It’s summer and that means vacation time. When I go on vacation I always bring a few books I’ve been meaning to read.
Here are a few books I’ve recently enjoyed.
At the Crossroads of Should and Must
This book by designer/artist Elle Luna is more of a work of art than a book. Treat yourself to the hard cover version. I really love the way the text and painted visuals interplay. Elle, a designer who worked at IDEO, Mailbox, Medium and Uber, asks the question: "How can I find and follow my true calling?" Should is what we feel we ought to be doing and must is the thing we love to do.
It’s the myth of the creative genius. Marketing creatives retreat for a few days and ponder and create a brand. It’s slow, inflexible and expensive process. Designer Jeremiah Gardner explores how start-ups can take a DIY approach to branding by applying Lean start-up principles. The resources are particularly useful in helping you reiterate quickly. However, in all of the validated learning sometimes we leave out the emotional—the gut feeling—which can inspire the rarest of things: customer delight.
Go: A Kidd’s Guide to Graphic Design
I saw Chip Kidd at the last AIGA San Diego Y Design Conference. Chipp is a renowned designer. His book on graphic design for kids is also a great design resource for the rest of us. Take a look, it’s fun, entertaining and you’ll learn a thing or two about graphic design.
As you know, I am big on doodling. Mike Rohde is the one who pretty much put a name to sketchnoting. He shows you how to start thinking visually in your notetaking and other communications. I find this is a great method to jumpstart creative thinking. Getting off the keyboard and start sketching.
Happy reading,
anne