Designers from Drive holding sheets with the slogan “We do it with passion!”

World day of design

04/26/2020

World Design Day. What does design mean to our designers? To DRIVE?

A World Day for Designers?

All over the world, designers create websites, films, and many fantastic objects and products for everyone to enjoy. That's why World Design Day on April 27 each year focuses on all creative people and their work. It's an opportunity for us to invite you into the personal design worlds of the creative minds at DRIVE.

What does design mean to us at DRIVE?

Tanja Stark, Senior Art Director:
Explain it to a child. Do your eyes shine?

I've actually had a passion for design my whole life. When I was younger, my understanding of it leaned more toward the decorative, beautiful, and harmonious. During my training as a porcelain decorator and my subsequent studies at the art academy, the focus for me was on experimentation, trying things out, learning, and testing.

But it is only years of practical experience with specific projects and tasks that truly round off your overall understanding and your own standards in design. For me, curiosity and anticipation of the result always form the basis when starting a new project. Once the framework conditions of each project have been defined, such as scope, time, budget, content and technical requirements, etc., the real challenges of design begin. And this is exactly where my ambition kicks in, not only to integrate all these parameters optimally, but also to translate them into the best design solution.

Cristina Carbonell, Art Director:
Creating cultural identity. Experience as a product.

Creativity has played a major role in my life since childhood. When I was younger, I designed jewelry and shoes, had them made, wore them myself, and sold them. Becoming a designer was my dream job. That's why I decided to leave my home country of Colombia after school to study product design in Germany.

In my opinion, design can build bridges between cultures. Design objects serve as information carriers and communication channels for cultural preservation and exchange, as they represent and incorporate human behavior in the form of a design. My Colombian heritage and my university's design credo are evident in my designs. My focus in design is on analyzing behavior and identifying people's needs and design requirements. The design language, color concept, and sustainability of the designs should arise from their functionality in order to achieve the best result. I see designers as problem solvers and solution finders who make life easier and more beautiful with their ideas.

Constantin Klöpper, Graphic Designer:
Make rules. Then break them.

Design is my passion because, for me, it is the perfect blend of order and chaos. When the carefully learned work steps and approaches interact optimally with intuition and creativity during the process, the result is incredibly fulfilling. The beauty of it is that a new definition of “perfect interaction” emerges every day for me. This means that I discover design anew every day.

Various drawings by our designer Constantin

Julia Wutschke, Graphic Design Assistant:
No chaos, no creation.

I have always loved painting, drawing, and doodling. With a pen in my hand, there is no such thing as boredom. I am fascinated by how an illustration can capture an emotion or situation and allow the viewer to see the world through the eyes of the artist.

Drawing of people on the train using smartphones and a woman alone at home using her smartphone — Work by our designer Julia

The process of drawing is similar to that of designing. It starts with a blank sheet of paper and a jumble of information and ideas. It's a very exhilarating feeling when order begins to emerge. Every object we use, every package and every notebook we hold in our hands has been designed and has therefore gone through this process. Design is everywhere.

We are constantly exposed to various visual stimuli, whether on the street or on social media. We no longer even notice much of it. That's why it's important to discover what makes good design every time. What do people see, what interests them, what shocks them, what confuses them? How do you get the attention you need to market a product or convey information through a medium? As a designer, you have to know the answers to these questions – just as you have to know the needs of the user before they do.

Why design is important for DRIVE and for clients:

At DRIVE, design is incorporated into the concept at a very early stage. Everything must be consistent. In general, it is important to describe the content or functions literally, and these must be recorded.

Websites should also tell stories, engage the user, and allow them to immerse themselves. They should be able to find their way around quickly, but also discover new things.

The design reflects the written content, also in combination with a corporate design, and shows where the journey is headed. For us, print design with posters, business cards, and letterheads is just as important as website design. We also enjoy developing corporate identities, giving companies their own distinctive look.

We love design. When developing designs, we always go the extra mile internally. Because we want our clients to feel our passion for their project. Because the first stroke, the first image, the first color combination starts a journey in our minds, on the way to the finished client project.