Interview with @designinterview10q by @archiviodimario. In this moment, while everything is stopping, graphic designer Fabio Mario Rizzotti, the creator of Design Interview 1Q, wants to talk about design. Therefore he invites experts for an interview, trying to understand which are their philosophies that we usually admire and we take inspiration by. The interviews are based on 10 questions with topics like the essence of design, education, future, design process, perfection, internet, and others.
Mario had and will have guests such as: PaulaScher, @martens__martens, @studiomut, @erik_brandt, @heystudio, @studiodumbar, @anthonyburrill and many others. It’s amazing that all these great designers are joining and supporting this project. The design world needs to be ready tomorrow to start all over again, and maybe with a different perspective of the world and of what design is. 🙏🏻 Photo by @madsteglers 🌱
Instagram Live Session during Corona quarantine Times for for Two Pages project
It's Nice That – International Womxn’s Day
It’s Nice That celebrated International Womxn’s Day by finding out who some of their favourite women and non-binary creatives’ very own favourites were, collated together in a list of 100 brilliant creatives to be inspired by. They picked 10 women and I am so honored to be included in their selection. Read more here: https://www.itsnicethat.com/features/100-womxn-and-non-binary-creatives-to-be-inspired-by-international-womxns-day-090320
This year we’re celebrating International Womxn’s Day by finding out who some of our favourite women and non-binary creatives’ very own favourites are, collated together in a list of 100 brilliant creatives to be inspired by.
For the past few years, we have celebrated International Womxn’s Day by dedicating It’s Nice That to championing womxn working in the creative industries and the incredible breadth of work that they produce. In the process, we’ve investigated crossing the gender divide in textiles, discussed why there’s a lack of womxn in animation and heard from several new mums returning to work after maternity leave. We’ve also chatted to the likes of Anne Lund, Nadia Lee Cohen, Malika Favre, Natasha Jen, Tea Uglow and Joana Choumali, and Yumna Al-Arashi.
However, this year we decided to focus all our efforts into championing as many voices as possible in one place, collating 100 womxn and non-binary creatives to be inspired by this International Womxn’s Day and beyond.
To do this, we got in touch with ten creatives whose work, process and outlook we admire in order to find out which womxn and non-binary creatives working today keep them inspired. The following list is a mix of illustrators, stylists, comedians, activists, photographers and designers, each of whom represents what it means to be a womxn in the creative industry today: nuanced, empowering, hilarious, smart, ridiculously talented, and everything in between.
Next time you’re looking for a creative to commission, a speaker at your conference or someone to interview, we hope this list will be a valuable resource and will stop our industry falling on the usual names – let’s not forget that the UK creative industry alone remains 60 per cent male and 90 per cent white. We have discovered so many new names through this process and hope you do too.
Stephanie Specht
Belgian graphic designer Stephanie Specht runs Studio Specht, a design practice with a focus on brand identity, illustration and book design.
Working as a graphic designer to much acclaim over the past decade is Stephanie Specht, a Belgian designer with an art direction eye we absolutely adore. Rich and varied in her use of colour, typography and playful layouts, each project of Stephanie’s is somehow even better than the last – all because of her unique creative intuition.
Choosing her fellow graphic design peers as her creative womxn picks, the first is Crystal Zapata, a designer based in Chicago who, despite having only met her once, “I liked her a lot,” she says. “She was passing by Antwerp and since we only knew each other through Instagram, we thought it’d be great to meet up in person. We had a coffee and a super nice talk.” Ever since Stephanie has watched Crystal grow as a designer in style, admiring from afar: “She’s so free in her work,” she continues, “something I also really find important: to be able to renew, reinvent yourself all the time. Not an easy thing these days as a designer, but she’s good at it and it inspires me!”
Another designer is Sara De Bondt, who Stephanie has always admired and “even though I don’t know her personally that well, Sara played a big role in my life,” she tells It’s Nice That. Back in 2016 Sara advised Kali Nikitas, the chair of communication arts and founding chair of the MFA graphic design program at Otis College of Art, to visit Stephanie’s studio. “After that, Kali invited me twice to come to Otis for a residency, where I met some of the other female designers on my list: Tanya Rubbak, All the Way To Paris and Hezin O. I’m grateful for all these beautiful connections!”
