Category: Main

How To Get A Driver’s License

Every individual must at some point learn how to drive. It allows you to explore the world around you and get from one place to another much faster. Luckily, there are many driving schools and lessons for automatic and manual available for people of all ages. In this article, we’ll look at how easy it can be to find a driving school or lesson for you!

How to Get a Driver’s License

You need to take a few steps before getting your driver’s license. First, you need to make sure you’re eligible to drive. Next, you’ll need to take a driver’s education course and pass a written exam. Once you’ve done all that, you’ll be able to take your driving test and, if you pass, you’ll be issued a driver’s license!

drivers license

What are the Requirements?

To get a driver’s license, you must:

  • The minimum age depends on where you live, but it usually is 16 or 18
  • Have a valid learner’s permit
  • Complete a driver’s education course
  • Pass a road test

Which Type of Car Should I Drive?

The market is filled with cars, so choosing one that is right for you can be difficult. If you want a driver’s license, you’ll need to choose a car that the DMV approves. The following tips should help you select the right car for your driving test:

  • The car should be comfortable for you to drive. Holding the wheel should feel comfortable, and you should be able to reach all the controls without issue.
  • The car should be an appropriate size for the roads you’ll be driving on. If you’re planning on doing most of your driving in the city, then a smaller car might be a better option. However, a more extensive car might be better if you’re driving on highways or rural roads.
  • The car should have all the required safety features. This includes things like airbags, seatbelts, and antilock brakes.

After considering these factors, you should have a good idea of what type of car you should buy.

What is the Pass/Fail Rate?

The pass/fail rate for driver’s license can vary depending on the state or country in which you live. For example, the average pass/fail rate in the United States is around 50%. Depending on each state’s requirements and the difficulty of the driving test, this number may vary..

Where are the Best Places to Learn to Drive?

There are many different places where you can learn to drive, but not all of them are created equal. Consider these factors when choosing where to get your driver’s license.

driving lesson

One crucial factor is the quality of the instruction. You want to ensure that you’re learning from experienced and qualified instructors. Another factor to consider is the cost of the program. Some driving schools can be expensive, so you’ll want to find one that fits your budget.

Finally, you’ll also want to consider the location’s convenience. If you live in a rural area, it might not be convenient for you to drive into the city for driving lessons. Many online driving schools can offer you the same quality of instruction without having to leave your home.

Keep these factors in mind when choosing a driving school, and you’ll be sure to find the best place to get your license.

Money Saving Tips

Several things can help you save on your driver’s license:

  1. Consider taking a driver’s education course. These courses can help you learn the basics of driving and may even give you a discount on your insurance. If you are in Brisbane, consider Friendly Driving School. Click here for details.
  2. Be sure to shop around for the best rates on car insurance. Many websites allow you to compare rates from different companies.
  3. Be sure to take advantage of any discounts that you may be eligible for.

Many insurers offer discounts like good grades, safe driving habits, and more.

Why a Rear Vision Camera in Brisbane is Worth the Investment

Having a rear vision camera nowadays is a must; it enables your vehicle to see from its rear view in a larger scale without the hassle of looking in a rear mirror, it also makes an easier reverse motion, and it shows you the current rear view of your vehicle in a monitor in front of your display monitor in your dashboard. A great innovation which is futuristic and makes your driving experience a lot more easier.

reverse camera installation Brisbane

Nowadays, having this innovation is recommended for any new vehicle owners and is widely recognized as a “must have” for any new or even old vehicles. This is to add a safety feature when backing up your vehicle. A lot of drivers are finding ways to get this innovation to maximize their experience when driving, backing, and parking. 

Now, let’s begin discussing the benefits of this revolutionary technology: 

  • Improved Rear Visibility

All drivers know that having an additional safety feature for your vehicle is always better. This accessory has a lot of features, but the best feature we could think of is its ability to guide the driver when looking in mirrors, and the large display that it portrays when viewing the rear side of your vehicle. Just think of it as a large mirror that is equipped in the rear side of your car.

  • Widely Applicable

Maybe you’re driving a truck, or a SUV, or maybe you need a night vision rear camera. Choosing the best rear vision camera for your vehicle is very easy. There are a lot  of types of rear vision camera that may suit your needs and these are some examples of it; night vision for nightly needs, wireless for high-tech needs, full-screen and high definition, inexpensive for budget type drivers, and a whole lot more. You only need to identify what’s best for you and to weigh your needs as a driver.

