Name:
Michael Partridge
Business:
Defy Designs
Location:
Cardiff
Website:
Describe yourself in three words…
As a designer, grimey, textured and obsessive. Personally, clumsy, loud, nerd.
Tell us about your background…
I have a Masters in Visual Communication for the University of Glamorgan, with a specialty in social semiotic coding and psychoanalytic theory, but that is a very official response. In truth I am a graphic designer who enjoys working as much as possible. It’s a strange situation, I started college doing A levels in physics, chemistry, math’s and media studies, left after constant problems with the college, got a job working for the government behind a desk, hated every minute of it, went back to college to do a BTEC in Media and the rest leads you to the very official response.
Tell us about what you do!
I am hopelessly obsessed with vectors, textures, halftones and photos. When you stitch all these details together you get to something special! I spend most of my time doing work for musicians and bands, I’m in a band myself, so I have plenty of access to these people, t-shirt designs, MySpace’s, you know what I’m getting at.
What inspired you to launch your own business?
A collection of reasons really. The first being circumstance, When I finished university I was already getting work, so it seemed natural to just follow through and start working for myself. I enjoy having a very close and direct relationship with clients. On a one man ship it is essential, I can see that being lost in a larger company.
What’s your proudest moment so far?
I’ve had a few, but for such different reasons. The first would be winning a t-shirt design competition for Technics/DMC. I used to be a DJ, so it was a really happy moment receiving their catalogue, more so than the actual shirt. I still receive the catalogue from buying equipment and never thought I would see my design in it.
Another great moment would be when I was in a record shop, and got into a conversation, "...and what is it you do?" "I'm a graphic designer, I do things like..." I paused reached into the rack, "...this."
Recently I sent 2 designs off to a client, expecting one to be chosen and one to be rejected, I try to supply 2 or 3 designs/ideas normally, and when I got the email back they told me they wanted both designs! They were totally different and there was no reason to take both, but it was super cool when it happened.
And your greatest project?
I have recently finished a job for a band called They Walk Among Us. I am really proud of it because of the end result, they gave me soooooooo much freedom, took my advice onboard, and the end product is (will be when its finally all printed) really something else.
Then again, I recently collaborated with an illustrator (Richey Beckett) to complete a job for a reggae band called Captain Accident in one of the tightest windows I have ever done! I got the call on a Thursday afternoon, and it needed to be sent off on Friday morning! I didn’t sleep that night! But it all came together, and the end result was something special.
Who or what inspires you?
It might sound ridiculous, but as my obsession with textures has gotten worse and worse, I constantly find myself taking macro photos of the floor, walls, stones and anything that looks weird close up. It acts as the building block for a great deal of my work, it acts as a weird subconscious inspiration.
I am in the middle of designing album artwork that is inspired by a chapter from Mitch Albom’s ‘The 5 People You Meet in Heaven’, so anything can inspire me, it just depends on the project.
What do you hope to be doing in five years time?
I've answered this before, and my answer was gloriously vague, this time I think I want to be a little clearer. I hope I am working constantly on projects I enjoy doing. I would like to spend some time working at an agency, to find out what the 'real world' is like, maybe do some screen printing classes. Oh and I would like to stop torturing my neighbours with my banjo playing!
When you aren’t running your creative business, you are…?
Playing bass for my band, taking photos of anything and everything, spending too much time in record shops, trying not to get more tattoos or buy more t-shirts and trainers, riding my bike and spending time with my girlfriend, my cat and her rabbit.
Anything exciting ongoing or in the pipeline?
An album cover that has to work on CD with a 4 page consetina fold cover and on gatefold 12” vinyl, that’s going to be a challenge and a half, not to mention the fact that all the photos have had to look like summer time, despite the fact that they were all taken in the winter! AND I’m getting involved in Creative Boom, which is rather exciting.
Finally, any words of wisdom to other creative people?
Your mistakes are the best lesson you will ever learn.
Also, more people need to worship Bob Ross.
