Yup! (helping you unto on the chair again) Of course I'll share some of my thoughts with you!

So, to answer your questions, here goes:

1.) Okay...Although you specialize in many different fields you are also a designer. How do you approach the design process? How do you tackle a problem? Eg. Do you first lay out rough plans, sketches, then further develop them, etc?

Every problem is different and needs its own unique approach to arrive at the best solution - so I have no default design process that I use. Mostly I explore the problem by asking simple questions like "what do I want to achieve?" or "what are the desired outcome?", and the answers to this questions dictates the approach that I would use. Some of the approaches I usually take include:
- going through a folder called "juicebox" where I keep images of work that inspires me. Here I'm almost always inspired by something and a solution jumps out at me.
- jumping right in and starting with the design, even though it changes countless times before I'm happy with the solution.
- doing scamps or pre-sketches, which is scanned in or photographed to be further developed

2.) How do you go about your work and what do you consider important in the way it is done? What rules do you always follow when designing i.e. what do you always keep in mind?

To me colour, composition and 'breathing space' are important aspects I always consider while working on a design. The way the text interacts with the imagery - be it photographs, shapes or illustrative graphics - is also very important to me. Depending on how you perceive design, one of the weaker characteristics of my work is that I sometimes care more about how visually pleasing my design is than whether the message is communicated clearly enough. It is very important to me that I enjoy myself while designing; and creative typography, colour and layout are some of the things that make me just as happy as pecan nut pie.

3.) What sort of feel do you want viewers of your work to get?

Wow, that differs as widely as the projects I do. The more corporate designs are done in response to a client brief, so ultimately I would like viewers to understand the content that is communicated to them. With my more creative and personal design projects I aim to provoke different emotions or feelings - with environmental or green designs I want to raise awareness and encourage activism for environmental issues, while I mainly aim that the rest of my work create appreciation for nature, beauty, life and art.

4.) How would you describe your style?

The style of a very confused psycho! Hehe. Well, mostly I think my style is very organic, with flowing lines and softer imagery rather than geometric shapes. I love using colour, typography and asymmetrical balance which also sometimes lends my work a very graphic, bold feel, as opposed to more delicate design and illustration. Mixed media and the use of my illustrations, art and photography in my designs, along with the above opposing style aspects, result in a very experimental style. That's how I would describe my style: experimental.

5.) Where do you draw your influences/inspiration from?
Do you compare your work to other designers?

I am inspired by millions of things, which definitely include work by other designers, artists, photographers and illustrators. I love paging through design and art magazines and books, my "juicebox", and going to exhibitions. Walks in nature and on the beach also clears my mind to make space for new ideas, while the colours, shapes, combinations and light in nature awakens my creative senses like few other things do. Other than that, just LOOKING at everything around me - really seeing the textures, colours, lines and shadows that make up the shapes and objects.

6.) Are you connected to any artistic movements?

Conceptually or in principle, I'm probably connected to the environmental movement. I am inspired by such a wide variety of movements that I'm probably connected in some way to most of them - working in mixed media, and in more than one style, I could be perceived as contemporary artist, abstract artist, colourist, abstract expressionist and post-modernist.

7.) What do you aim to achieve through your work? (this can be anything from what you want from your work to what you want others to experience)

As I said earlier, this varies greatly from project to project. But mostly I want to create awareness and appreciation for the subject that I am representing through a specific project. I want people to feel a personal reaction to my work, whether it be in their perception, awareness or appreciation of nature, life, people, art or theirself.

8.) What as an artist do you believe in? e.g. what is an important aspect that should be found in any artist's work?

Truth and honesty. In any way that the particular artist experiences it. Each artist, and each person have their own interpretation and perception of what their personal truth is. Being honest and true to yourself is the most important aspect of creating art and expressing oneself. In other words, don't compromise by trying to fit into a mould or do something in a way that doesn't make you happy.

9.) And lastly, but certainly not least, what message do you want any aspiring artists, designers, etc to keep in mind as they try to get their bearings?

NEVER give up on your dreams, NEVER allow other people to make you feel unworthy or bad about yourself or your work, NEVER stop seeing the beauty and good in everything around you. NEVER stop creating. Just. Don't. Stop. Ever.

And just a silly question from me, do you like cheesecake?
Yup, but I absolutely love pecan nut pie!

My plesier! Dankie vir die onderhoud, dit was pret! And it's always good to take a step backward, have a look at your own work and think about what you're trying to achieve. Thank you for that!

--
JB
green is the new black
my blog: [link]