<

Bra nding the Manchester Foo d and Dri nk Festival

Di sco ver the masters of the fa ntasy a rt world

>

(/branding/branding-manchester-food-anddrink-festival-2012-11121179)

(/art/spectrum-fantastic-art-live-11121181)

>

CAREER FEATURE

How to become an art director

2 hours ago >4 comments (/career/art-director-11121180#comments-list) 175
Tw eet

202
Like

15

50
Share

Every junior designer dreams of becoming an art director, but what do they actually do? Three leading art directors explain what the role entails and offer tips on how to become one.

'Art director' is an impressive job title that a lot of people yearn for, but can mean different things in different organisations. The job of art director exists in a number of creative fields, including advertising, marketing, publishing, film and television, web design, and video games.It generally involves managing a team of designers working on a creative project, but the degree of responsibility and autonomy can vary. We asked three leading art directors to share their thoughts and experiences on the role. Read on to find out what they think about what the job title means, what it requires in practice, and what qualities employers look for in an aspiring art director... Looking for a job in design? Check out our jobs board (http://jobs.creativebloq.com/)!

James Fenton

James Fenton is a designer and art director based in the UK. He is the founder of Blimp Creative (http://blimpcreative.co.uk/), a collective of professional creatives specialising in digital design and copywriting across web and mobile. To begin to understand what is expected of an art director, it's first worth considering the term as both a role within a team, as well as a creative discipline in itself. As an art director you must be a leader, someone who inspires and guides the vision of the design team. However, someone who sees themselves as the design top dog will inevitably be heading for a embarrassing fall. You have to be able to recognise the talent in those around you and learn how best to get the best from you. An art director who sees themselves in a position of hierarchical authority is simply a glorified manager.

>

Inspire and mentor

Sure, there are aspects of management in the role. You need to be able to critique peoples work, hit deadlines, stay within the budget, and sadly on occasion have to discipline people for too many fag breaks or simply producing lazy design. But first and foremost you need to inspire, guide and mentor those they lead. The role of the art director could be compared to that of a chef, fusing together ingredients to produce a menu of delightful dishes. All designers inject their individual personalities, tastes and style into their work. Even working within the constraints of brand guidelines, there is plenty of room for creativity and originality. It is the art directors role to identify and understand the different flavours each member brings to the team, an then carefully infuse them to compliment one another and ultimately creating an exciting and balanced sensory experience.

>

Storyteller

Yet it is vital to understand art direction not simply as a visual experience. The fundamental role of art direction is to direct and guide an audience through the information being presented to them. An art director must appreciate the written content as much as visual, taking on the role of a storyteller, marrying together words and imagery, creating structure and order through layout and typography, providing weight and emphasis which conveys message and meaning, resulting in the ease of the audiences understanding. You must be a mediator between writers and designers, understanding both disciplines and working closely with each.

>

Open-minded
For me, a good art director has to be open to influence, inspiration and the expertise of the people around them, appreciating their talents, strengths and weaknesses, whilst maintaining a clear vision of delivering a message that speaks directly to the reader, viewer or user. There is no single formula for what makes a good art Director: its not a discipline taught in design schools, there are no books or guides that define the steps to success. Every art director will have forged their own path, have their own definition of what their role is and their own approach to getting the job done and done well. Sometimes this may be learned from their own mentors and passed down in a master/apprentice way, whilst others may formulate their process utterly independently, through their personal experience, trial and error.

Jenny Theolin

Jenny Theolin (https://twitter.com/JennyTheolin) has performed a series of art director and senior art director roles and is currently creative director of Soapbox & Sons (http://www.soapboxandsons.com/). A Swede based in London, she is also a contributor to the web magazine Typetoken (http://www.typetoken.net/) and an avid blogger (http://www.jennytheolin.com/). What is an art director? It sounds like a simple question, but having to define somebodys job role in one or two words is surprisingly difficult. Designer, art director, creative director - all these titles are necessary to create a structure within agency departments, for the clients benefit, and for the recruitment process. And to add to the confusion, descriptions like 'Web Ninja', 'Pixel Guru' and 'Creative Wizard' infiltrate our world as well. But how relevant is all of this to the job we do?

