Glug Leeds Does A Christmas Carol: Creatives - Past, Present and Future

For Glug Leeds' Christmas special, they embraced the festive season with a theme based on A Christmas Carol, with a journey through a three-speaker lineup (Dixon Baxi, Home Agency and Illustrator Joe Boyd) showcasing where the creative industry has come from, where its at now and the future of the industry. 

DixonBaxi are a branding and creative agency based in London, with clients including Eurosport, Premier League, F1 and Nike. The agency's mantra is 'Changing things for the better through creativity.' Speaking for the agency, founded by Simon Dixon and Aporva Baxi in 2002, was design director Harry Ead, who has been working at DixonBaxi for 18 Months.

Notes:

• Team of 30.
• Fear is good.
• Try new things (cornerstone of studio).
• Currently working on identity for Winter Olympics.
• Do what you love and fuck the rest.
• Change things for the better through creativity.
• Design with optimism.
• Restlessness pushes the studio forward.
• Work with awesome people.
• Don’t be afraid to ask why.

Home is a specialist integrated, advertising and marketing agency. With everything under one roof, the agency has a range of experts in varying fields - though they all work together and play together.  With a focus on engaging people, finding new ways to help them interact with brands, and above all else making sure their work performs to help clients sell their products, however they can. Speaking for the agency was Technology Director and AI Specialist Phill Midwinter.

Notes:

• AIO Marketing - Activities, Interests and Opinions, a person's characteristics used to construct individual psychographic profiles.
  
• Help users find what they’re looking for.
• Optimistic search engines.
• Curating knowledge and data.
• SEO - Search Engine Optimisation.
• Don’t be ignorant.

Joe Boyd is a freelance Illustrator based at Duke Studios in Leeds. His work is identifiable through bright colour, bold shapes, texture, detail and depth. Joe studied illustration and graduated from Leeds Arts University in 2016. He has since worked for clients including Studio Canal, The Guardian and 

Intern Magazine.

Notes:

• Works with Screenprint / Colour Overlay.
• Always take advantage of opportunities.
• D&AD New Blood winner.
• Networking leads to commissions.
• Make Connections.
• Do personal work
• Do work that you’re interested in.
• Persistence is key.
• Mentors and Duke studios are amazing.

Visiting Professional: Liv Sidall

Liv Sidall is a writer, editor and content producer working across print, digital and radio. She is the former editor of Rough Trade Magazine and host of Rough Trade Radio, and also online editor and features editor at It’s Nice That. Liv is now freelance and a contributing editor of Riposte Magazine. 

She has written for the likes of It’s Nice That, Riposte, Printed Pages, AnOther, Dazed, The British Journal of Photography, Mr Porter Journal, Grafik, Freunde Von Freunde, Amuseum, Beyond Magazine, St James Correspondent, The Debrief, Gymclass, Rookie, SomeSuch Stories and many more.  Liv also record podcasts, give lectures and host events and panel discussions.

Notes

• Studied graphics at Kingston University - Someone on foundation said to do that instead of Illustration.
• Conflicted studying graphic design but wanting to illustrate.
• Interested in working with others.
• The course was too conceptual - Silly work.
• Just doing stuff and hoping for the best.
• Always looked at other people’s work.
• Into everyone else’s work, not own. 
• Passionate about others work.
• Considering interest in other people's work, course leader Zelda hooked her up with internship at It's Nice That.
• Stayed at It's Nice That for four years as an intern to the editors.
• Hosted events.
• Wanted to be a part of the creative world, but not making stuff.
• Liv quit and went freelance for 6 months, though found working alone lonely.
• Wanted to start own magazine, moved to New York.

