Jonathan's Expert Q+A
If you weren't a designer, what would you be? A kite surfer or dolphin - I'm a water baby.
Do you have a pet project - a side business or a charity to which you donate time or services?
I am a trustee of the Haller Foundation a charity that provides and promotes a model for economic development in developing countries that is sustainable and environmentally sound. The Haller Foundation's work is based on the techniques and environmentalist Dr Rene Haller, a UNEP Global Laureate, known for his restoration of cement quarries in Kenya. The principles that Haller puts into place if adopted on a larger scale could transform the lives of millions of people living in rural poverty. http://www.haller.org.uk/
Describe you favorite Self Promotion - did it work?
Well, it was what gave me my first break in design. In 1984 as an art school graduate joining the thousands of other students looking for a first step into design, I decided to buck the (very little) careers advice I was given about doing a conventional resume. I decided that I needed to create an idea that would stick around on a Creative Directors desk. I cringe looking back on it, but I decided to create a brand called 'Fords Creative Pot Pourri'. It was an elegant tin box which I filled with dried flowers and so on and I designed a leaflet about me which folded neatly into the lid. I've still got it somewhere and the graphics are so 80's pop record label! Anyway I made and mailed it to the top 5 only design firms of the time, making sure I knew exactly who I was sending it too, waited, then called......
What was your first job in the design field?
So it worked! I called Glenn Tutssell the Creative Director of Michael Peters and Partners, the design company of the decade that was defining packaging and brand design then as it is now. He said that the pot pourri had got his attention and could I kindly come and remove it! I went for an interview got on well and I was asked back a few days later to do an internship/trial. I couldn't believe it when they paid me too, and after a few weeks I was full time. Without doubt Michael Peters the man, his company, Glenn and the team of such hugely talented people, and the experiences I got in the 80's and early 90's were the biggest inspiration in my career and helped shape me as a designer and what I have put into Pearlfisher. (By the way Glenn told me recently he still has that Pot Pourri Tin somewhere!).
Can you tell us a little more about your conference topic? What personal or professional experiences led you to this topic?
Well, I've been to quite a few conferences where designers go ponderously through their work, that we've all already seen online and heard about before. It's OK if it's brand new stuff but in today's age of online accessibility I find that a bit old school and in the worst cases, egotistical if it is all about them saying look at me me me. I always try to give something new to a design audience, so I decided that as I'm very lucky to have inspirational idea driven people all around me, who make the Pearlfisher culture what it is, I want to try and get that culture across. I want to show people our behavior which is independent, sometimes daring, risky and whacky. I'll try and show how that manifests itself in a robust creative spirit, that a lot of the time bonds us into a winning team. Plus a few creative humdingers that went spectacularly wrong! Not for the feint hearted. He heh......