  • Supporting Lines 

This innovation also comes with supporting lines which comes in with various colors to aid you when maneuvering, parking, and backing. These lines are commonly red and green. The red color acts as a help when turning the vehicle backwards, it indicates the turn needed when backing, and guides you slowly to make a perfect backing experience. The green color helps you to estimate the exact space needed when parking and maneuvering. These colors are always dependent on your steering angle depending on your steering wheel, it adjusts when your steering wheels adjust, and always keep in mind that these colors are always precise and are installed to help you in reversing your vehicle. 

  • Affordable and Easy to Install 

Yes, while this innovation is high tech as it can be, it is also very cheap and comes with an easy to install instructions manual. You can find these products on your own car dealers, online markets, and on your nearest car shop dealers. You can also let them install it on your vehicle or install it yourself. But we recommend having it installed by your vehicle provider; to have a warranty, lessen the labor, and to have a guaranteed future performance. Always make the installation of any accessories to your vehicle made by your provider.  

  • Precision, Quality, or Wireless  

In determining your needs when it comes to having a rear vision camera, you must first need to know how these specialities work. These are some of the examples of specialities and their benefits. When it comes to quality or high definition, you must choose a wired or circuit type of rear vision camera, this is because it offers a direct connection to the screen of your car and the quality and precision would be much better than a wireless connection. While a wireless offers a lot when it comes to installation in your vehicle.

Where Can I Find the Best Rear Vision Camera for My Vehicle? 

Choosing the best rear vision camera for your vehicle is the only crucial thing when having it, you must consider all of the aspects needed by your vehicle and driver, and deciding what’s best for you will guarantee your best experience when driving, backing, and parking. 

All drivers know that the hardest part of driving is when in reverse mode and when looking on a rear mirror only to notice that the view is restricted and hard to calculate, that is why this innovation is a must have on every vehicle, it may be due to; hard to park alleys, tight to fit parking spots, and a whole lot more struggles. 

If you’re looking for the most efficient reverse camera installation Brisbane has in the market, Rear Vision Systems QLD have a favourable reputation in the greater Brisbane community. Check out their website for more information.

Where Can I Go For More Information? 

We hope that this article helped you when having a rear vision camera; usage and its benefits. We also hoped that we helped you choose what the best accessory for your vehicle is. If you have any further questions, don’t hesitate to leave them in the comments. Our team will give you an answer as quickly as we can manage. 

What Australia’s Legislation Says About Safety Signage

Safety Signs Definition. Safety signs are visual and audio cues that warn employees about the presence of a potential hazard, usually at work settings. These signs can be installed on public places such as highways, schools, or private property for personal protection, security and other public safety reasons. There are a lot of reasons why you may want to install these signs, but one of the most common is workplace safety.

Unfortunately, accidents happen. The key to preventing them is ensuring that everyone is informed and cautious of the hazards they could potentially face. They happen every day, and while most accidents are minor, some serious ones happen every day. Workplace accidents happen every day, as well. The main goal of a workplace safety sign is to alert the employees to prevent such accidents from happening.

Why Are Safety Signs Important? 

Safety signs help employees avoid such accidents and thus help to prevent serious injuries. Such signs include warning signs for fire, heat, dangerous chemicals, electricity, gas, and other hazardous materials.

Fire, heat, and electric shock are the most common causes of accidents. For this reason, signs telling workers about the danger of these substances should be installed in the workplace. These signs include warning signs for fire, gas, and electrical shock, as well as emergency exit signs. These signs are usually visible to the employees, so they are easily read and understood by all.

Signs for dangerous chemicals or other hazardous substances should be placed in a place where they will be most useful. These signs should tell the employees about the dangers and hazards that these chemicals may cause, and also the consequences of using them. These signs are also useful in informing the employees about the risks of using certain chemical compounds or cleaning materials. Other signs may include warning signs for carbon monoxide, poison gas, or explosion. These signs can warn the employees about these risks, but they also inform them about the dangers of not using certain chemical substances or cleaning products.

What Are the Requirements of Safety Signage Installations?

