crucial to my formation as a designer.
What cultural and creative venues do you frequent in New York?
New York is a hot podge of cultural venues. The main museums are always great to visit, as are the smaller institutions, such as the Neue Gallery, the Frick Collection, and The Jewish Museum. Open Studios in Bushwick has some great art as well. Joe’s Pub, Village Vanguard, and Ear Inn has really great music.
Do you thrive off of being part of a creative community or are you more in your element as a lone wolf?
A little bit of both, probably.
Who are some of your biggest creative idols and influences?
While there are tons of people/studios that I admire, I can’t say they are idols. I can’t call an idol someone I never met (they might be very talented, but not great human beings). People I can call role models and influences are inevitably some of the people I have worked with. Paul Sahre, Julia Hoffmann, Ingrid Chou, Sam Potts, Sam Sherman, Mike Abbink—these are all amazing designers and most importantly, great people.
If you weren’t a Designer, what do you think you’d be doing instead?
Something with food. I always loved cooking (and eating).
What do you do when Not Working?
Now that I am a parent, I spend most of my free time with my son and husband. Doing things that nourish the brain and spirit, going to museums, art galleries, reading—lately a lot of Green Eggs and Ham—traveling, cooking…The word “working” can be limiting, in the sense that when you are not, you are still aware and observing things happening around you. These observations later manifest themselves during the creative process in several different ways.
What are some things you would tell your high school or early twenties self?
Not to worry all the time. I would say the same thing to myself now.
Who are some other WNW members whose work you admire, and why?
Oof, there are so many talented ones. Kevin Brainard, Scott Reinhard, Wael Morcos, Jessica Svendsen, there are lots of talented people here.
Anything else you’d like to add?
Thank you for the interview. And thank you for creating such a an important tool in connecting employers to creatives. I am new to WNW and am excited to be a part of it.