Breaking In

Check out some great work from Tom Matano.

AH: You have had quite a long and illustrious career, so I’m curious: what would you say has been a trademark of a stellar or successful industrial design portfolio? What is the common thread?

TM: Over and above strong basic skills such as drawing, graphic sensitivity and digital skills in 2D and 3D are important. Thinking process needs to be visually explained. They also need to have good observation and analytical skills and show personality, not the school color.

Thinking process can be visually displayed by showing ideation sketches, thumbnail sketches, or diagrams. Observation can be displayed in a storyboard style. Analytical skills can be shown via positioning maps or other visual aids, such as infographics. Personality can come through in the style of sketches, the graphic layout of the portfolio, the color sensitivity of the product, and the overall story building.

Continue reading →

Always Inspired from Large Ark Films on Vimeo.

Short documentary on Tom Matano, one of the designers of the Mazda Miata.

Tom Matano, known as “The Father of Miata”,  has almost 30 years of experience in the automotive design industry.  Prior to joining Mazda, he held design positions at General Motors in Detroit, GM Holden in Melbourne, Australia and BMW in Munich, Germany.  In 1983, he joined Mazda’s North American studio as a Chief Designer.  He continued to become Vice President of the Design and Executive Vice President of Western Operations for Mazda R&D North America, Inc., and Executive Designer & Director of Mazda North American Operations.

From 1999 to 2002, Mr. Matano moved to Mazda headquarters in Japan, as an Executive Designer in the Global Advance Studio, overseeing Japan, Europe and North American Advance studios, and the General Manager of Mazda Design in charge of the Chief Designers. His accomplishments at Mazda include the RX 7, Miata, and many other projects by the design teams he managed and created.  Continue reading →

Check out some great work from Ronald Lewerissa.

AH: What kinds of portfolios get your attention these days? What brings in an industrial designer for an interview?

RL: The quality of the work. What triggers me usually is when I see enough skill and craftsmanship in the work. Their imagination is very important—their creativity. Also because strategically, we are looking at designers more and more as design thinkers, I truly hope to find that skill in young designers as well. Those are basically the three most important elements that we are looking at in portfolios.

 AH: You mentioned “design thinkers.” Can you elaborate?

RL: I see many designers who find solutions for non-existent problems. They are creating products that miss a certain relevance. What I mean with design thinking is that there’s a very broad consensus that people trained as industrial designers are capable of tackling all kinds of problems that are not necessarily related to physical objects. They can tackle all sorts of problems because they are trained to think from a problem to a solution. That’s a different way of thinking than what people do in physics, mathematics, etc. We feel that the new generation of designers should be very skilled in that way of thinking. Not necessarily to just design physical products but to tackle all kinds of problems that we see in society.

Continue reading →

Cableturtle

Trained in The Netherlands as an industrial designer, Ronald Lewerissa has worked in the US for General Electric designing appliances, household objects and building systems for the GE Brand. Back in The Netherlands he founded FLEX/the INNOVATIONLAB together with Jeroen Verbrugge and created product design, structural packaging and services innovation for many leading brands world-wide. He grew FLEX into one of the major design agencies in Europe and is recognized for his creative  leadership.

His design work was awarded with many international design prizes like the RedDot, iF, IDSA Gold, Clio, Pentawards and ID annual design review. Some of his products are part of the permanent collection of the important museums for modern art around the world like MoMa and Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam. Continue reading →

Check out some great work from Jonah Becker.

AH: What kinds of portfolios get your attention these days? What brings in an industrial designer for an interview?

JB: The portfolios that grab my attention are graphically clean, well edited, and show a range of good skills throughout the design process. They are clearly organized in terms of how projects are presented from brief to research to concept to execution, and most importantly they communicate a fresh perspective and great energy.

AH: Have you seen a portfolio recently that resonated with you, and what about it stood out?

JB: There have been a couple recent portfolios that really stood out. The main difference is that these young designers presented themselves as mature beyond their years. The communication of their ideas—both written and visual—was excellent, the initial vision on projects was maintained in the final execution, and the perspective was fresh. Essentially they presented themselves as designers who could come in and really contribute while at the same time showing a youthful spirit and desire to continue learning.

I always like to make hires that are a “two-way street”: the designer, even if young, should be able to contribute as much as we will be able to teach them.

Continue reading →

HTC 8S

Until recently Jonah Becker was the president of One & Co, a San Francisco industrial design studio immersed in technology, sport, furniture and fashion. In late 2013 One & Co merged with its parent company, HTC, where Jonah is now the Associate Vice President of Industrial Design, leading a team of designers and engineers to create delightful personal technology. Jonah has a degree in philosophy from University of California, Berkeley and a degree in industrial design from the California College of the Arts.    

Follow Jonah @JonahABecker and @HTC_Design

Continue reading →

Check out some great work from Felicia Ferrone.

AH: What ingredients are necessary these days to make a strong industrial design portfolio, one that stands out?

FF: Portfolios need to reflect a broad spectrum of types of work and show a range of scales. Often portfolios look very similar and it’s the ones that have a strong graphic sense that really stand out. The work also is presented in very much the same way. It’s the ones who approach presentation of the ideas in a completely different way that really stand out.

AH: So if an industrial design student came up to you and asked, “What should my portfolio be like? What do I need to show you in order to work with you?”, what would you tell them?

FF: I would say the portfolio must be considered as a whole: a strong graphic design sense and layout, font selection down to the paper selection, if it is presented physically. The designer should immediately indicate their level of attention to detail and sensitivity. The projects, of course, must also be strong and easily understandable.

Continue reading →

Revolution Collection

Born in Chicago, Felicia Ferrone studied architecture in the United States before beginning her career in Milan, apprenticing with some of today’s most influential architects and product designers, where she was first taught to “blur boundaries.”

Her namesake label, based in Chicago, is known for modern design of home accessories and furniture delivering the unexpected through a seemingly simple gesture and whimsy. Archetypes are reinvented; typologies are crossed and blended. European influences, minimalist aesthetics, mastery of proportion, and meticulously considered details are the hallmarks of her work. Often lighthearted and whimsical, the furniture and objects are timeless. Continue reading →

Check out some great work from Howard Nuk.

AH: What kinds of portfolios get your attention these days? What brings in a product designer for an interview?

HN: Each month we receive hundreds of applicants and I personally review every ID portfolio, so if someone’s work doesn’t immediately stand out, it can get easily lost in the abyss. In order to capture my attention, the portfolio must have all the right visual ingredients: organized layout, clean graphic design, and most importantly, the work itself must be celebrated. I am immediately turned off by over-designed graphic filigree and mismatched fonts. Designers should have the instinctual ability to tell a compelling story through imagery, whether it’s a single descriptive full-bleed, in-use photo, or a collection of sketches or storyboards. Applicants typically get no more than a couple of seconds to convey their intent and make an impression, so clarity is key.

[ … ]

Continue reading →

Samsung Level Headphones

Graduating with High Distinction from the Carleton University School of Industrial Design, Howard Nuk got his professional start at Canadian design firm, DW Product Development designing products for Brookstone and Design Within Reach.

The allure of the San Francisco Bay Area’s design and technology community drew him to join renowned global design firm frog design in 2000, where he worked closely with its founder, Hartmut Esslinger to develop successful product lines for Disney and Motorola. As Creative Director, Howard lead frog’s San Francisco product design team on client relationships such as Intel, Sephora, Starbucks, Seagate, Tupperware, Titleist, Chrysler, Logitech, among others. Continue reading →