Response from Holga Jacobs

Holga Jacobs from mind design also got back to really quickly with some answers to my questions. Thanks Holga!

1. The identity you designed for Circus is employed across a mind blowing range of media. When you embark on a project like this in what ways does the production method inform the ideas you come up with?

In this project there are many production methods. We worked with illuminated acrylics, acid etched aluminum, steel, printing on mirrored stock, etc. Normally we always think of the production method right away when we do the first sketches. However, in this case as it was so varied, so the initial design of the logo is more based on the interior. 'Circus' features a table that doubles up as a stage with steps leading up to it. Beside those steps the logo was influenced by kaleidoscopes and mirrors. Other influences came from Surrealism and Art Deco, a period I am very interested in at the moment. The overall identity is quite a complex puzzle of different elements and somehow reflects that different people where working on it in the studio at the same time. Many ideas develop in teamwork.

2. With the way graphic communication, advertising and promotion is becoming increasingly digitised why do you think a physical, printed products still hold such a fasination for designers?

Absolutely. There is unwritten rule in typography: if you can't do it in letterpress then don't do it on the computer. This might not always be true but its good to keep traditional production methods in mind when designing anything. I am not very interested in digital technology I must admit. Obviously I use the computer but the development of new programs could have stopped for me about 5 years ago. I rather have less functions, it helps me to focus.

3. To what extent do you think bespoke and premium finishing techniques are relevant to non designers? Do you think the average man in the street will notice or care about your beautiful foil blocked menu for example?

If they don't notice they have to be educated. Print quality and attention to detail is important. I rather produce less in quantity. In a way it should reflect how we consume today. I prefer to buy one good product and keep it for 10 years from a company with a good identity, good design, good packaging, etc. rather than something from the Argos catalogue that I replace a year later by the next model.

4. Where do you see the future of graphic communication in 20 years, how much printed collateral do you think we will still need?

I hope that print will improve in quality and reduce in quantity. Everything that is high volume mass market communication can be moved to the internet.

5. Where you involved in design pre the introduction of the apple mac?

Yes, for a short period of time just when I started studying. It was brilliant. Of course it was all a lot more hassle but somehow design was slower and more considerate because of that. You only had one shot so it was important to think it through first. Today clients are already asking for the third pdf version before you even had time to think about the project properly. Its a much more fragmented way of working and especially since the intention of pdf's clients are much more in control.

6. If you were what impact on your personal practice did the introduction of desk top publishing have? If not how has the role of the computer changed while you have been a designer?

Its not so much the computer, its more the way we communicate now. Communication has been much more demanding and distracting and there is just too much of it. Sometimes I spent more time writing e-mails explaining when and how I will do a project than actually working on it. I don't do social networking and those websites are banned in the studio. The rare occasions when the internet is down for a day due to technical problems, thats usually a very productive day.

7. In our current climate where, typographically, it is possible to do pretty much anything with a laptop and a digital printer, why do you think designers are still so interested in real physical graphics like paper cuts, models and the use of photography and manual production techniques like screen printing and letterpress?

Those techniques are much closer to production and make you work differently on the computer. For example when you have done a bit of screen printing it is easy to understand how offset printing with 2 or 3 Pantone colours works and what overprint or knock out on the computer means. Once you understand printing and production methods it becomes interesting to challenge those and push their boundaries.