DJ Watts: capstone

Abstract

The artist's statement: Since early youth I have been hyper-visual. As far back as I can remember I have been deeply affected by what my eyes take in. Color, form, shape, texture, pattern, line; I have always been extremely tuned-in to these things at a level that is almost visceral. Creative activity has been a part of my life for as long as I can remember. Although I have always felt myself to be a "creative", it wasn't until my 30's that I discovered my love for design. I excelled in the arts throughout my formative years, and when I finished high school I continued to pursue art in college. I wasn't really sure what field or medium suited me most, I just knew that I loved creative problem solving. I chose sculpture as my major, but soon discovered that I lacked the discipline and maturity required to do well in school. I dropped out and years later, when I decided to return, I spent a lot of time soul-searching. I took aptitude and personality tests to help me choose the best career path. 'Graphic Designer' kept appearing in my results as a strong career choice. Looking back, it's strange that it took me so long to see this. One of my favorite creative activities as an adolescent was creating imaginary rock bands and designing logos for them. I had been a lover of typography even before I was a teenager. I'm not sure why I hadn't made the connection sooner, but once I did, I knew I'd found my creative path. Graphic design is everywhere; in every product you buy, every book, magazine and brochure you read and every app and website you use. It's in the videos and movies you watch. Graphic design is in your living room, it's in your bathroom, kitchen, and closet. It's in your transportation to and from your jobs and classrooms-which also contain elements of design. Graphic designers are even employed by city and state governments for projects like signage, bus routes and subway mapping. One cannot live through a full day in today's world without witnessing the work of graphic designers. In our ever-increasing visual culture, graphic design is a powerful medium. My love of design dovetails nicely with the fascination I have of mass media and the power of imagery. I have never considered myself an artist: the title never agreed with me. It's rather strange-almost like I knew at some level that I was a designer and not an artist. Many of my peers see design and art as synonymous. I do not. Design is deliberate. It serves utility and beauty simultaneously. Design must be discernable. Its purpose is to communicate something and that something needs to be received by its audience. "Artists" can play fast and loose with whatever meaning they see fit. Loose interpretation is practically the definition of 'art'. This is not the case with design. A designer must be very intentional about what they are trying to communicate. There is much less room for loose interpretation. If I've delivered a solution that my audience can't discern, then I have failed as a designer. That being said, there are many ways to solve design problems, and there are times when one can and should employ subtlety. But at the end of the day, design should solve a problem. Often the ideas that designers are trying to express are quite complex. It is a designer's job to simplify complex problems and deliver simple solutions. I find design as a whole to be deceptively simple. Delivering simplicity can be a very complicated endeavor, and designers know this best. Irreducible simplicity is what I strive for in my design. I want people to experience my design and think, "This is the way it is supposed to be. What other way could it be?"