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Interview with Anton Shlyonkin |
Home > Designer Interviews > Anton Shlyonkin |
Editor Frank Scott (FS) from DesignPRWire has interviewed designer Anton Shlyonkin (AS) for A’ Design Award and Competition. You can access the full profile of Anton Shlyonkin 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?
AS: I always wanted to be an artist, but I was told that you need A GIFT to become one. So I chose a second-best option - graphic design :). And I am pretty happy about it now.
FS: Can you tell us more about your company / design studio?
AS: «All my T» was founded as a way for me and my wife, who is a graphic designer too, to do some self-commissioned works. The first things we did were typefaces and t-shirts, hence the name. But now it's more than that and we do design for clients under that brand too.
FS: What is "design" for you?
AS: The design is an art of making art that serves a purpose, I think.
FS: What kinds of works do you like designing most?
AS: Type, lettering, creative concepts.
FS: What is your most favorite design, could you please tell more about it?
AS: I am not sure if I can think of something specific here. The best design for me is a design that works. But simple beautiful things are nice too
FS: What was the first thing you designed for a company?
AS: Funny enough, it was a rebranding for a bank
FS: What is your favorite material / platform / technology?
AS: I am really into laser cutting and 3d printing nowadays
FS: When do you feel the most creative?
AS: As a designer, I think it is really important to be creative all the time no matter what. We are professionals after all
FS: Which aspects of a design do you focus more during designing?
AS: I really like building a system that almost «designs» things for me by itself
FS: What kind of emotions do you feel when you design?
AS: I like my work so I am quite happy when I work
FS: What kind of emotions do you feel when your designs are realized?
AS: At that time I am already interested in something new, probably :). But it's a nice feeling, of cause
FS: What makes a design successful?
AS: If it fulfills its purpose
FS: When judging a design as good or bad, which aspects do you consider first?
AS: This thing is hard to generalize. Some basic design aspects as composition and colors and overall impact. But most important - is it serves its purpose.
FS: From your point of view, what are the responsibilities of a designer for society and environment?
AS: Design will save the world someday
FS: How do you think the "design field" is evolving? What is the future of design?
AS: Design is expanding and that is awesome. New ideas, new material, new technologies — I really like that
FS: When was your last exhibition and where was it? And when do you want to hold your next exhibition?
AS: My last exhibition was in Italy, in the home city of Dante Alighieri. Where was a poster exhibition about his Devine Comedy and my poster was a part of it
FS: Where does the design inspiration for your works come from? How do you feed your creativity? What are your sources of inspirations?
AS: Music is really important for me
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?
AS: My design style is really impermanent. I like to try new things. But overall I'm inclined to do «clean» and structural things
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?
AS: I live near Moscow, Russia. But now everything is so interlocked — thank you internet!
FS: How do you work with companies?
AS: Mostly through e-mails
FS: What are your suggestions to companies for working with a designer? How can companies select a good designer?
AS: Choose a professional and let him do his work
FS: Can you talk a little about your design process?
AS: Sketch, scan, vector, print, corrections, repeat (as necessary)
FS: What are 5 of your favorite design items at home?
AS: Macbook, Fender Stratocaster guitar, Blue Snowball microphone, iPhone and, let's say, a 3D printer
FS: Can you describe a day in your life?
AS: I work, I listen to music, I work some more and sometimes I eat
FS: Could you please share some pearls of wisdom for young designers? What are your suggestions to young, up and coming designers?
AS: I can share my all time favorite quotes about design: «Design is one» and «Less is more».
FS: From your perspective, what would you say are some positives and negatives of being a designer?
AS: I love what I do, so it's hard for me to highlight specific examples. Where are many positive things, art is a grate thing in itself. As for negatives — some people a hard to work with and as a designer you should work with a lot of different people all the time. But some people are amazing, so...
FS: What is your "golden rule" in design?
AS: Less is more, of cause
FS: What skills are most important for a designer?
AS: Observation
FS: Which tools do you use during design? What is inside your toolbox? Such as software, application, hardware, books, sources of inspiration etc.?
AS: Paper, pen (I don't like pencils), calligraphy brush, notebook, and some Adobe stuff. I also sometimes use a laser cutter for packaging prototypes.
FS: Designing can sometimes be a really time consuming task, how do you manage your time?
AS: I work quite fast, fortunately. As for a time management — I am not that good at it
FS: How long does it take to design an object from beginning to end?
AS: 1 hour, 1 day, 1 week, I month, 1 year - depending on the task. It's too hard to be more specific here
FS: What is the most frequently asked question to you, as a designer?
AS: What is graphic design?
FS: What was your most important job experience?
AS: Working on Sochi Olympics in 2014
FS: Who are some of your clients?
AS: I really like working with «small» clients — book authors, musicians, family businesses etc. But we work with bigger clients too — banks, insurance companies, ad agencies, government structures. For example, Guta bank, Rosgosstrah, PFR, Olymp stroy, Tasty help etc.
FS: What type of design work do you enjoy the most and why?
AS: Anything with a focus on type. Because I love type
FS: What are your future plans? What is next for you?
AS: I am working on one interesting project, but I can't tell you yet :)
FS: Do you work as a team, or do you develop your designs yourself?
AS: Some work I do by myself, but some — with my wife Anna Goncharova (she is a graphic designer too) as a graphic design duo «All my T»
FS: Do you have any works-in-progress being designed that you would like to talk about?
AS: No, it's a secret :)
FS: How can people contact you?
AS: My e-mail or behance profile
FS: Any other things you would like to cover that have not been covered in these questions?
AS: Thank you for your interest
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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