Somewhat alive still

Okay. I'm doing this after what looks like a decade judging by the new strands of grey hair on my head(wait a second, *new* strands of *grey* hair!!?? ). Not much has changed since I last wrote, except that I have a little bit of free time, and writing seems to be the only worthwhile thing to do for me. And no, it's not that I don't have friends.

I realised something today that sort of shook the ground under my feet. And that sorta made my day significant. My realisation outweighed everything else that this day could have been significant for. Today ladies and gentlemen (in that Oscar MC booming voice)I realised that I am not superhuman. I also realised just this second that I use too many round brackets to represent the thoughts in my head so the reader understands what happened behind-the-scenes.

It was the next most eye-opening experience since the birth of me. It's pretty disheartening when you're trying really hard to do something right, but it just doesn't happen. It's pretty much shattering when you *repeatedly* attempt it, and still fail to produce anything that scrapes past the threshold of stuff-that-means-you-may-as-well-donate-your-brain-to-a-sparrow. So that was how eventful today was. I look forward to tomorrow with unabated anticipation...{yea right!-please notice the new sort of bracket}.

Hello there no-one

It's been very long since I last wrote on this blog. It used to be my open space to vent in, but off late nothing really irks me any more, at least enough to write about it.

Most would say it's a sign of maturity. Some would say it's a sign of cynicism and complacency.

All I say is that it's just me being busy, preoccupied and focusing my energies on things apart from this blog. Also, my need to be heard seems to have faded. Maybe I have come to terms with the fact that very little can be done with writing on this blog.

It has no butterfly effect.

Quotable Goat

Happiness is expensive. Venkat says it's fine as it is.

Chocolates anyone?

Anyone interested in ordering the world's most divine chocolates in south or central mumbai, do contact me here or on my cell for those who have my number. Those who dont, please leave your comments here or email me at paripurohit@gmail.com

For orders over 2 Kgs, please call in advance. Large orders will need 50% of the total cost in advance.

Spread the chocolatey cheer :)

" Q U E S T I O N "

Why is philosophy only for the intellectual? what sort of power trip are they on?
And if they are so deep, and complex in their minds, why aren't they evolved enough to be able to explain that systematically to the common man? Its a shame if you'd ask me.

Or maybe it's just my view of it because of my profession.

Ownership of the unoriginal

I've had this theory for a while now. I believe that there is nothing original in the perceptions of people. At least not anymore. But wait, before you attack my premature cynicism, let me explain why I think that.

I was doing an academic project with Mr Vikas Satwalekar, a prominent graphic designer in the country. I toiled and slaved over this identity for a hypothetical music festival called 'Resonate', a name that I am rather pleased with. I think I worked on the type painstakingly for about six months continuously, blowing it up, reducing it, scrapping it altogether, reworking it, painting it, projecting it, I cant think of a thing I didnt try.

My professor, Vikas, is a very hard client to please, and thank god for that. He pushed me to the brink of breakdown, and shot everything down till I wanted to give up. As soon as I gathered courage to refine it further, I made my last presentation to him, and he said "this is the closest to perfect I have ever seen anyone come'. That blew me away. I certainly dont think it was close to perfect, but it feels good when you know you've put your heart and soul into something. I have great regard for this gentleman, not because he grudgingly appreciated my hard work, but even when he expressed his disappointment in me in front of my whole class.

A few months later when I had moved on from that project, I was busy researching some historical art movements in our college library, I stumbled upon an identity in Adbusters that was extremely similar to mine, and it was for a music festival that was called the same thing!! - Resonate. And to my utter disbelief and disgruntlement, the logo actually looked a wee bit better than mine.

I was shattered.

And then I introspected. We aim to communicate effectively. We designers use cliches. Please, donot think that is a bad thing. Our aim is to communicate effectively. If using a cliche achieves that, then so BE it. If red means danger, then why the hell shouldn't I use that commonly established notion to communicate what the world understands it to be?

That's how I came to my version of resonate. Its possible for more than one person to think of the same idea. Simply because, sometimes the puzzle has one obvious solution. And the simplest one is that one. When we egoistic prideful designers realise that another person would think of the same thing, we tend to avoid it like the plague. We bend over backwards to be 'out of the box' and complicated. Often these solutions are not straighforward. Sometimes, they are.

Im not ashamed that my logo looks the same as someone elses. Im not over the moon about it, but this is how I look at it : Atleast someone else thought my idea worked !! It validates it for me.

I am over it now. I learnt tonnes from the experience of it, and thankfully, being academic, that was the focus. It wasn't a commercial venture, or I might have had to sell my mac :P

Suddenly I see

Its interesting to see how the deepest realisations come from places you would never expect them to. I didnt expect to find out today that the way I right, represents my pessimistic world view. More like Jaded world view. Sorry for the excessive caps, but I like to emphasize using them, so deal with it. ... See what I mean?
.......................................Ok now all of a sudden super boring came.

Tongue Tied

It was very heartening to read the article link sent to me by a friend. The subject was design (of course) and the writer had very well articulated the difference between art and design.
I've come to realise (about two years ago or maybe even more), the importance of communication skills in the field of design. I remember a member of the faculty of NID often mentioning how visuals are more powerful than words, and he used to discourage us from using words to brainstorm with ideas.

I normally think in visuals, but I put down words. A mistake from the very beginning. But when thoughts come rushing to you, I personally find writing words much quicker and easier than drawing ideas. Many a time, later on when I look at my scribbles, I can barely understand what I have drawn. I supplement this writing with visuals(The easy ones), and I am careful to write in such a precise way, that I understand the visual connect. Someone else may not quite get the idea, but since my brainstorming sessions are for me and me only, thats alright.

When you're an independent designer, you tend to be oblivious to these obstacles. Its when you're working in a team do you realise the importance of communication skills. Whether it be through visuals or sentences or even epic sagas.

I find that many designers, take pride in the fact that they are socially inept. They like to be those unapproachable 'wierdos' in the corner who no one talks to, or those permanently distressed colleagues who like to use these large abstract words to sound intellectual (or simply because their vocabulary is insufficient). I can understand the frustration they experience. This is turn manifests into disgruntlement and dissatisfaction with 'the system'.

I would love to applaud this breed of people for their anti establishment attitudes, for their ability to live with themselves inspite of their inabilities, with their absolute disregard for the possibility that there may be something wrong with them etc, but I can see through it. Its not worth the effort cuz it's a flaw that has transferred on to the system.

I wish people would give this more importance. If a designer cannot commmunicate clearly whats in his head to his fellow colleagues or coworkers, he/she's failed the most primary communication test.

Its quite tragic as there are extremely talented people who fail this test.