Interview with a designer

22/02/2012 09:32:00 - Posted by

Our people are critical to our success; they are the beating heart of our business and we wanted to give you, our audience inside knowledge on the people who modestly sit in the background and work hard producing fresh, current creative for a plethora of clients on a day to day basis.

Name: Tom Ovens
Age: 28
Position: Senior designer 

How long have you been a designer for?
In the industry for almost 6 years now.

Who was your inspiration when you were at University?
I was really interested in grungy type design so David Carson stands out to me as an inspiration at the time.

Who do you aspire to now?
I really aspire to clean, modern and infographic design but don’t follow any specific individuals as there is a whole world of inspiration out there and it’s a relatively new and fluid design style which is constantly evolving. But I do have a few classics designers that I still reflect on from time to time. Alan Fletcher is a bit of a hero of mine for his sense of humour and simplicity in conveying a message. I also aspire to clean and vibrant retro and vintage cycling and car posters, mainly because of my interest in cars and bikes, but also for the pure aesthetics and feeling of movement they create.

What do you love about being a designer?
The variation of the job, every brief, client and target market is different and the most enjoyable part for me is the challenge of finding a solution that best suits each of those design problems.

What do you find most frustrating about being a designer?
Sometimes the final solution that best suits the client, their brief or audience might not be to your personal taste. This is a harsh learning curve coming from University, where you have complete creative freedom over your work and the final outcome.

What’s your favourite font?
This changes quite a lot but my current favourite is probably Bebas Neue as it works beautifully for infographic design

What is/has been your favourite piece of work you’ve worked on with Workbrands?
I have of course enjoyed every minute of every project but the one that stands out to me to date is the Spring Fair International Map for Emap due to its creativity, vibrant colours and 3D feel.

Can you sum up your current state of mind in three words?
Happy, driven, optimistic