Professional Context: Conclusion

From my research I have learnt a huge amount of important information about art direction, before the assignment I was pretty much clueless about the subject just the thought of it interested me so I knew it would be vital to learn how you get in to the occupation and what it entails etc.

I found hearing first hand from people within the industry really interesting, and also attaining the contacts will really come in handy later on in my degree. I’ve learnt that both education and experience are vital in becoming an art director, as you need to know what you’re doing to earn the experience. Moreover confidence and people skills are a big part of the job, you must be able to confidently manage a team and converse with the editor regularly. Fashion magazine editors have a very icy reputation (we all know about Anna Wintours famous reputation) so you must be able to stand your ground and be confident around them.

I have also learnt that contacts and working your way up can help get you where you want but hard graft and determination are also key.

I also found the pieces of text I focused on mostly (The Art Directors Handbook and Magazine Editing In Print and Online) to be really useful particularly the former. It has detailed images from lots of different magazines and has detailed analysis in how the front page, inside layouts etc are put together.

Looking in to art direction has only made me hunger for it more; it is something that really engages my interest. I realize any job in fashion requires hard work and a positive attitude. 

Professional Context: Interviews with Art Directors

I contacted several magazine art directors and advertising agencies to gather research, books can be outdated and only offer so much insight. To understand the profession fully I must talk to those with experience in it. Out of the about 23 people I contacted, I only received replies from two people.

Professional Context: Art Direction Icons: Jean Paul Goude

The second icon to have had a massive influence on the world of art direction is French graphic designer Jean Paul Goude. He revolutionized art design from the past 30 years. He began as an illustrator; he created drawings for famous French department store ‘Printemps’ he then sent his illustrations to Harold Hayes at Esquire who then invited him to New York to create illustrations for the publication. (1) His drawings skirted the edge of surrealism.  (2)

Professional Context: How the magazine is created and the role of the Art Director.

Before I started this assignment, I didn’t know all that much about art direction. I knew that the art director was the person who created the overall look of the magazine and I knew that magazines were created using Adobe InDesign and that was as far as my knowledge on the subject went. Something I really wanted to find out was how it all comes together and how they help to create the magazine and how fundamental the relationship between the editor and the art director.

I looked at ‘The Art Directors’ Handbook of Professional Magazine Design’ and ‘Magazine Editing’ to inform my research.

Professional Context: Art Direction Icons; Alexey Brodovitch

Perhaps one of the greatest art directors of our time is the legendary Alexey Brodovitch. I first heard of Brodovitch whilst reading Grace: A Memoir by Grace Coddington, Coddington described his work as ‘spare, airy and innovative’ and even described his as legendary.(1)

Professional Context: Art Direction in Magazines and Advertising

In Magazines

In magazines an Art Directors job is to set the magazines visual style, they are responsible for the layout of the magazine and ensuring it remains cohesive throughout. They also have a managerial role, it is important that they can manage a team well. A Magazines design can hugely affect its readerships opinion and so affect the circulation, much quicker than almost anything an editor can do directly. Most magazine art directors (particularly those in fashion) should be adaptable but also have strong visual taste.(1)

Professional Context; What is Art Direction

The term ‘Art Director’ can apply to various jobs, in theater, advertising, marketing, publishing, film and television, the Internet, and video games.  As we can see it is a term used widely in the creative industry, however the aspect I will be looking at is art direction within fashion magazines and fashion advertising.

They are generally tasked with determining the best way for a company to represent themselves (or their clients) visually to the market. They will usually be in charge of a creative team, which may include a graphic designer, content editor, photographer and marketing manager (or team). (1)

Reference

(1) Creative Director http://www.myjobsearch.com/careers/creative-director.html (Accessed 2/2/12)

Professional Context; Introduction

For our professional context brief, we are required to look at an aspect of the industry that we are particularly passionate about, a part of the industry that we wish to go in to after our degree. Our task is the research in to the area using various sources such as interviews, books, online sources etc.

Personally, the area of Fashion promotion that I wish to go in to is Art Direction, particularly in fashion magazines. I have always been interested in fashion magazines and they were my very first look in to fashion from a young age. As I grew I found that throughout my studies the aspect that I found I was most interested in was the way in which ideas were visually communicated through layouts. From the way in which I presented my work to working with blog layouts I was constantly interested in the ‘look’ of things.

From there I linked this to my love of fashion magazines and discovered the term ‘Art Director’.

Here I will look in to the role and what it entails. Moreover I’m interested in knowing how one becomes an art director; is education or experience more important in becoming an art director?