In many companies the traditional team structure has evolved into paired creative polymaths. Ask any creative team working today, and you will see that they share a lot of their work tasks. Copywriters scamp, art directors write. I write contributions to blogs, books and magazines, so does this make me any less an art director?.

>

Creative concoctions
Working across branding, design and advertising, I've experienced most types of agencies, from huge conglomerates like Interbrand, to the smaller and friendlier creative agencies, like muirhoward, where I am currently spending my days cooking up all sorts of creative concoctions. Here I generate and develop ideas for ads and campaigns, work alongside the creative director to ensure that creative strategy is innovative, motivating and right for the client; I also inspire, encourage and mentor junior teams, brief Photographers, Illustrators, Artworkers and Retouchers - and present to clients.

>

People skills
For me, the main difference between working as a graphic designer and as an art director is that I work more with people than computers. And since I prefer to see the creative industry as a peoples industry, this collaboration and co-working is key to creating exciting new work. What are the worst things about being an AD? I would say the worst bit is to not have the ability to execute my ideas myself and to trust others to meet my ridiculously sky-high standards. However, if you are working in the right place and collaborating with the right people, this should be the least of your worries. The best things? Being surrounded by great people and amazing talent, regardless of the day-to-day ups and downs, difficult clients and/or a stinking brief.

Ed Robinson

Photographer, art director and picture editor Ed Robinson is founder of visual consultancy OneRedEye Visual Communications (http://www.oneredeye.com/). One of the main roles of an art director is usually to art-direct photo shoots. I thought I'd share my experience in this area, then offer some tips and pointers for your own career in art direction.

>

Early shoots
At a very early age I was lucky enough to be invited to photo shoots arranged by my grandmother, Joan Sisley, a prominent visual consultant. And at age 12 I found myself on my first shoot covering the Lake District music contest. Of course, at this stage, I was purely assisting but my eyes were opened to a far more creative world than I expected. Not one shot was of an orchestra in a music hall - no, Joan had set up a pianist in a graveyard, a

cellist in a toilet cubicle and a string quartet on a rowing boat. Naturally, from that moment I was intrigued and wanted an in on every shoot coming up.

>

Career path
From there followed a few years of assisting, listening, learning about composition, direction, preparation, creative thinking and slowly discovered I had a talent for conceiving and art directing shoots, at that time, for corporate stories that had a more advertising aesthetic but intended for media worldwide. Nowadays, I'm also a creative director, photographer and a director/cameraman - all due to the transferable skills accrued and developed art directing shoots.

>

My first campaign
My first fully fledged independent art direction was for a British Gas sponsored campaign called Stepping Out that intended to educate the older generation about staying active. It was then that all my training and early experience paid off as the plans to include a large number of OAPs making circles of footsteps around the centerpiece, Honor Blackman aka, Pussy Galore, hit a stumbling block when most of them were not that interested in listening to a young art director but more interested in meeting the film star in the middle. I made a key decision to change the creative and picked one chap with a great face and straw hat, picked a couple of large stones and had Honor and him stepping out to each other on the beach. A simple solution that earned the respect of the photographer, client and Honor. This leads me to identifying the roles of an art director.

>

Pointers for shoots

In my experience, different shoots demand different forms and levels of art direction but here are a few pointers. 1. Pre planning. Work with the client, photographer and crew to decide on the best creative approach that fits with the brief and meets budgetary requirements.