With Australia’s Health and Safety signage requirements, the responsible officer needs to ensure that:

  • The messages of the sign is legible and clearly visible
  • The signs are located in an area that won’t become obscured
  • The signs don’t create a hazard after being installed

What Are the Different Types of Safety Signage? 

Warning signs like these are available in different designs and shapes. Still, they all have the same purpose: to give the employees information about the potential hazards, consequences, and dangers of using certain hazardous materials. Signs that can be easily installed in the workplace are safety signs, and they are also critical because they can help in preventing accidents.

Signage helps workers avoid these risks, and can be a great source of motivation in the workplace. Safety signs are also an excellent way to encourage employees to use appropriate tools and products to prevent accidents. Such accidents, as they can warn people about the hazards. Most of these warning signs do not cost a lot and can be easily installed by the employer.

How Do I Go About Installing Safety Signage on My Premise? 

When it comes to ensuring that your premise is installing the correct signage, you can’t cut corners. Every business is different and requires different types of safety signs. The good news is, there’s services available to design signs that will keep your business insured in the case of an emergency. Companies like Electro Cut Signs are experts in creating custom-designed safety signage for their clients. For any queries, give their team a call.

What Does the Law Say About Safety Signage?

Australia’s strict Workplace Health and Safety Policies enforce displaying signage in the presence of potential hazards is mandatory by law. Failure to display appropriate signage in the case of danger could cost site and venue managers thousands of dollars in fines, in addition to risking the physical wellbeing of those on their premises. Safety signs can be straightforward to install and use. Some of these signs can be installed by simply cutting down the boards of the walls, which can be placed inside the building. Other signs can be put outside the building. Signage can be used in various places, as well, including on top of doors and windows, and even in the hallway.

Where Can I Go For More Information on Safety Signage? 

If you’re looking for more information on safety signage, it never hurts to contact your local authorities. Every venue has different requirements for the signage they need to display. For example, bars and other restaurants are required by law to display liquor licensing certification. Thankfully, there is plenty of information online regarding the individual requirements of venue managers in accident prevention. Through a combination of your own research and listening to the advice of your local authorities, you’ll be able to ensure that your business is covered from front to back with the appropriate safety signage to keep your facilities fully insured. 

New Car Paint Protection Tips

You probably don’t realize it, but car paint protection is essential to protect your vehicle from damage and from wear and tear. There are a lot of great products out there, so if you’re looking for something, here are some suggestions for new car paint protection.

Over the years, car paint protection has been a big issue in the auto industry. What most people don’t realize is that new car paint protection systems can be purchased all over the place. You might even be surprised at how easy it is to get car paint protection, especially considering that we’re talking about a relatively new product.

A car paint protection system is generally a sealant that’s applied to the car’s exterior. When it’s applied to the surface, it forms a barrier between the paint and the elements, and it can help reduce the possibility of paint wear and tear and damage.

The problem with the new-car paint protection is that it’s all over the place, and it’s not the same for everyone. It doesn’t have to be either, and it might actually be quite difficult to find a perfect match. Before you jump into any kind of paint protection system, it’s important to do some research.

When you’re looking for a high-quality car paint protection system, make sure that you pick one that fits your needs perfectly. Your budget, for example, should be taken into account before you buy anything.

While you may want to spend a little bit more, there is a nice option to spend a little less and still get a great set of protection. That option is to find a car wash shop that specializes in selling cars.

Most car wash shops professional paint protection, and they often have several different options. They can offer a free consultation with a car wash technician, which can be a good way to find out what you need without paying for a consultation.

Some companies will also allow you to choose paint protection system that you want to use, which is a nice benefit. If you need a new car paint protection, then you will want to find a company that offers this option.

If you choose a new car paint protection, then make sure that you’re using the right sealant. Some sealants are better than others, so it’s important to make sure that you know what you’re getting.

If you’ve already decided that you need a new car paint protection, then you should know that it should last for many years. There’s no need to pay hundreds of dollars for a new car paint protection system, but you might be able to save money by using an older model instead.

It’s important to keep in mind that there are many different brands of car paint protection system. You may have to research a bit to find one that fits your needs perfectly.

With a little research, you should be able to find a car paint protection system that will fit your needs and your budget. Don’t hesitate to take advantage of new car paint protection, especially if you think you might need it in the future.

