Glasgow-based artist David Shrigley works in various media, but is best known for his slightly bizarre and humourous illustrations. David enjoys his artistic freedom, he considers himself lucky. He talks about humour, how he is perceived, his DJ-ing and taste in music. He sometimes says he’s not really good at it, but drawing does come naturally to him. 30 sheets of paper every day, he tries to put a lot of variety in his drawing. There are lots of people he admires, but he contemplates about the meaning of heroism. He ends talking about the meaning and themes of his work, and his ventures into the medium of animated film. Recorded at the Integrated 2009 conference in Antwerp, Belgium.

David Shrigley

Worried Noodles book/cd

Modern Thought films

On how he draws

Who I Am and What I Want

Pringle of Scotland animation

Annelys de Vet is head of the design department of the Sandberg Institute in Amsterdam. She tells us how she became a graphic designer, and why. Spending her time between Brussels and Amsterdam, she talks about the differences and boundaries between art and design, and Belgium and Holland. She thinks design should be service minded and functional. Annelys always tells her students to question their approach, to see design in a bigger context, and the role of design in society. She talks about her Right To Copy project and discusses copying, originality and copyright. Subjective Maps project, the European Union and its effect on the design community. Recorded at the Integrated 2009 conference in Antwerp, Belgium.

Annelys de Vet

Sandberg Institute

Subjective Atlas of Palestine

Subjective Atlas of Serbia

Büro Destruct is a graphic artists’ collective based in Bern, Switzerland, comprising of four members. Lopetz and HeiWid share their thoughts about swimming, fonts, heroes, their fascination with Japan, the similarities between Swiss and Japanese design, Amiga and Commodore computers. And finally the answer to what happens to designers after the age of sixty.

Büro Destruct

Büro Destruct III book

BD fonts

BD shop

Lopetz

Minaret controversy

Amiga / Commodore

Going out to bars and cafés is Bob’s ritual, and this social interest plays a part in his design work. He talks about why he became a graphic designer. The most important lesson he learned is not to take design too seriously, there are many different ways to approach it. His work is changing a lot over the years, but in general he likes different layers, stories within stories. Bob talks about his former The Hague studio NLXL and his life after closing it down, making drawings with his son and father,and his job at Lava in Amsterdam. What are the differences between NLXL and Lava, The Hague and Amsterdam? He reflects on his avid collecting, his design heroes and the start of his career at Dumbar studios. Recorded at Underware, The Hague.

Note: Bob van Dijk left Lava and runs his own studio again since December 2009.

Personal website

Bob van Dijk AGI bio

Lava

Professor David Crow is Head of the Art and Design faculty at the Manchester University. He discusses his motivation for his move from design to teaching, and his eventual move into being an academic manager. He reveals his experiences as a teacher and the importance of encouraging cross-disciplinary education. Crow talks about his initial interest in typography, his later work with semiotics and theory and the specifics of Manchester and British graphic design. Recorded at the 33pt conference 2009 in Dortmund.

David Crow MMU

Left to Right book

Visible Signs book