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Interview with Shawn Goh Chin Siang |
Home > Designer Interviews > Shawn Goh Chin Siang |
Editor Frank Scott (FS) from DesignPRWire has interviewed designer Shawn Goh Chin Siang (SGCS) for A’ Design Award and Competition. You can access the full profile of Shawn Goh Chin Siang by clicking here.
FS: Could you please tell us more about your art and design background? What made you become an artist/designer? Have you always wanted to be a designer?
SGCS: I grew up in an environment surrounded by art. In 2008, I participated in a national drawing competition during my secondary school days, and I was nominated as one of the winners among 100 participants. In 2009, I started to pursue education in design, and I decided to become an outstanding designer, because this has been my childhood dream. I am sure I will be successful.
FS: Can you tell us more about your company / design studio?
SGCS: At the age of 22, when my lecturer discovered my talent, the lecturer asked if I have plan to become an entrepreneur. Back then, I wasn’t sure because I felt that I didn’t have enough working experience. Therefore, I became a full-time designer, spending two years to improve myself further. Subsequently, I started my own company, dubbed “5s8 studio”. 5s8 is an anchor to the designer dream of mine since 2009. 5s8 is a studio with creativity, imagination and vision.
FS: What is "design" for you?
SGCS: To me, designing is not just about touch, listen, feel, wear, eat and drink. Design, can change an era, it can even redefine a culture.
FS: What kinds of works do you like designing most?
SGCS: Product packaging design and branding design.
FS: What is your most favorite design, could you please tell more about it?
SGCS: I like to design food packaging, because this is exactly the first interaction with consumers. They can see it, they can touch it, they can feel it. It is really fun to make consumers understand a brand through arts and visuals.
FS: What was the first thing you designed for a company?
SGCS: My very first design was a packaging design for a production department. It was my first client, and they were introduced to me by my father.
FS: What is your favorite material / platform / technology?
SGCS: When I start a research, I will sketch my ideas out, making sure that I will never forget a tiny detail.
FS: When do you feel the most creative?
SGCS: I can’t recall any specific period.
FS: Which aspects of a design do you focus more during designing?
SGCS: From illustration, details of every character, to the measuring of packaging, every part is equally important. That’s because any minor error could result in huge damages, and we might lose our reputation and credibility.
FS: What kind of emotions do you feel when you design?
SGCS: I always feel very energetic when I’m designing something, because this is my profession, and I am passionate about it.
FS: What kind of emotions do you feel when your designs are realized?
SGCS: Everytime when I finish a designing job, I feel very excited and satisfied.
FS: What makes a design successful?
SGCS: It’s about how far you understand it, as well as which perspective you are thinking from. That, to me, is the most important element to establish a foothold in this market.
FS: When judging a design as good or bad, which aspects do you consider first?
SGCS: I will consider the idea behind a design.
FS: From your point of view, what are the responsibilities of a designer for society and environment?
SGCS: It is a designer’s job to change the social perception on designers. Of course, we, as designers, should also make our cities more beautiful.
FS: How do you think the "design field" is evolving? What is the future of design?
SGCS: I think from now on, we should start to develop the design profession, by combining both local culture and skills, leading the corporates and brands to move towards the future.
FS: When was your last exhibition and where was it? And when do you want to hold your next exhibition?
SGCS: I have yet to have the opportunity to hold my own art exhibition, but my immediate target is to exhibit my artworks in Taiwan, Korea, New York and Tokyo. I want people to understand my design philosophy.
FS: Where does the design inspiration for your works come from? How do you feed your creativity? What are your sources of inspirations?
SGCS: I think we should make our life simple. I want to have more time to improve myself and do research. I want to learn about other cultures. The more I see, the more I learn, and the more inspiration I get.
FS: How would you describe your design style? What made you explore more this style and what are the main characteristics of your style? What's your approach to design?
SGCS: I would like to think that the main characteristics of my design style is the combination of illustration and my own drawing style. This allows me to present an idea in many different ways, be it futuristic, cute or personality, which are related to our life, and that’s how I remain relevant in the market.
FS: Where do you live? Do you feel the cultural heritage of your country affects your designs? What are the pros and cons during designing as a result of living in your country?
SGCS: I was born and raised in Malaysia, a country where we have three major races with diversified cultural heritage. So, you will see different colors, tones and mood in my artworks. However, each culture has its own prohibitation which could forbid how far I can go.