Street art is NOT vandalism

Street art was once considered vandalism. Seen by many in society and the art world as a menace, graffiti was stereotyped by hoodlums roaming around the street at night vandalizing property. Oh how times have changed.

Since the boom at the beginning of the eighties, street art is now one if not the most popular form of popular contemporary art.

Part of the criticism was drawn by the artistic class – the art gallery owners and attendees whose identities were entirely wrapped up in the classic exhibition.

What street art presented was something completely visceral, any in many ways punk in its philosophy and aesthetic.

First of all, their pieces of art were free. They were not owned by a gallery, nor did viewers have to pay to see them. They could view them whilst walking down the street. This expanded art beyond its usual stuffy means of a gallery, and opened up artistic expression to a wide range of the public who would never think of entering a gallery.

These large scale graffiti pieces which used entire factory walls as their canvas. The artist was no longer restricted by the canvas.

The art also came to represent the urbanisation and decay from the mid-seventies. As industries around the Western world began to fall into decline, so the explosion in graffiti art happened. The youth no longer spent most of their days in work, because there was simply no work to go to. If you look around at cities with the most graffiti have experienced masses of urban transformation – Berlin, Prague and most recently Athens. As Greece has been plunged into economic hardship, so has the increase in graffiti art taken hold.

Today, the most famous artist has made his name from his street art: Banksy. His pieces are known worldwide – from his stencil graffiti on the Gaza strip, to the simple pieces he has created in his home town of Bristol. Banksy has become a brand in his own right, releasing a feature length film, publishing a book and whole other host of side-hustles.

Banksy has even faced criticism from within the street art culture, being challenged by rivals for being commercial and not true graffiti due to his almost exclusive use of stencils in his art work.

Arguably as a result of Banksy, graffiti has now come full circle. Where it was once shunned, the doors have now open and street art pieces of all kind have become a staple of the gallery.

Whether its Banksy opening his own unique brand of art to the masses, or a graffiti artist for hire being commissioned to draw pieces for a particular exhibition. The viciousness that graffiti and street art once had has almost entirely disappeared. It’s safe to say that when your grandparents know who Banksy is, you can no longer consider it an ‘underground culture’.

This puts us at an interesting cross-roads for the future of contemporary street art. As the world becomes more divided by politics and ideology, what outlet will the artistic youth use to express themselves?

The future is uncertain, but whatever it becomes it will guarantee to disrupt.…

Trampoline

FROM COLLECTIVE EIGHT

Under the studio name of Trampoline, Melbourne-based art director Sean Hogan creates graphic design work for clients across the globe. From experimental album packaging for British pop giants Duran Duran to a compelling visual card game for graphic designers, Hogan’s client work spans from branding to large-scale graphic installations. He also busies himself on numerous thought-provoking self-initiated projects, which he says are imperative to the evolution of his practice. Collective chats with Hogan about Trampoline’s extensive portfolio, and asks him how his work and his process have progressed over the years.

What was the idea behind establishing your studio? What motivates your work? 

I first started Trampoline the day after I left university with two of my classmates. Like a lot of graduates, we thought we could change the world of design and we were very experimental. However, it wasn’t long before we realised we lacked the business knowledge needed to run a successful studio. So we all got work in other studios so we could build up the experience needed and continued our Trampoline work after hours.

My two friends ended up leaving Trampoline to pursue other avenues of design, but I decided to keep the studio going and was then approached by UK design collective Tomato to work with them on the Federation Square project. I worked on that project for nearly five years and once it was finished went back to Trampoline with a much more solid idea of the business of design, work ethic and design knowledge.

In those early years I was very interested in the idea of chaos and the overlapping of forms to communicate an idea. ‘Don’t confuse legibility with communication’ was one of my mantras. This idea was fine for my design theories but was hard to translate into a foundation for the business and client work.

As time has gone on I’ve become much more interested in how you can visually communicate an idea with as little as possible. So in a sense I’ve transitioned from chaos to minimalism.

Has it been a conscious decision to focus on print in your work?

I think you naturally gravitate to what you like. I have always loved print and I like to design for print. I love the smell of the ink and playing with the endless possibilities of the printing process. For me print isn’t just the output of your design, it’s an integral process of forming and informing your design. I have done a lot of work that ends up on the web and it’s just not as satisfying for me as physically holding a beautifully printed poster or book.

