Joel Derksen

LEGENDARY INTERVIEW

Design Legends ("DL") had the distinct honour to interview legendary designer Joel Derksen ("JD") for their original perspective and innovative approach to design as well as their creative lifestyle, we are very pleased to share our interview with our distinguished readers.

DL: Could you please tell us a bit about your design background and education?

JD : I think like a lot of designers my path has been a bit wandering - the simplest goals take the longest time. I started out as a writer and painter, before falling in love with the possibilities that a computer provided to make things. Since then, I was hooked and really did want to become a designer. I studied in Nova Scotia (Canada) before transferring to Toronto, and after working in a variety of roles there, I moved to Munich to join IDEO; and then to London and to freelance.

DL: What motivates you to design in general, why did you become a designer?

JD : The motivations change depending on my mood, but the core themes are: 1) To solve or fix a problem that hasn't been handled well 2) To craft something new (and relevant) 3) To connect a client's ideals to a group of people that wants them around. I started design because I liked playing around in Photoshop. And midway through I really got into the ethics of design - around what problems design can solve, about things that are ugly, broken, confusing and difficult to understand. Those still make me exceedingly angry, but now I focus more on the expressive side of design.

DL: Did you choose to become a designer, or you were forced to become one?

JD : 100% by choice, though I don't think it comes naturally to me.

DL: What do you design, what type of designs do you wish to design more of?

JD : I tend to design a lot of branding and brand systems. I would love to work more intimately with editorial and book design, where the typographic challenges are different. I'd also like to work more with arts and culture projects.

DL: What should young designers do to become a design legend like you?

JD : I think it's a stretch to call me a legend! Work diligently, challenge every assumption about your work, and surround yourself with people who will push you along and lift you up.

DL: What distinguishes between a good designer and a great designer?

JD : I can only hope it's tenacity; the desire to just keep getting better.

DL: What makes a good design a really good design, how do you evaluate good design?

JD : Have I seen it on Dribbble? Is it an actual concept, or is someone just copying some trend they saw? Is that a plausible concept or strategy? Does the design meet the strategy that's been proposed? It's always surprising for me to see designers promise a concept, or talk about it, but then to not see it materialise in the work.

DL: What is the value of good design? Why should everyone invest in good design?

JD : Good design creates not just uniqueness for the individual client, or project, but advances a cultural dialogue in what style is and can be. It can innovate, help solve problems, or define the soft power of a nation. Increasingly, a unique point of view is the only thing that will help you stand out. But I'm sure you already know that.

DL: What would you design and who would you design for if you had the time?

JD : I would love to do a book or two on some of the Canadian designers that have been lost to time, like JEH Harvey or Arnaud Maggs. But actually I would take that time to develop my own art.

DL: What is the dream project you haven’t yet had time to realize?

JD : I want to do some more graphic installations and supergraphics - but more as art pieces. In reality, my dream project would be something like a 2 year exploration to develop a stronger personal philosophy in design. something like a master's.

DL: What is your secret recipe of success in design, what is your secret ingredient?

JD : Writing. I think that a designer that can't see the difference between "approachable" and "easy to understand" is a huge problem. Words are abstract concepts, they can more finitely define the tone of a project than colours and images. The words that define the project/idea must be right - otherwise the design won't be right.

DL: Who are some other design masters and legends you get inspired from?

JD : The usual suspects in the Swiss schools.

DL: What are your favorite designs by other designers, why do you like them?

JD : MadeThought's work for Tom Dixon is always a standout for me. I am always seeking to be more like them - and ask how I can more confidently and succinctly capture an idea.

DL: What is your greatest design, which aspects of that design makes you think it is great?

JD : I have to believe the best work is ahead of me.

DL: How could people improve themselves to be better designers, what did you do?

JD : I tend to be a bit of a scorched earth designer; I pick everything apart and get as much peer review as I can stomach. I'm not sure I'd recommend it, but I'll keep doing it.

DL: If you hadn’t become a designer, what would you have done?

JD : I'd be a therapist.

DL: How do you define design, what is design for you?

JD : Insight, emotion, and diligent research put together.

DL: Who helped you to reach these heights, who was your biggest supporter?

JD : A lot of my friends from around the world - especially from Canada - who have kept in touch while I've moved from place to place to place; a lot of them artists and writers themselves. One is my very first mentor - Wendy - who also taught me photoshop when I was a teenager!

DL: What helped you to become a great designer?

JD : General dissatisfaction: by the time I've finished a project my standards have changed. Sometimes I'm happy with something but I get a side-eye from another designer and I'm off again, completely unhappy. And I'm willing to rethink every aspect of my approach to get it better the next time.

DL: What were the obstacles you faced before becoming a design master?

JD : Design in Canada isn't well supported, and because of that it's actually very weak for such a developed nation. It receives no government support and withers on the vine. This has been my biggest struggle, because despite my best efforts, I've had to play catch-up in a global design scene where the craft and thinking is much more advanced.

DL: How do you think designers should present their work?

