Speaker Spotlight :: Armin Vit of UnderConsideration

December 14, 2009 2 Comments

Born and raised in Mexico City, Armin is a graphic designer and writer now living in Austin, Texas. He has written for AIGA's VOICE, Emigre, Eye, Creative Review, HOW, and STEP magazines, among others. He is a former faculty member of Portfolio Center and currently teaches at the School of Visual Arts. He has lectured on topics ranging from typography to branding in locations ranging from San Diego to Berlin. He is co-founder of UnderConsideration and its myriad sites. His last employment position was at Pentagram. He now runs UnderConsideration’s Department of Design.

Armin joins our Charlotte Chapter on January 28th, 2010 as part of our Talk About Lecture Series to share with our members his process, learnings, experiences and latest work - the book Graphic Design, Referenced. Graphic Design, Referenced is a visual and informational guide to the most commonly referenced terms, historical moments, landmark projects, and influential practitioners in the field of graphic design. With more than 2,000 design projects illustrating more than 400 entries, it provides an intense overview of the varied elements that make up the graphic design profession.

Caresse Duford: Graphic Design, Referenced must have been quite a project, ambitious for sure. Please give us a brief history of how this project began.

Armin Vit: We were contacted by Rockport Publishers with the idea that they wanted to do a dictionary (A to Z) of graphic design, which seemed like fun and we signed on. While working on the book proposal and thinking about the scope, Bryony and I came up with a pretty insane content list and suggested to Rockport that instead of a dictionary we do more of an encyclopedia or almanac. We agreed on 400 pages and set to work. The original schedule was six months, but none of us realized how much work it required. It took us 18 months total to research, write and design the book.

CD: In your extensive research for your most recent book, what is the most compelling thing you learned?

AV: That I didn’t know as much about graphic design history as I may have bragged I did! It really is humbling to consider all the material that there is to learn, and all the wonderful connections that have happened in the last hundred years to bring us where we are. If there is one thing I would mention it would be that I learned that there is an arrow in the FedEx logo. Kidding!

CD: What’s your secret talent (big or small, silly, serious)?

AV: Big: I can spin a basketball on my index finger for a really long time.
Small: I can make a toothpick jump using static electricity.
Silly: I can wiggle my ears.
Serious: I have intense hand-eye coordination with my mouse/keyboard/screen thanks to years of playing video games.

CD: You have worked on a large variety of projects over your successful career. What is your favorite project so far?

AV: I have a number of favorites for different reasons... Most challenging has definitely been Graphic Design, Referenced. Most visually awesome, the identity for TypeCon 2009, that was just a blast to do. Most rewarding, was an identity Michael Bierut and I did for the Alliance for a Healtheir Generation, a venture to fight childhood obesity; our logo had a great photo-op with Bill Clinton.

CD: On that, with the wide range of work you are involved in, how do you manage your time between projects?

AV: I get up at 5:30, I put on coffee, I get to work. It’s just a matter of juggling all the different projects and making sure deadlines are met with the best quality of work possible. And it’s about being as efficient as possible too, knowing which battles to fight.

CD: Finally, what was your first published article/written work and how did you get it published?

AV: My very first work published was a logo I did as a student project and it was featured in HOW magazine’s International Awards in the student category, back in 1999 I think. The logo had the word “FESTIVAL” in it, and the kerning between the “V” and “A” was so horribly wide it could hold an 18-wheeler in it.

Armin joins our Charlotte Chapter on January 28th, 2010 as part of our Talk About Lecture Series.

Talk About with Armin Vit from UnderConsideration
January 28, 2010 6:30 PM - 9:00 PM @ TBA

Written by: Caresse L. Duford