2. Production. If a producer is not part of the team then the art director can take on the planning of people, locations and props that fit the creative. 3. Work closely with the photographer and share ideas to best implement creative. Collaboration and mutual respect is key 4. Always keep an eye on what the end product is and, whilst allowing the photographer to create, keep the shoot on brief. 5. Form a good rapport with the team and any subjects. Be diplomatic but direct as necessary to achieve end goals. 6. Be flexible as things rarely go exactly to plan.

5 tips for becoming an art director

Here are Jenny Theolin (https://twitter.com/JennyTheolin)'s tips for anyone who wants to become an art director...

>

01. Put together a killer portfolio

A book that is controversial, that scares, intrigues and has balls. As a graduate and/or junior, you will probably not have as much real work, so fill it with whatever is inside your head. Make it memorable. 90% of the books I see are instantly forgettable I would much rather see your take on Magrittes flying penises, than another bloody Guiness ad.

>

02. Be selfish, but dont be an arsehole

You are the new generation, get to grips with whats been done, evolve it and do it better! Come up with wild ideas and have them fuck each other to spawn mutant idea babies wholl take over the world. Why? Because a great idea is one that scares the living pants off of you.

>

03. Make friends show interest in people and their work

Hound your heroes and ask to meet them. Many love to talk about themselves, so ask to meet them for advice, to pick their brains and to see their work! However, dont be surprised if your icons actually turn out to be old, grumpy farts. If you do meet them, make it your priority to provoke them by demonstrating that you could be better than they ever were within the right environment and with the right people of course. Trust me, they want to be challenged.

> >

04. Stay on top of blogs and trend-reports

Keep the momentum up and dont get stuck in a bubble. Creative exploration is one of the benefits of this industry, so get out there and do different things differently.

05. Make yourself noticed - in a good way

Get your voice heard and speak up, but not by blowing hot air youll most definitely get caught out.

What employers are looking for

Here, Ed Robinson (http://www.oneredeye.com/) lists the four main qualities he would look for when employing a new art director...

>

01. Personable character

Art directing the corporate and brand shoots that I have over the years it is always a people based role so character and personality are a big deciding factor when considering an art director.

> > >

02. Creativity
Ability to create from briefs that, on the surface, dont appear to be that creative themselves.

03. Knowledge
Prior knowledge of what is achievable with equipment photographers and post producers use is a must.

04. Presentation
Show a good portfolio (http://www.creativebloq.com/create-perfectdesign-portfolio-111153) of work that represents the style of art direction you employ and want to strive for.

Liked this? Read these!

Master art direction with a conceptual brief (http://www.creativebloq.com/art-direction/alien-art-directionconceptual-brief-812634) How to get a career in graphic design: 12 pro tips (http://www.creativebloq.com/graphic-design/get-career-graphicdesign-1012931) How to become a junior designer (http://www.creativebloq.com/career/become-junior-designer7133617) How to be a creative director (http://www.creativebloq.com/career/how-become-creative-director11121363) What design job titles really mean (http://www.creativebloq.com/career/what-design-job-titles-mean11410424) The pro's guide to design internships (http://www.creativebloq.com/career/internship-2131903)

Did our experts' experience of working as an art director mesh with yours? Please share your views in the comments below! Tags: Career (/tag/career), Graphic design (/tag/graphic-design), Art direction (/tag/art-direction), Computer Arts (/tag/computer-arts), Feature (/tag/feature)

BEST FROM AROUND THE WEB

Recommended by

4 COMMENTS

wow! Thanks for a great article! Really useful information, that (/users/aake) aake November 07, 2012 at 13:38 Report abuse (/future/report/comment/546?destination=node%2F1180) doesn't get said out loud too often! www.akjormanainen.com (http://www.akjormanainen.com)

One great post! Mobile marketing truly is the future! Making a mobile-friendly website is a huge way to garner incoming traffic (/users/mobileconvert) mobileconvert April 15, 2013 at 10:04 from mobile devices. http://mobi.7kp.com/ (http://mobi.7kp.com/)

Report abuse (/future/report/comment/1757?destination=node%2F1180)