In a world that is more and more dominated by screen culture, print is becoming a much more interesting and considered process. Letterpress, foils, varnishes and specialist finishes are adding a tactile experience that the screen can’t. This is why print will never die.

Colour seems to be something you have strong understanding of in your design, can you share with us how this element, in your work, has evolved?

Colour is such an interesting topic. It’s quite intangible like listening to music. Colour is hard to pin down; it can affect you on an emotional and psychological level.

I mentioned earlier about moving towards a minimalist aesthetic and philosophy and part of this process has been the interrogation of colour. I use colour as a tool as a way of communicating an idea or emotion. I think artists like Mark Rothko or James Turrell use colour in the same way.

I had some artwork on exhibition many years ago and the main response from people was how much they loved the colour. They weren’t too concerned about the imagery in the works or the meaning, they only connected with the colour. I found this really interesting. Of course, colour is quite an abstract notion. Everyone will view and respond to colours in their own unique way and this brings about a sense of ambiguity. This interests me immensely especially when applied to visual communication. What happens when graphic design is ambiguous?

When I first went overseas and came back to Australia I realised just how bright, harsh and vivid our light is here. I have wondered if this has had an impact on the way I view and use colour. I often take a Pantone swatch book out on walks to play with colour combinations. Have you ever tried to map all the colour combinations on a gum tree? It’s quite a task.

How important are self-initiated projects to your practice how do they impact upon your client work? 

Self-initiated projects are integral to my development as a designer and artist. I have always generated my own projects outside of my client work and it is essential – it allows me a space to develop my own thoughts and ideas, helps me grow, and exercise my design and thought muscles. Hopefully the more I do this the more I improve. I think time for research and development is also really important. I’m of the opinion that you can never learn too much and I’m constantly visiting Melbourne art galleries and museums, watching films, listening to music, reading and trying to learn as much as possible across a broad range of subjects.

Self-initiated projects should always be fun. The idea of ‘play’ is underrated and I consider it an absolute must. Being unburdened from all the restrictions and considerations that often come with running a studio or designing for a client, allows me to experiment with ideas and discover new techniques. I often use the outcome of these experiments in client work.

I must say it goes the other way as well, and I may have an idea triggered by client work that I will use in my own projects. Both of these ways of working are constantly connecting and informing each other.

My latest project Untitled Geometries is a good example of this. This series seeks to subvert our instinctive understanding of visual codification by disrupting meaning and challenging presumption. What appears as studies in formalism: colour, space, line, volume, mass, balance, composition and scale are actually typographic in nature. Using a well-known and established visual code that represents letters of the alphabet, these works can be read as words if you have the key to decipher the code.

The colours and compositions are deliberately harmonious and pleasing to the eye, which is the antithesis of the words: obscenities intended to offend, to create discord. This paradox creates an interesting friction between what the eye sees and decodes as meaning and the true meaning of the works, hidden in full view, communicating from behind the façade.

We’d be thrilled to hear about your work on the cover art for Duran Duran’s Astronaut, and the collaborations involved in this project? Also, how collaborative is your practice?

Surprisingly, I don’t collaborate with that many other creatives. I find that true collaboration works when all parties bring something unique to the table. There is no point in me working with other graphic designers, as we both do the same things. I do work with photographers on occasion (and where needed) but I am much more interested in trying to generate alternative processes to create imagery or designs.

With Duran Duran’s album Astronaut, John Warwicker from Tomato secured the design of all artwork relating to the album.

He selected a series of creatives from around the world and our brief was to supply him with any kind of artistic bits and pieces we had produced: illustrations, photos, patterns and mark makings were all supplied to him, which he combined and used to create the artwork for the album, singles, booklets etc.

This was a wonderful, unusual, remote collaboration with people from all over the world who had never met. A few months after I had sent John my contributions I was in the city and walked past a music store and the whole place was decked out in the album artwork. It was quite a trip to see my mark making experiments (some scanned from my small moleskinenotebooks) on the cover of a Duran Duran album.

These interactions all lead to knowledge and experience. Collaborations are also about connecting with people and building your own network. You learn who you can trust, rely on and work with well.

Your recent project for Desktop was the Mindset card series, it’s a fantastic concept, can you share with us the process behind the cards, and what the future plans for the project are – will you be commercialising the project? How how they been received?

