I have been reading A LOT of design blogs in my spare time and have a ton of opinion on these so called “informational” blogs. First off, they’re not informational, they’re just sewage from people that don’t know what they’re talking about. Such as people that like to call themselves designers when they have absolutely no knowledge or background in art, let alone design. Being able to make a clipping path doesn’t constitute a designer. I take a lot of pride in being a professional Graphic Designer, yet everyone thinks they are one. This sickens me especially knowing all the time and effort I put into my work, and the history I have spent on mastering it.
I remember a discussion in class about whether you need an art background to be a designer. Hell YES you need a background in art, how will you know how the eye and mind functions when viewing a piece of art? How will you know where it all came from? I will use the Egyptian Hieroglyphics as an example not only because I am fascinated with their beliefs and history but because it is a valid statement; Dingbats have a close relation, no? Both are pictures used to represent a letter, sound or idea. That is a small example of how history has influenced Graphic Design, but knowing where all the modern ideas came from is extremely important.
I will talk again about these people that think they are designers, or can learn/do what I do in a matter of a few days. Listen people, I have been learning about design since I was 12, and I still don’t know everything there is to know and neither does any Designer. True Designers will be humble enough to admit, even with 25 years experience that they don’t know it all. The great thing about this field is that it is constantly changing to the point where we have to keep up with it to remain strong. To me, that’s fun and keeps it fresh and interesting.
Next are blogs that I’ve read saying that being able to draw extremely detailed pieces of everything is a necessity to being a successful Graphic Designer. I agree to an extent; I do think you need to have artistic talent and that you need to have a sketchbook handy to draw out your ideas before moving forward. But I do not think that you need to have extremely immaculate skills in drawing to be a success. I tend to draw better on the computer than on a piece of paper. Plus being a Graphic Designer isn’t just about print materials anymore. You can see a Craigslist ad that says, “NEED GRAPHIC DESIGNER FOR HIGH END JOB” click on it, and they want a web designer that can add media to their website from time to time. The title of Graphic Designer is so many things rolled into one: Print, Web, Animation, 3D and Video are all responsibilities. Of course you will never find one person that can do all those flawlessly but you have to be the right designer for the right job.
Lastly, people that think that being a Graphic Designer isn’t even a job. Then let me ask you…what am I and thousands of other people getting money to do? Why are there constant requests needing people like me? There will ALWAYS be a need for designers as long as there is life on Earth. Advertising will never go away, and no the computer is not what does the work it is merely a tool or medium as is a paintbrush or a camera. WE are telling THE COMPUTER what to do, not the other way around. If the computer sat there, would it be able to create ads that belong in Times Square? I mean, let’s be reasonable here…whoever believes that is completely ignorant or a lawyer or doctor. These people have no idea how hard it truly is when you’re actually on the job and asked to create something brand new and fresh everyday of your life. It’s not like I studied a bunch of manuals and history books and my knowledge is based on what I can or cannot remember from them. It’s based on my actual artistic talent, eye and creativity, what’s inside of me and my brain.
I could go on for a long time about this stuff but these are the main points I wanted to make because they are very important in my life.
