Fused- Hattie Stewart

It is important that I gather some research off articles and other reading sources which I find interesting regarding working as a Graphic Designer in the real world and 'how to survive' in a creative industry almost. I found an article by Fused in which they interviewed one of my favourite artists: Hattie Stewart, throughout the interview they asked her questions regarding her career, the brands that she has worked for and how she started out as a designer. 

I found this interview useful and enjoyable to read as she made some obvious clear points that can often get ignored but are extremely important in terms of putting yourself our there as a designer. I found these points interesting and useful as they will help me to think through the steps that I take as a designer; working with clients, working in a studio, freelance work etc. 

Furthermore, after reading through this interview I made some notes on points that I found interesting which will also be beneficial towards my personal design practice:

• When she was asked about discovering her creative talents, she mentions that she never really thought of herself as talented, she just loved to draw from a young age and over the years it changed, developed and grew. This is important as creative talent isn't something that just comes, it requires development and time for it to grow naturally.

• What she is most famous for 'doodle bombing' came around in 2011 when she was working part time in a bar. She saw a picture of Lily Allen on the wall and started to draw on it and it went from there. 

• 'When I first began doing the covers a couple of years back it became a play on the photo bombing term. Invading someone else’s space in a but tongue in cheek way – adapting what I saw around me into my own world and vision' I also strongly believe that it is important to take influences from your surroundings and personal experiences/interests, I often do this when starting a new brief and find that it always helps.

• When asked about how she keeps herself motivated, she mentions that working from home can either be a motivational challenge or a challenge of not knowing when to stop, step back and have some down time. Sometimes it’s best to take a day or two off to focus on personal projects or get out of the house. 

• 'Is the artistic life lonely? What do you do to counteract it?' If you are self-employed, working from home you have to enjoy a certain amount of solitude and your own company. All in all it’s about creating and trying to maintain a life work balance and figuring out what works best for you both in your professional and personal practice. I loved this point as I think finding the right balance in life with your creative career is extremely important, which also links to priorities and certain projects that you may be working on, as well as work load at the given time.