I was set the challenge by Desktop to create something that could change human behaviour or thinking. I was only given only two weeks to find a solution, produce an outcome, record case studies and document the entire process as an essay. It was a very tight time frame considering printing of the cards alone took a whole week.

In terms of the concept, I knew I had to create something I was interested in and understood – there was no time for research. I am a fan of Oblique Strategies by Brian Eno and Peter Schmidt and this was the catalyst for developing a set of cards that you could play with to instigate a change in your own thought patterns.

As I developed the cards I realised that by playing with only colour and form (non-representational imagery) it allowed for an openness within the set of guidelines that I wanted. The choice to make them physical cards was also a consideration, as I wanted it to be a tactile experience – to get off the screen and use your hands.

Instructing users to randomly select only 12 cards out of the deck of 40 and arranging (or designing) them in a pleasing manner, achieved a balance between direction and freedom, allowing the user to consider a problem and have fun at the same time.  Instead of looking for the ‘right answer’, the focus became about balance, harmony and relationships between the cards, and from what I observed in the case studies, everybody dealt with these elements in their own unique manner.

When you become engaged in this kind of problem it frees the mind to perhaps solve other problems or think about things in a different way. It’s a technique I often use when designing – to give myself restrictions to push my thought processes into alternate areas.

The response from everyone who has played the cards has been incredibly positive and I have had a lot of requests as to when they will be available, which made me consider turning the prototype into a product. I have had some external interest and am in the middle of preparing a proposal for this, but I’m also developing a strategy to produce a small run myself if this doesn’t come through.

We are interested in the Noise in My Head award winning book you designed, how did that project come together?

I have worked with Melbourne Books for a number of years, designing publications for RMIT that they published, and have built a great working relationship with them

They called to say they had a manuscript for a book they thought I might be interested in designing. Once I read it, I was in. Author Jimi Kritzler compiled a series of interviews with fifty of Australia’s most innovative and significant bands and artists currently at the creative peak of their careers.

I loved that Jimi, a musician himself, was part of the scene, so the interviews and stories felt real, raw, honest and often brutal.  The fact that this wasn’t a retrospective book but a reflection of what was current also interested me greatly.

The difficulty in designing this book was how to represent a variety of bands, appeal to their visually literate fans and also be enticing for newcomers.  I convinced the publisher to …

Confetti

Can you tell me about your background?

Ok well my story is relatively short I suppose. I haven’t been in the industry for all that long (relatively speaking) and I certainly haven’t done a stint overseas under the direction of a high flying, big shot, high-net worth creative director or anything like that. I guess I’ve been bluffing my way through it all since the day I arrived for my uni interview at RMIT seven years ago. And it worked. At the end of the interview they said I’d be too bored with first year and plonked me straight in to second. I think ‘bluffing’ gets such a bad wrap these days but it’s such a good way to throw yourself in the deep end and thats a good place to be. And it’s so much easier than you think, you’ll surprise yourself – like the time my friend surprised herself by farting at a job interview.

Any who, By the time I was doing my honours year, I had a decent job as Art Director for a good magazine, as well as a long list of freelance projects under my belt. I wrote a thesis on foreign writing systems and experimental typography somewhere in there too. It was a busy time. I got addicted to the deep end after that so after I graduated I had a chat to my long time pal, Kevvy Mac, who was kicking goals literally and metaphorically, and Confetti was born. That was about three years ago. Since then we’ve found ourselves bluffing a little less each day. Or maybe I’m just getting used to it. Either way I reckon it’s goooood times.

Can you tell me about your design ethos? What rules do you live by when designing?

This one is always tough because it’s hard to apply the same set of rules to every brief. The context changes every time. In this way we could say one of our rules is to stay liquid. As in, be open to adapt and change with the needs of each project. Get inside the head of each client to understand their needs and who they need to speak to. Then gather all this information and throw it around in your head or in the air or in your dog’s bowl or in your aunty’s over-sized hat until you create something. For Confetti, this “something” should never ever be lazy. We try to push every brief in some direction that places it beyond what’s expected. It’s not always possible and it doesn’t always happen but when it does it’s magic and that’s what we’re chasing. So yeah, stay liquid and chase the magic. I’m gonna try and convince Kev to get some t-shirts made of that. Or maybe some stubby holders. Maybe throw an illustration of a crystal in there and sell it to T-bar for 50 schmackers.