Wow this helped me greatly. It nearly described my whole life. It also leaves room for perfection at its best and with time to grow i (/users/marcell) marcell September 26, 2013 at 22:52 believe i can use this informational to seduce my own creativity into something far greater and better.Thanks a million

Report abuse (/future/report/comment/3870?destination=node%2F1180)

** Another great hint that shouldn't be overlooked is that initial (/users/kharmon24) kharmon24 November 06, 2013 at 16:13 killer portfolio. The Creative Circus in Atlanta is a portfolio school that not only trains creatives & helps them build amazing books, but has such a connection with the industry that recruiters treat it like their staffing firm. It's a terrible Catch 22 when an agency says "Get some experience" but you can't get experience without getting hired to begin with. A book that will not only get you noticed by recruiters, but hired is extremely hard to put together & portfolio schools are worth looking into if you have the eternal creative itch. Report abuse (/future/report/comment/4411?destination=node%2F1180)

Log in to Creative Bloq with your preferred social network to comment

or log in with your Creative Bloq account

Username

Password

Log in

Forgotten your username or password? (/user/password)

Don't have an account?

Join now. It's completely free and takes seconds

Join (/user/register)

Advertising (/Advertising)

About Us (/About-Us)

Contact (/Contact)

Future is AOP & PPA Digital Publisher of the Year and BMA Media Company of the Year. Creative Bloq is part of Future plc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. We produce content across five core areas: Technology Entertainment Music Creative

Top

TechRadar (http://w w w .techradar.com/) CVG (http://w w w .computerandvideogames.com/) MusicRadar (http://w w w .musicradar.com/) Digital Camera World (http://w w w .digitalcam T3 (http://w w w .t3.com/)

PC Gamer (http://w w w .pcgamer.com/) Guitarist (http://w w w .musicradar.com/guitarist) Mollie Makes (http://w w w .molliemakes.com/

Mac|Life (http://w w w .maclife.com/)GamesRadar (http://w w w .gamesradar.com/) FutureMusic (http://w w w .musicradar.com/futuremusic) Photography Week (http://photographyw ee

Gizmodo UK (http://w w w .gizmodo.co.uk/) Total Film (http://w w w .totalfilm.com/) Rhythm (http://w w w .musicradar.com/rhythm) The Simple Things (http://w w w .thesimpleth More... (http://w w w .futureplc.com/w More... hat-w(http://w e-do/portfolios/technology/) w w .futureplc.com/w More... hat-w(http://w e-do/portfolios/entertainment/) w w .futureplc.com/w More... hat-w(http://w e-do/portfolios/music/) w w .futureplc.com/w hat-w Sport & Auto BikeRadar (http://w w w .bikeradar.com/) Cyclingnew s (http://w w w .cyclingnew s.com/) Football Week (http://w w w .thefootballw eek.net/) TriRadar (http://w w w .triradar.com/) More... (http://w w w .futureplc.com/w hat-w e-do/portfolios/sport-and-auto/)

About Future (http://w w w .futureplc.com/about/)

Jobs (http://w w w .yourfuturejob.com/)

PR (http://w w w .futureplc.com/new s/)

Advertising (http://w w w .futureplc.com/w hat-w e-do/advertising-solutions/)

Digital Future (http://advertising.digitalfuture.com/)

Privacy Policy (http://w w w .futureplc.com/privacy-policy/)

Cookies Policy (http://w w w .futureplc.com/cookies-policy/)

Terms & Conditions (http://w w w .futureplc.com/terms-and-conditions/)

Subscriptions (http://w w w .myfavouritemagazines.co.uk/)

Investor Relations (http://w w w .futureplc.com/investors/)

Contact Future (http://w w w .futureplc.com/contact/)

Future Publishing Limited, Beauford Court, 30 Monmouth Street, Bath BA1 2BW. All rights reserved. England and Wales company registration number 2008885.