JD : I really admire designers who put forward more process work, which I always say I want to do and then don't. I would say be clear about your design: showcase it well, don't hide the details with blurs and angles, and take care with documenting.

DL: What’s your next design project, what should we expect from you in future?

JD : I'm currently working with a few people on a missing piece of Canadian design history, and a few partnerships related to cultural history in Canada.

DL: What’s your ultimate goal as a designer?

JD : Despite living in Amsterdam, I really want to take what I'm learning in Europe and bring it back to Canada, and to shape dialogues around what it means to design - and what Canadians naturally and culturally have - that can help them become an iconic design culture like the UK, Scandinavia or Japan.

DL: What people expect from an esteemed designer such as yourself?

JD : Expect me to tell you, 'no.' A million other designers will tell you yes, but I will work hard, do a lot of research, and I might have to take your client's side.

DL: How does design help create a better society?

JD : Design can clarify and add accessible beauty to the everyday. It can challenge systems that don't work or are assumed to work.

DL: What are you currently working on that you are especially excited about?

JD : I'm starting a bit of work on a few cultural projects that are different for me. And a solo exhibition.

DL: Which design projects gave you the most satisfaction, why?

JD : Ian Bennett's brand, although imperfect, was a breakthrough moment for me in chasing the purity of one idea.

DL: What would you like to see changed in design industry in the coming years?

JD : Graphic designers really need to emotionally mature, step out of the Dribbble and Likes vortex, and start grappling with ethically how they impact things - from dark UI patterns, to creating waste, to gentrifying and collonising visual landscapes.

DL: Where do you think the design field is headed next?

JD : I used to be very involved in this discussion (during my time at IDEO) but I have stepped out of it. I worry for its future because of its relationship to advertising, and graphic design's inability to grapple with the ethical ramifications of being just another advertising entity. (Graphic Design culturally always wants to distance itself from advertising, but they are deeply interlinked). What I hope the future of design is - is a building of the ethical backbone of the graphic design community. Because now it seems that the brains are leaving the room, and I worry we only have "pixel perfect ninjas". Beyond that, graphic design must grapple with its global gentrification strategies, such as premiumisation and the legacy of Swiss Design. It's so boring and such a pity to see brands in Singapore look the same as Brooklyn; and to have a grid be the "right" way to design a page.

DL: How long does it take you to finalize a design project?

JD : It really depends on the client and the complexity.

DL: When you have a new design project, where do you start?

JD : Often there is a heavy research phase, that involves interviews with a variety of people, a look at cultural trends and a bit of prediction work, and then into moodboards and overall design vision.

DL: What is your life motto as a designer?

JD : It's OK to hang a question mark on something you thought was answered.

DL: Do you think design sets the trends or trends set the designs?

JD : Does it matter?

DL: What is the role of technology when you design?

JD : A good tool, an opportunity to let a random thing happen.

DL: What kind of design software and equipment do you use in your work?

JD : The usual suspects: adobe etc.

DL: What is the role of the color, materials and ambient in design?

JD : It does depend on the design, but colour for me is always an emotional connection.

DL: When you see a new great design or product what comes into your mind?

JD : Damn, wish I had thought of that.

DL: Who is your ideal design partner? Do you believe in co-design?

JD : I don't know yet. I haven't met them. Co-design is great and I'm always happy to collaborate. But I think my best design partner would be someone outside of design, like a philosopher.

DL: Which people you interacted had the most influence on your design?

JD : Oddly, similar to 39 - an old friend of mine is a philosopher and quaker, and his thinking has seeped into my thoughts on design, making, and ethics. I took a summer class in Basel in 2014, and that also started a radical shift in my approach to design.

DL: Which books you read had the most effect on your design?

JD : A lot of readings in University from various people (Picon, Kant, Certeau) have all had a lot of impact. I try to emerge myself in complex literature as much as I can stomach, and that thinking effects my design.

DL: How did you develop your skills as a master designer?

JD : Again - not really a master! But a lot of questioning, a lot of reaching out to designers better than I am, trying to get feedback. And then - just making a lot.

DL: Irrelative of time and space, who you would want to meet, talk and discuss with?

JD : I think it would be pretty interesting to get Alfred Loos wound up over a beer.

DL: How do you feel about all the awards and recognition you had, is it hard to be famous?

JD : Hahaha this is a bit of an egotistical question. Being a famous designer is like being a famous dentist.

DL: What is your favorite color, place, food, season, thing and brand?

JD : I have a soft spot for stormy blues.

DL: Please tell us a little memoir, a funny thing you had experienced as a designer?

JD : We all have that one time we design something that looks like something else.

DL: What makes your day great as a designer, how do you motivate yourself?

JD : It really varies. Sometimes there is no great, sometimes it is a task of grim devotion, sometimes it is finding love in something. Sometimes it's letting go and getting it done.

DL: When you were a little child, was it obvious that you would become a great designer?

JD : I'm not sure it's obvious now that I will be!

DL: What do you think about future; what do you see will happen in thousand years from now?

JD : I'm not even sure of what I'll wear tomorrow, let alone that far in the future.