How do you collaborate as a team?

We try to make sure the studio feels like a big squash court of multiple little tiny bouncing idea balls at all times. Speaking of convoluted metaphors that don’t work, we have these floating air plants in the Melbourne website design studio that are in the shape of a tear drop or an idea light bulb (kinda) and we hang them above our heads at our desks so it always kinda looks like you have an idea. Anyway, I think some of our best ideas have come about in discussion between overzealous mouthfuls of the chicken parma we get at the pub around the corner. That one’s not a joke.

We’ve also got a great team and network of ridiculously talented developers and suppliers who are always on the same page. This way we can make sure the project is executed in the best possible way from idea conception right through to its application across all touch points. There’s no point having a juicy concept that just gets diluted as it’s applied. You need the right team to keep the concept potent and on-point every time it’s printed/coded/3D printed/smelt/touched/hung/thrown/etc./etc.

As a designer, you often have to juggle creativity with client interests – how do you collaborate with a client to deliver the best possible result for both parties? How do you stay in control of your design DNA?

We’ve been very lucky with our clients (give or take a couple of duds). It’s all about trust. They’ve got to trust you and you’ve got to trust you. The second a client senses that you doubt yourself it’s all over and they’ll pick your concept to pieces and feed it to their pure bred afghan hound. Google that dog. We get really excited when we have a good idea and when the client senses that they just let us do anything. I think clients love to see that you’re excited about their business and that you’re, to some degree, emotionally invested in it. It fills them with confidence. I get this weird thing where if I’m really pumped about an idea while I’m presenting it, I get these little pricks in the back of my neck. It’s called the ‘prickle zone’ and I’ve had a 100% success rate when presenting while in the P Zone.

You were a finalist in the Premiers Design Awards for your work for Spilt Milk – can you tell me a bit about that? Why do you think there was so much appreciation for your project?

The phrase “Spilt Milk” has a very obvious and literal connotation, so the challenge was going to be to create something unique yet concise out of that. I think we achieved that. It’s a simple typographic metaphor without actually directly referencing any milk itself. Also, by creating the variations it starts to become a visual language that is adaptable based on it’s application whilst still always being easily recognisable. The variations also touch on the unpredictability of the spill which i think resonated with people.

Since you started the studio in 2012, how has the work you produce changed? Has your design aesthetic evolved or have you seen it stay the same over the years?

Well your work is always going to be in some way an extension of yourself. I mean, you created it so why shouldn’t it be? We are always growing and changing, learning new things, letting go of old things (hopefully). This all influences your work. I think the work you create is a product of what you learn and see. And I don’t necessarily mean ‘see’ in the context of design and art. Without getting too deep, I’m talking more about experiences that might make you ‘see’ things in a new light which can affect your whole design process whether you know it or not. You multiply this theory across all the people working on a project and you’re definitely going to see some degree of change over the years. Change is good. Otherwise we’d all still be those little fish creatures with stumps for legs still trying to crawl out of the water.

Any projects youre particularly proud of? Why?

I liked Spilt Milk. That was a goodun. I guess I’m proud of different projects for different reasons. The Maha rebrand was a huge project. So much research went into that logo. I think I read everything short of the quran itself to get a feel for arabic script. It took such a ridiculously long time to draw up. There are also some projects on the go at the moment that I’m looking forward to seeing in the real world too.

Im not sure if Im meant to ask this question, but whats your favourite genre of work? What kind of projects do you love getting involved with?

Restaurants are good because of the food. I reckon I ate my weight in slow roasted lamb over the course of the Maha rebrand. And that lamb cooks for at least eight hours before landing on your plate. It’s so good. In terms of the work itself it’s hard to say. I like having a mix of work on. I love editorial projects but if we were exclusively running magazine projects for two months I’d be itching for some branding and vice versa. I feel like music packaging is good to throw in the mix too because it doesn’t necessarily follow the same rules as other work. There is an opportunity there to be more expressive with looser, more abstract concepts. Im sorry, I’ve dodged your question Martyna. The answer is all of it at once.  Forgive me.

Whats the thing that sticks with you most from design school/whats the best bit of advice you can give our students reading this?

Get in the deep end.