Stephanie’s list in full:
Graphic designer Crystal Zapata
Antwerp neighbour and designer Ines Cox
Design educator Kali Nikitas
Designer Tanya Rubbak
Tanja and Petra from design studio All the Way to Paris
Designer Sigrid Calon
Designer Sara De Bondt
Type designer Charlotte Rohde
Her colleague and designer Ine Meganck
Designer Hezin O
Lecture about Anne Tyng – March 6, 2020 – Princeton University School of Architecture
Some snippets of a lecture that I designed for and put together with Sigrid Adriaenssens (PhD—Associate Professor Civil and Environmental Engineering, Princeton University) about the transformation and geometry in architect Anne Tyng’s work! This is part of the 2020 Women in Design and Architecture Conference at Princeton University School of Architecture. The work Sigrid will be presenting tomorrow, arose out of a conversation we had a few weeks ago. We are also working on a publication that will be published later this year. The event is free and open to the public! Go see her!
About the 2020 Women in Design and Architecture Conference:
This annual conference celebrates the work and legacy of a pivotal female architect or designer with contributions from international historians and scholars, in addition to artists, curators, and practitioners. This year it’s about Anne Tyng. Through independent projects, in addition to her work with architects Louis Kahn and Pier Luigi Nervi, Tyng explored geometry as it relates to natural form and construction. She approached design as a process and profession through teaching and writing, addressing the social, psychological, and experiential dynamics of creativity and collaboration; her work has influenced other practitioners as well as models of practice.
Specht Notes Forms at Printed Matter in New York
Specht Notes Forms book is now for sale at Printed Matter in New York. https://www.printedmatter.org/catalog/55871
Specht Notes Forms at Counter-Print
My book #spechtnotesforms is available in the U.K via @counterprintbooks 🧡
https://www.counter-print.co.uk/collections/all-books/products/specht-notes-forms
This is a first edition of 100 copies — photos below by Counter Print — Books also for sale in Antwerp at @copyrightbookshop and soon in the U.S via @drawdownbooks @printedmatterinc — Few copies also available on my webshop. 🍊🟠
This is (was) Talking Letterheads
Some photos of the event last Saturday.
Tune in Phantom Radio (91.0 FM) or drop by the Design Museum’s Vitrine space (Drabstraat) for a marathon of radio interviews with contemporary Belgian graphic designers, hosted by Gerard Herman & Dylan Belgrado. Gerard Herman is an artist based in Antwerp who creates installations, animation films, soundscapes and printed matter. Phantom Radio is a nomadic radio station by Ine Meganck and Valentijn Goethals, originally conceived in collaboration with Paul Elliman as an unconventional space for students, designers, musicians and artists to parasitize the airwaves together. Ine Meganck is a graphic designer and Valentijn Goethals is an artist and artistic director of Kunsthal Gent.
Participating designers: Atelier Brenda, atelier Haegeman Temmerman, Paul Boudens, Geoffrey Brusatto, Goda Budvytytė, Michaël Bussaer & Jef Cuypers, Ines Cox, D-E-A-L, Sara De Bondt, Manuela Dechamps Otamendi, Luc Derycke, Thomas Desmet, Jan & Randoald, Mads Freund Brunse, Loraine Furter, Tom Hautekiet, Ward Heirwegh, Will Holder, Oliver Ibsen, Alexis Jacob, Inge Ketelers, Joris Kritis, Roxanne Maillet, Ine Meganck & Chloé D’hauwe, Julie Peeters, Josse Pyl, Bas Rogiers, Ronny & Johny, ruttens-wille, Amina Saâdi, Specht Studio, Triangle Books, Caroline Wolewinski
This is Talking Letterheads
Tune in Phantom Radio (91.0 FM) or drop by the Design Museum’s Vitrine space (Drabstraat) for a marathon of radio interviews with contemporary Belgian graphic designers, hosted by Gerard Herman & Dylan Belgrado. Gerard Herman is an artist based in Antwerp who creates installations, animation films, soundscapes and printed matter. Phantom Radio is a nomadic radio station by Ine Meganck and Valentijn Goethals, originally conceived in collaboration with Paul Elliman as an unconventional space for students, designers, musicians and artists to parasitize the airwaves together. Ine Meganck is a graphic designer and Valentijn Goethals is an artist and artistic director of Kunsthal Gent.
Participating designers: Atelier Brenda, atelier Haegeman Temmerman, Paul Boudens, Geoffrey Brusatto, Goda Budvytytė, Michaël Bussaer & Jef Cuypers, Ines Cox, D-E-A-L, Sara De Bondt, Manuela Dechamps Otamendi, Luc Derycke, Thomas Desmet, Jan & Randoald, Mads Freund Brunse, Loraine Furter, Tom Hautekiet, Ward Heirwegh, Will Holder, Oliver Ibsen, Alexis Jacob, Inge Ketelers, Joris Kritis, Roxanne Maillet, Ine Meganck & Chloé D’hauwe, Julie Peeters, Josse Pyl, Bas Rogiers, Ronny & Johny, ruttens-wille, Amina Saâdi, Specht Studio, Triangle Books, Caroline Wolewinski
Teaching typography (Graphic Design, English BA1 and BA3) at the Ryal Academy of Fine Arts Antwerp
Very happy to announce that I am now teaching typography (Graphic Design, English BA1 and BA3) at the @royalacademyantwerp Antwerp, Belgium. It is one of the oldest of its kind in Europe (founded in 1663). I graduated here in 2004 so it feels a bit like coming home. @ines_cox taught here for the last 5 years and I feel very honored to take this position. ♡ Looking forward to the future along the side of @ine.meganck and with the help of @basrogiers ! Follow us at @graphicdesignantwerp !