Rough Trade Magazine

• Started work on Rough Trade Music Magazine.
• Record company Est. 1976/7.
• People coming together talking about records.
• Looking at music magazines in London.
• Inject fun into music magazine scene.
• What if a magazine was a person - Rough Trade customer.
• In older magazines - people could afford to be fun and have creative freedom.
• Film bands playing in the shop (Rough Trade) and interview them.
• Started a new radio /podcast for Rough Trade.
• Magazine - representing vibe of the shop.
• 5000 copies.
• 1000 budget. 
• Monthly, 64 pages.
• Bruce Usher - Designer of magazine.
• Good to make plan - refer and keep track
• Issue every two and a half weeks
• Templates - 10 albums a of the month.
• Serious doesn’t look as enticing.
• Horoscopes from bands 
• Illustrate by Adam Hicton.
• Agony aunt - Johnathan Richmond.
• Features building Up - structure.
• Brett Fandonbrooker.
• Staff picks.
• Tour documenting disposable cameras
• Art of musicians
• April this year - handed over to be guest edited by Mac De Marco.
• Staff didn’t want magazine. 
• Started to like and contribute. 
• Shop magazine.
• Involving them more.
• Made redundant August 29th.
• Cancelled magazine after issue 18.
• Some things (mags) don’t last forever - Lack of budget, Lack of time.

Advice

• Think about what you are really in to.
• What do you really want?
• Don't worry about what hasn't been done before. Do it anyway.
• If you run out of budget just do everything yourself 
• If you can’t do something, get someone else to do it.
• Ask for help all the time.
• Don’t worry too much about what you’re actually doing, just get on with it 
• Tire theory - people will want to help you more if they can see you having a go (like changing a tire).

How to Write About Your Work

• Be clear about meaning of work.
• What is the work responding to?
• What are you trying to solve?
• What are you improving?
• What are you trying to communicate?

Write one sentence that covers the What, How and Why of a project.

• What is is?
• How does it do what its supposed to?
• Why is it needed/successful?

Example

The Bond Street Brand Directory is a luxury, portable publication available in London’s finest hotels, which invites visitors from around the world to enjoy an insider’s guide to one of the city’s most exclusive streets. 

You've Got (Real) Mail

This week we were set the task to contact a designer, agency or industry practitioner that we are interested in or admire. This process was to be presented in a five slide presentation detailing 

• 1. Name
• 2. Who you’ve sent something to and why.
• 3. What the item is and the concept behind it.
• 4. Proof of posting.
• 5. Any response or reflections on the task.

I chose to contact Dot Studio, a small, independent design and print atelier based in London. The print studio offer the following services:

• Foil Blocking.
• Screen Printing.
• Embossing - Debossing.
• Die Cutting.
• Duplexing  / Multiplexing.
• Colour Edging / Gilding.
• Finishing.

As a designer focusing on print-based design, with a strong affinity for high-end finishing, I thought

Dot Studio would be an ideal candidate to make contact with, that would potentially lead me to utilise their services in the future and also establish them as a contact. 

For the task, I sent a handwritten letter with multi-tone foiling on the front. I hoped this would indicate a commonality between my practice and the services Dot Studio provide, whilst showing my appreciation for the craft of print finishing. The letter read as follows:

'Hello Dot Studio!

I am a graphic designer currently in my final year at Leeds Arts University. My practice is very much driven by a fascination with print and finishing - this having led me to the discovery of your studio.

Although I have been following your socials for some time now, I wanted to take the opportunity to send you something more personal to show my enthusiasm and admiration for what you do at Dot Studio.

While I am only just in the beginning stages of establishing my practice, I look forward to the prospect of potentially working with you in the future as I continue to develop my identity.

I hope this letter find you well and in the middle of some foiling, gilding or embossing.

Best Wishes,

Stephen.'

In addition to the letter, I also included an A6 card bearing my self branding (NOT JUST FOR SHOW), screen-printed in gold on to Gmund Treasury Beauty stock (a duplexed stock that is used throughout my tangible branding collateral, blue on one side and gold on the other). On the back of this card I stuck a business card with my details on so Dot Studio would have details to contact me in response to the mailer.

Following the Not Just For Show custom wax-sealing of the envelope, which includes my crown emblem, I sent this letter to Dot Studio.

Below are images of the mailer, as well as the presentation required for the task (including proof of postage):

While the task was daunting, I believe it was an important exercise to carry out. It forced me to begin making contact with those in industry, which is increasingly important in this final year of study while still considered a student. If we hadn't been set the task, this is something I would have put off, meaning any skills or confidence in making such contact would have remained stagnant. 

I am yet to receive a response from Dot Studio, but remain hopeful that they have received the letter and will provide some form of acknowledgement in the new future.

*UPDATE* 

I never received any acknowledgment from Dot Studio, which is disheartening, although the premise of the task and the experience has still been beneficial to my confidence in making such contact again in the future to other studios/agencies/designers etc.