23 questions!

Recently relocated from the sunny north, the lovely Sofia has settled into Melbourne, and super keen to get stuck into some great Creative opportunities!

What sparked your passion for design?
The thought of being able to make something from nothing excites me, the fact that I can make my ideas come to life is a source of passion for me.

How creative were you as a youngster?
I always loved to draw or to make things with my hands, my school notebooks were always full of little creatures and comic characters.

Do you come from a creative family?
I come from a business family, everyone except me does something related to business.

Were they supportive of your desire to be a designer?
Surprisingly, they were, even though they don’t really know what I’m doing most of the time.

What sort of education and training have you had?
I have a degree of Bachelor of Design in QCA, Brisbane. Majoring in Communication Design.

Who did you want to work for when you first entered the industry?
When I first graduated, I wanted to work in an environment which would offer me opportunities for me to explore different aspects of my craft.

Tell us about your first project and what do you feel about it now?
It was a poster for promoting a bar’s weekly events. It’s a very colourful poster featuring an illustration of a purple woman. I still love it a lot.

What is your preferred software to work with and what has been the greatest advancement in technology over the past 5 years?
It would be InDesign, Photoshop and Illustrator...can’t live without them! Too many great technologies have advanced over the past 5 years, but the greatest one would be iPhone I think...

Is digital technology going to eliminate the need for print?
No way! Compared to hard drives, paper feels and smells way too nice .

Whose work do you really admire and why?
Lately I’ve been admiring the work of Mucca Design, they’re based in New York, I love the way they approach their designs and their use of traditional typography.

Who has been the greatest person that you’ve ever had the pleasure of working with and what have they taught you?
At my first internship I worked with a former graduate of my university, she taught me to be pragmatic in my approach to design and to make use of all the resources available to me to their full potential.

How would you describe your work?
I’d like to think of my work as quirky, with strong visual elements, I like to be bold in my use of colour and I try to incorporate expressive typography in my work.

What are your plans for the future?
To keep design and keep improving my skills, one area I would like to improve upon would be my illustration skills, as strong illustration skills would be a good asset to posses as a designer.

What sort of company would you like to work with next?
A friendly and fun studio with good work ethics.

What is your opinion of Australian design?
Australian design is unique like its cultural makeup, there are many influences from all places in the world because we have such a multicultural society. This melting pot gives rise to many exciting design solutions.

What is the best/worst thing about being a designer in Australia?
The best thing about being a designer in Australia is the opportunity to work with designers from different cultural background. The worst would be the isolation from the other parts of the world, both in distance and time, we miss out on many great conferences that are held overseas and also being in a different timezone makes it hard to collaborate with designers in other countries.

In your opinion, what is the greatest challenge the Australian design industry has to face in the near future?
I think competition from Asia will be one of the greatest challenges in the near future.

What is your creative outlet outside of design?
Creating miniature scale models and photography

What is the best designed bar in Melbourne?
Ooh, not much of a drinker, but I’m a big fan of coffee, and my favourite cafe so far has been Brother Baba Budan in the city.

What are your top 5 websites at the moment?
www.graphic-exchange.com
www.itsnicethat.com
http://www.ministryoftype.co.uk
http://www.thedesignfiles.net
http://www.underconsideration.com

What CD are you currently listening to and is it any good?
Jose González - Veneer, I like it very much.

If I was a font, I’d be...?
There are simply too many to list, if I chose a specific one I would feel like I betrayed all the others. Typefaces are like clothes, each is suitable for a purpose, and I like to use a variety of them to express my designs.

For Sofia's current availability, contact Erica NOW here at Artisan, or call us on 9514 1000!