Ink Village in Nancy (France) • September 5 - October 18, 2019
Ink Village exhibition at Galerie My Monkey in Nancy, France!
September 5 - October 18, 2019
🇫🇷 Le festival L’enfer is a new opportunity to explore the world of micro-publishing and hand-made publishing. This year the My Monkey Gallery has invited Corners, a design/print studio in Seoul, South Korea since 2012.
The group exhibition entitled Ink Village was initiated by Corners for the first time in February 2019 in Seoul. For this second edition, 22 illustrators, photographers and designers were invited to design posters in A2 format. Posters were all risoprinted by Corners.
Ink Village proposes to widen the field of exploration of this singular medium (risoprint) while proving once again its capacity to surprise by its specific rendering of the colors, the vibration, the depth and the unexpected combinations where it allows. Ink village gives us a glimpse of the Korean scene with the pieces of: Artist Proof, Chony Park, Dahye Jeong, Hezin O, Jaemin Lee, Moonsick Gang, Woochul Jang, Yeji Yun. It is also an opportunity to (re) discover many international artists: Alexis Mark, Bráulio Amado, Folder Studio, Gilles de Brock, Jesjit Gill, Koen Taselaar, O.OO, Regular Training, Risotto Studio, Sarah Boris, Son Ni, Specht Studio, Studio Bergini, Team Thursday.
Interview up on It's Nice That – “My creativity is sparked by music and architecture”
It’s Nice That interviewed me. Read it here.
New intern Nanna Sofie Reseke
Welcome Nanna! Looking forward to work with this talented student!
Her work: https://nannareseke.tumblr.com/
Not A Muse, book
My warmest praise to @notamuse.de for making this amazing book, published by @niggli_verlag. Not A Muse is an ongoing project investigating the visibility of women graphic designers. It’s a presentation of graphic works by 54 female designers working in Europe today, completed by interviews on graphic design, work life and feminism. The Belgian contribution is exquisite, with @bureaugrusenmeyer, myself, @ines_cox and @__bbbrrreeennndddaaa__. Essential reading!
Illustration for Ace & Tate shop in Bruges
Ace & Tate asked me to design a mural for their latest shop in Bruges. I got inspired by the house facades in the city. Mural was painted by Kymo One. Designed in 2019.
Paths (non-vector)
Giving a public lecture at Otis College for Art and Design end this month — see you soon, Los Angeles 👋🏻!
Speechless print
Last October 2018 I designed this print for @supercollect.be. The print will be available at @supercollect.be tomorrow on Friday, Februari 1st 2019 at 12am CET. This edition is a Giclee Fine Art print with UltraChrome inks on 300g cotton paper, numbered and signed. 100 copies.
Images Ink Village
My poster contribution and scan details (#unboundletters) for the Ink Village (A2 size, #risograph #poster) exhibition at @archivebomm, running now in #Seoul, organised by @cornersinfo. Thanks @dae.woong.kim & @h__j___j_ for the invite, organization and beautiful #print!! ツ♡
#posterdesign #poster #graphicdesign#illustration #typography #risoprint
Ink Village – Group Exhibition – Seoul
Super excited about this upcoming Risograph poster show 'Ink Village' in Seoul (South Korea) organised by Corners Studio. January 25, 2019 (Friday) to February 24 (Sunday) Location: Archive Bomm. There is an opening on January 25 from 6 to 8. If you have time, please visit :)
Artists: Alexis Mark, Artist Proof, Braulio Amado, Chony Park, Dahye Jeong, Folder Studio, Gilles de Brock, Jaemin Lee, Hezin O, Jesjit Gill, Koen Taselaar, Moonsick Gang, o.oo, Risotto Studio, Regular Parctice, Studio Bergini, Team Thursday, Son Ni, Woochul Jang, Yeji Yun and myself. :-)
10 Favorite albums
Inspi.re asked me for my 10 favorite albums. Read / listen to them here: https://insp.re/selection-by/stephanie-specht
New Portraits by Mads Teglers
My talented photographer friend Mads Teglers made some new portraits, which I so love.