FS: How do you work with companies?
SGCS: It’s all about character and personality. While there will be obstacles in any partnership journey, a person’s character will define everything, because designing skills can be developed at a later stage.
FS: What are your suggestions to companies for working with a designer? How can companies select a good designer?
SGCS: I will set up a meeting with my clients. I will communicate with them, understand their needs. I will minimize the error, and I will give them suggestions. More importantly, I will explain to them the importance of design.
FS: Can you talk a little about your design process?
SGCS: In the packaging design processs, I will understand the brief, identify the problem, research, sketches for packaging, scan, tracing, fine-out paper quality, mock-up, before the clients give the greenlight for final printing.
FS: What are 5 of your favorite design items at home?
SGCS: Toys, T-shirt, magazine, bag, my Apple product.
FS: Can you describe a day in your life?
SGCS: Breakfast at 9am, then go to my studio, work until 3pm. Have a dessert, while I’m browsing the latest news on designing via behance. Then, I will continue to work until 6pm, go home to have dinner with family. Contine to work again between 11pm and 12am. When I am in the mood and have inspiration, I can even work until 4am. I also like to hang out with friends in cafe.
FS: Could you please share some pearls of wisdom for young designers? What are your suggestions to young, up and coming designers?
SGCS: Believe in yourself, pursue your dream. Life is never a smooth journey, no route is without any obstacle, all we have to do is overcome the hurdles, and success is not too far away.
FS: What is your "golden rule" in design?
SGCS: I think the elements behind a good design are culture, essence, idea, philosophy, history and function, coupled with your own talent and passion. That, in my opinion, is the pinnacle of design.
FS: What skills are most important for a designer?
SGCS: Imagination and talent.
FS: Which tools do you use during design? What is inside your toolbox? Such as software, application, hardware, books, sources of inspiration etc.?
SGCS: A drawing pad, mobile phone, Macbook, and more importantly, your brain with undisturbed thoughts.
FS: Designing can sometimes be a really time consuming task, how do you manage your time?
SGCS: I will spend a lot of time to observe other top-class design works, to study the designers’ thoughts behind the artworks. Then, when I am back to my studio, I will “rearrange” what I have observed, then combine them with my own idea.
FS: How long does it take to design an object from beginning to end?
SGCS: From the moment a client comes out with a design concept, I will try to finish my work within 7-15 days, because time is money.
FS: What is the most frequently asked question to you, as a designer?
SGCS: Your rate is expensive! Why are other designers offering cheaper rates? Can this design really make money for us?
FS: What was your most important job experience?
SGCS: There was once when I was communicating with a client, who is not very familiar with designing field, but was rather stubborn. With my experience and communication skills over the years, I managed to establish a good relationship with the client, who eventually gained more knowledge on designing.
FS: Who are some of your clients?
SGCS: Mika Premium Gift Shop Sdn Bhd, Historia Heritage Resources, etc.
FS: What type of design work do you enjoy the most and why?
SGCS: I like simple design, futuristic design, and designer toys’ design works, because they make me learn humbly from all these designers.
FS: What are your future plans? What is next for you?
SGCS: I hope to get clients from different countries. Hopefully, clients from every part of the world will adopt my design one day.
FS: Do you work as a team, or do you develop your designs yourself?
SGCS: Most of the time, I am a lone ranger. I prefer to have an undisturbed space, so that I can complete my task independently. At the moment, I feel that I don’t need another designer in my studio. But in the long run, I still hope to expand my team. For that, I will continue to look out for new designers to join my team.
FS: Do you have any works-in-progress being designed that you would like to talk about?
SGCS: Currently, I am doing a job for Johor Tourism, and also a native product shop in my hometown. Once these works are completed, I will exhibit them on the competition, so that more people can appreciate my works.
FS: How can people contact you?
SGCS: I can be contacted via email and social media.
FS: Any other things you would like to cover that have not been covered in these questions?
SGCS: That’s all for now, thank you!
FS: Thank you for providing us with this opportunity to interview you.
A’ Design Award and Competitions grants rights to press members and bloggers to use parts of this interview. This interview is provided as it is; DesignPRWire and A' Design Award and Competitions cannot be held responsible for the answers given by participating designers.
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