The Quickie - Conversations with Designers

Today's guest is Paula Scher. She is a Designer, Painter, and a Partner at Pentagram in the New York office. She is also....PAULA SCHER! The little ol' Quickie Podcast is just cruising. What a great time. During part one of this interview we talk about:-how she did not come from a creative family. -how she did not know what graphic design was until college. -the teacher who wasn't very nice to her when in college but later in her career asked her to come in and speak to his class of creatives. -the other teacher that changed her life, and how. -the designs she has seen out in the world that were influential to her. -the book she recently discovered and had yo buy immediately. -the designers and creatives that she looks up to now and why. -the packaging project she was a part of and why she is so proud of it...and it only uses Swiss Helvetica. I don't usually get nervous before interviews, but I was for this one. Paula has so many great stories to share and she doesn't hold back. Also, she is probably one of the most interviewed designers out there, and to have her say "thats a great question" to me? Love it. @pentagramdesign 

Today's guests are Jonny Black and Richard Roche. They are co-founders of Cast Iron Design out of Boulder CO. A couple of fun creative dudes. During part two of this interview we talk about:-how asking a lot of questions can save a lot of time and money and the way they figured that out. -the lessons learned taking it easy when they arrived in Boulder. -the client that pulled out of the project after Jonny and Richard had already spent the deposit, and how that all worked out. -the film festival project that got stressful, didn't turn out the way they wanted, then came back to life a year later in a great way. -the crazy restaurant story that involves Llamas, and being paid in sandwiches. -their first website and what it was able to do for them. -the Patagonia print project they were a part of and how they were able to test a brand new ink product that aligned with the Patagonia brand. These gents know how to tell a story and have had a wild design ride so far. Excited to see what is to come out of Cast Iron Design.  @castirondesign

Today's guests are Jonny Black and Richard Roche. They are co-founders of Cast Iron Design out of Boulder CO. A couple of fun creative dudes. During Part One of this interview we talk about: -their individual paths to design and the influences on them along the way. -the book that really influenced Jonny. -the food brand that Jonny really loves the design work from. -the theatre company that Richard loves the creative out of. -the printed corrugated project they created that had a large focus on sustainability. This is a highly entertaining interview with lots of great stories. @castirondesign

Today's guest is Sam Shepard. He is a freelance graphic designer out of Sacramento CA. During this episode we talk about:-his music scene entrance to graphic design. -the book series he collected as a kid because of the artwork on the cover. -the album covers that really influenced him early on in his career. -DMX, the Beatles, the Beach Boys.-a few awesome design / art IG accounts you need to check out. -his favorite music poster that he had designed and why.-why being a design intern was the most challenging time in his career so far. -the album cover he produced that he is really proud of. Sam and I had a great conversation and connected on so many classic influences. It is really interesting hearing about how someone else perceived something you also loved as a kid. @samshepdude

Today's guest is Kenny Morgan. He is the CoFounder and CCO at Counsel Creative in Chattanooga TN. During this episode we talk about: -how he came from a family of artists yet he originally wanted to get into the business side of the music scene.-the call he received that changed his career. -the little moments he ignored initially that were pointing him in the direction of design. -a very influential design season for him during an internship on the Vans Warped Tour.-customer experience and how print + packaging can elevate it. -the perceived security of full-time income vs. full-time freelance and how Kenny made the transition. -the video project Counsel Creative was a part of and why they are so proud of it.I take away a little something from each interview and this one was no different. Kenny shares the good and the bad and offers the lessons learned from it all. @counselcreative

Today's guest is Evelio Mattos. He is a packaging designer at GetUNBOXD out of Arizona. He is also a contributing editor at The Dieline, and put over 12years in at Design Packaging. During this episode we talk about: -how he grew up in New York and Hawaii.-his time working as an inhouse designer at UHaul.-the moment he decided to double down on packaging design. -the brand who is nailing packaging design and user experience right now. -the juicy couture packaging project he was a part of. -why getting fired in his 40's left him to battle through the toughest time in his career. -the recyclability messaging on packaging.Evelio has so much packaging experience and stories to share from it. I really enjoyed hearing his path to it. @eveliomattos 

Today's guest is Joshua Ariza. He is a Freelance Commercial Artist and the Owner at CHOMP brand.  During part two of this episode we talk about:-how he worked through the challenge of going freelance, and how his wife lost her job around the same time. Yikes.-the surprise firing he experienced.-the work he has done building CHOMP and why he is so proud of it. -the mentors that have helped him through his freelance days, and it's a great list. 

Today's guest is Joshua Ariza. He is a Freelance Commercial Artist and the Owner at CHOMP brand.  During part one of this episode we talk about:-his time at Billabong, Nike, and the decision to go freelance. -the person that really influenced his pursuit of design along with comic books. -the sock project he was a part of that Dwayne Johnson and Just Trudeau have been spotted wearing. -the 'never worried' series he illustrates.-Jesus in a Ferrari and where the idea came from. -the photoshop brush he uses to add dimension. Josh is super talented and the stuff he has over at CHOMP brand is dynamite. Go check it out! chompbrand.com @chompbrand @joshua_ariza

Today's guest is Lenny Terenzi. He is a Designer, Illustrator, and Creative Director working as Hey Monkey Design out of Raleigh NC. During this episode we talk about:-his very first job in the design game. -how he has been working for himself since 2001.-the chance class that he took that changed his life and the book that heavily influenced him. -why the last 5 years have been the most challenging time in his creative career and how self reflection helped pull him through it. -how his "this is the one" project turned out to be a disappointing situation and what killed it. -the development of his own brand and why he is so proud of it. Lenny is such an open and honest person and shares the lessons learned from his creative and personal challenges that he has experienced. I had a great time chatting with him and I know you will get value out of this one. @heymonkeydesign

Today's guest is Meena Khalili. She is a professor, and designer at her practice called Curiosity HQ out of Columbia SC. During Part Two of this episode we talk about:-the tough times in her career and why it might all be tough. -the lessons she has learned from not asking for help when she needed to, and what that caused her to miss.-the project she is proud to have been a part of. I love Meena's energy, so awesome to connect with her. Definitely go check out her IG. Awesome illustrations, timelapse design videos, all happy days. @meenakhalili