It’s been some days since I returned from Barcelona. The conference was incredibly interesting and I am grateful to be a part of this experience. Together with my fellow interaction design colleagues, I share some nerve wracking adventures as well as beautiful memories.
When reminiscing about the OFFF Conference I remember a few special moments which stuck in my mind.
Gavin Strange
The very first talk I been to on Thursday was with Gavin Strange and wow, I was blown away. It is by far the most amazing speech of the conference. I really enjoyed it, because his presentation was so diverse, it was funny, inspiring, experiential and emotional. The visuals and the intro was eye candy in a unique way. Gavin works as an Art Director in Bristol, UK and he worked for quite some time in the industry. During his presentation he made clear, that he struggled to find his “own” style, as every designer has to find their “unique” style to be successful. But after some time he quit searching for it and this is where he became free in his doing. Gavin works in several areas for instance animation, art direction, graphic, music etc. Recently he discovered a musical interface and even if he has no clue how it works, he enjoys experimenting and he also presented his musical progress live on stage. He also knows, that he is not good at it and has just started, but he didn’t care and thought it was funny to play music for the audience.
The main takeaway of his speech is that it is okay, if you have not found your “own, unique” style as a designer and always keep on experimenting and exploring. You don’t have to be good at it but progress comes with practice.
Gemma O’Brien
Another talk I think was really refreshing was Gemma O’Brien. She is an artist and designer known for her letterings and murals. I enjoyed finally seeing a woman on the main stage presenting her work and I did not regret it. The way of her speech was pleasant and inspiring. She is very successful and worked together with global brands. Gemma talked about the journey of becoming an artist and the obstacles she faced during her career. Also about how afraid she was using colors as she was only painting analog. As soon as new technology came around she started exploring painting with colors and how she loved it. Even when she thought she achieved everything on her bucket list at a very young age, she decided to make a cut and do something completely else, like running a marathon.
What I have learnt from her is, that it is okay to be hesitant with certain things but you should try and overcome that fear because you might actually love it. Also, that sometimes a break is needed to find new inspirations and energy. Collect artwork from others and let them inspire you (as she was showing the audience her collection book).
Joshua Davis
Joshua Davis is very successful in the field of generative art. He started quite young when technology was by far not the technology we know today. Joshua mainly showed his work from the recent years and the brands he worked with. In my opinion, you really can tell, that he made a lot of money by selling his NFT art. Also he worked with some interesting brands e.g. trashcans.What Joshua Davis wants to tell is that it is okay to work with brands you think is not your dream collaborator but sometimes you have to lower your expectations, when it pays your bills.
Gab Bois
Gab Bois is a photographer/product designer from Montreal, Canada. I was super excited for her speech on Saturday, as I follow her on Instagram for a while now and was always curious about her process. Gab talked about her childhood and how she started creating art since then. Also she spoke about her process of finding inspirations for the art as well as how she is creating the final products. I think it was really interesting to see how you can create things with ordinary components.
David Carson
Probably the most discussed speech of the conference. Later this evening after the talk we sat together in the apartment and had a discussion about his presentation. I have to say I am quite torn apart as I was expecting a lot more of his presentation and less toe incidents. But also I haven’t known him and his designs before. In my opinion those people who have known him and have been fans for some time, they celebrate everything what he does on stage – doesn’t matter how weird it is. Also as Mr. Fabry said, this is what he does on stage and he wasn’t surprised at all. So there are two parties – the ones who know and celebrate and the ones who do not know and are shocked.
The key takeaway of his speech is: You can do EVERYTHING on stage, when you reach a certain point in your career ladder.
Now: Enjoy some of my pictures 🙂
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