STEFAN SAGMEISTER

'things i have learned in my life so far' By Stefan Sagmeister.

i had looked in to getting this book ages before i actually bought it. i didn't know anything about it, i had read good reviews about its content, but knew nothing of its packaging or cover design. i ordered it from the Internet never having physically seen it.

i don't normally get excited about books. don't get me wrong, i love them and am usually interested in whats inside them, but the covers are hardly ever stray from the norm. as soon as this book arrived, i knew it would be amazing. i know there's the whole "don't judge a book.. " thing.. but i did, and because i did, i had high expectations. which in my experience normally turn out to be awful as they aren't ever as fun as you thought they would be. this was different.

there's something about getting a new book, that no one has ever opened before, that's exciting. this one had a wrapper and an impressive die cut box which held lots of little books. on the cover of each individual box was a different design, so you could rearrange the order of the books and a different cover would show through the holes in the front of the box. my favorite being the meaty cover.
each book explains a different "thing he has learned in his life so far". the first few pages break down the phrase into single words and experiment with typography, making lettering out of anything and everything. i wish i had this book when we did the quote project in year 2. its brilliant. his ways of thinking are innovative and thoughtful, and he obviously had fun making the book. it acts as a kind of folio for him and his studio team, displaying various projects and interesting creative styles.

the book i took most from is "if i want to explore a new direction professionally, it is helpful to try it out for myself first". it explains how after years of client briefs, and working on project meant for other people, Sagmeister realised he was slowly conforming to a routine. he noticed the design process become dull, and started to do things because they needed to be done, not because he enjoyed doing them. i related to this due to my year in industry. i noticed that because i was constantly designing for other people, i started to see it as a chore, rather than an exciting project. Sagmeister's solution to this in his book was to shut his studio for a year, a risk which he knew would lose them money, taking on no client briefs at all. he used the year refocus, to experiment with materials, type, ideas etc. to find himself again, and to push himself as a designer. i wished i put aside one day a week to refresh my skills and rejuvenate my way of thinking, and my approach to briefs. in doing his experimentation year, his studio received more publicity due to the risk he took, and the expectation of new ideas attracted new clients.

a valid lesson i reckon.
it made me realise that i need to push myself to keep my mind excited about design, the minute anything becomes a chore, ill explore a completely new approach.