Who are you? (Name, background, influences, what makes you you?)
What is it that you do? (Showcase a pivotal project or moment in your practice)
Where are you? (geographically and does this have an impact on how you work?)
Why Design? (What does design mean to you? What does it do?)
Who am I?
I am the culmination of all that had came before me – each moment in my life, a component that allows the machine to continue on it’s journey. I am the echo of my forebears, and theirs before them – a continuation of exploration and aspiration.
I am the memory of watching Autumnal-rain, a gentle kiss on a sultry Sunday afternoon, the sound of distant voices calling-out from a past that is unknown to me, I am the advocate for those whom have lost their voice, I am the inner self-doubt that whispers in the wind, I am the one in the photograph, I am reaching-out to a reflection that I do not know, I am youth, I am all of these things and more.
What is it that you do?
I am a Senior Graphic Designer and Art Director, with Eleven years of commercial experience in branding, identity, and editorial-design. I help clients to find their voice and express their inner-identity, acting as a conduit for understanding and the seeking of solutions for problems that are yet to be discovered.
what does design mean to me?
Visual-narrative has the potential to effect real change in our communities, with the ability to impact our daily lives in a myriad of ways, both positive and negative, and contribute to our general well-being as individuals. When this methodology is utilised in an effective and practical manner, society can benefit and the lives of those concerned can be greatly improved. Narrative can also be adapted to drive the worlds economies, elect the leaders of our governments, guide morality and ethical practices, provide those in-need with the much needed security and comfort that they require, develop understanding where resentment and disagreement flourish, among many other possibilities.
Narrative and intent, when utilised for good, can achieve truly great things. History has demonstrated that when driven by bad intentions and a desire to do harm to others, narrative can instil in those susceptible minds the most abhorrent notions of ill-will and through visual communication, this can result in socio-political upheaval, the waging of war, the exploitation of the populace, and in the most extreme examples this can result in such catastrophic outcomes as genocide and the dropping of the nuclear-bomb.
Where are you?
I am currently based in the picturesque County of Herefordshire, however, I was raised in the more remote landscapes of the Mid-Wales border region. Consequently, I have developed a deep affinity for the natural world and particularly for the area in which I grew-up. This relationship with the landscape is perhaps, the catalyst for my interest in the mystery of landscape and how it relates to our own narrative, as both individuals and a community.
Through-out my life, I have found myself returning to the landscape of my youth, and continuing to find inspiration and healing in the sublime views and the hidden paths that are found there. This preference for natural forms, textures, and natural beauty has seeped into my artistic endeavours, finding insight and inspiration in the Japanese design-philosophy of, Wabi-Sabi.
Poster design, exploring identity. (2018)
Poster design, Exploring mental health in Japan. (2018)
JohnPrinceBranding 