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Expressive Art vs. Commercial Design
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As a professional multimedia designer for over 20 years, I've always continued to make art in my personal time. I love the balance of creating visual communications for specific client goals and then creating personal art just for fun, release, and self-expression.
Both disciplines are a form of visual communications, but they are also two very different methods with different goals and approaches.
However both activities utilize the same principles of composition such as hierarchy, movement, balance, contrast, space, value, and texture.
Expressive Art
Abstract watercolor "Harmony" painted at a sidewalk cafe in Manhattan on a crisp fall Saturday afternoon, listening to ethereal upbeat music.
Commercial Design
Social media graphics & video for the Instagram launch of a new Chicago workplace destination.
Audience: High-tech and leading edge companies looking to scale up their environment for the next generation of thinkers, doers, and difference makers.
Expressive Art vs. Commercial Design
…
As a professional multimedia designer for over 20 years, I've always continued to make art in my personal time. I love the balance of creating visual communications for specific client goals and then creating personal art just for fun, release, and self-expression.
Both disciplines are a form of visual communications, but they are also two very different methods with different goals and approaches.
However both activities utilize the same principles of composition such as hierarchy, movement, balance, contrast, space, value, and texture.
Design skills integrate into my paintings, and painting skills integrate into my professional design work.
"Harmony" painted at a sidewalk cafe in Manhattan on a crisp fall Saturday, listening to ethereal upbeat music.
Expressive Art is a fearless, limitless exploration of creating for sheer fun, self-expression, balancing the soul, and the processing of emotions.
For me when making art, there is no conscious thinking of what the outcome will be. It's simply a way to take a creative break from the massive amounts of information we process every day. Not to mention the daily stresses that are part of life.
What I love about expressive art is that it is an experience purely for the sake of creating, relaxing, and self-expression. Time stands still and the brain is cleared of a myriad of bouncing thoughts. There is no approval process from anyone. You are free to explore in any direction for any amount of time.
It's like this! Artist credit: Asaf Hanuka
Commercial Design is creating an impactful aesthetic within defined parameters which visualize and deliver a specific message for an intended audience.
It requires discussion and listening, researching, concept development, and a thorough understanding of the goals. The visuals are approached in a way that strategically match the copywriting and compositionally reflect the right message.
What I love about commercial design is the challenge of being creative within boundaries, and the opportunity to learn about different organizations and the people that drive them forward. Then bringing value to them by finding the right creative visual solution to help accomplish their goals.
Social media graphics & video for the Instagram launch of a new Chicago workplace destination.
Audience: High-tech and leading edge companies looking to scale up their environment for the next generation of thinkers, doers, and difference makers.
Why Make Abstract Art?
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What's great about abstract art and subconscious drawing or doodling is that it removes the pressure of replicating something that already exists.
It gives you permission to just play and have fun! You don't need a degree in fine art or have "mastery" of a specific medium to get started. Pick up a few tools and make marks whenever you have a few minutes. You'll figure out composition, mediums and tools as you experiment while having the fun of expressive art right away.
These are some of my early studies of experimenting with subconscious doodling and abstract calligraphy art.
In the late 1990's I worked as a full-time creative manager and lettering artist in the greeting card industry.
During corporate meetings I was fidgety, but discovered that doodling with abstract marks actually helped me to focus.
The doodles gave me quick visual references that helped me to process and retain the information. And because I was thinking more analytically about workflow process and "corporate-y" things while doodling, the marks moved differently than when I was drawing at home or at a park...and sometimes better!
Inspired by this, I began inventing and documenting different art prompts for this switch-thinking creative-flow art method which evolved into my “subconscious abstraction” art workshops that I teach now.
Examples of doodles and notes during meetings and phone calls from different time periods.
Sometimes doodling can lead to a new painting, or turn into a design concept for a graphic, exhibit structure, or even a logo and brand identity.
Throughout my design career I've worked in different industries in a variety of company settings and have always integrated doodles into my notes.
This is an example of a notebook thumbnail sketch that I turned into company branding for KUDO, an SaaS multilingual meeting platform.
KUDO was named one of TIME's top 100 inventions of 2021 for their virtual meeting app and impeccable roster of professional interpreters.
Commercial Portfolio
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What I love about commercial design is creating impactful visuals through an empathic and strategic design process that accomplishes the client's goals.
Creating a multimedia campaign that visualizes a specific message for an intended audience while working within defined parameters such as budgets, deadlines, and brand guides is a whole other level of creativity and fun challenge.
The process and goals are different from abstract painting, but the same fundamentals of building successful visuals are involved such as hierarchy, contrast, balance, movement, and color theory.
Design skills integrate into my paintings, and painting skills integrate into my professional design work.
Throughout my professional creative career, I've worked with a wide variety of industries including:
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Greeting cards and stationery
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Audio/video technology
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Book publishers
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Law firms
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Real estate corporations
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Museums and galleries
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Utilities and energy
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Construction
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Non-profit foundations
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Civil Engineering
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Tech/SaaS startups & developers
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Hospitality and tourism
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Fashion
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Non-profit foundations
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Financial firms
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Sports
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Rideshare transportation
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Health and wellness
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Public speaking
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Education
New York Fashion Week: On-site Event Custom Calligraphy
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As long-time sponsor of NY Fashion Week, Papyrus® and I teamed up to provide custom calligraphy notecard gifts for guests, and was featured on "The Wardrobes" Lifestyle Blog.
Definitely a career highlight! This was an awesome experience not only for participating in such a prestigious event, but also for taking a break from the computer, meeting interesting people, and bringing custom hand-lettered inspirations to their day.
Live Stream Production, Motion Graphics, & Banners
DELIVERABLES:
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Personal challenge project of of live-streaming my art process on Twitch
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Motion graphics for "stream starting soon" video
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Home channel banner design with custom hand-lettering
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Live broadcasting tech gear setup included 3 video cameras, Elgato stream deck, shotgun microphone, and curated lighting
INDUSTRY: Broadcasting
