Critical Look at Graphic Design Resumes

Recently I've started revamping my resume.  As a graphic designer I feel like in the realm of resume building and maintaining I've struggled with what the 'normal resume' looks like and what I feel my resume should look like.

Like many others in my generation, I googled it.  The results were as I suspected: graphic designers as many artists do break the mold for resume building.  Swirly images and vector graphics, they look amazing!  I understand what you want your portfolio online and your image online has to be consistent with all the fonts and colors.  Honestly, that concept comes from a yearbook class in high school.  As there is one thing to be said about being consistent an graphic designer really has to wonder:

How much is too much?

Has it been the economy that has prevented me from attaining the dream graphic design job or has it been my artfully constructed resume?  To some argue that the answer to that question is common sense.  "Artistic liberties with your resume is a bad idea.  Traditional methods are always the way to go!"

The other side of that spectrum argues that: If your thing is children illustration, make sure that as soon as they see your resume, people can realize what your specialty is without having to read a single word. If you want to inform that you’re really good at making infographics, then why not making your resume as a nice infographic?  Be creative and harness your abilities.

Some really struggle with the guidelines for resume creation in the art department and then having the resume critique center look at it.  It seems as though there was no common ground, the art department wanted to you be as creative as possible but the resume center said any creative process was distracting.

What is the eliminating factor?  Maybe generic file name? Sending a non-print quality file?  Is it a good idea to make multiples of your resume? Although you should not going to use graphic designer resume when applying for a administrative assistant job.  As always with graphic design you have to keep your audience in mind and as of late when submitting resumes, you have to feel confident that your resume will represent you.  

Have any insight on the topic? 

Writers Block: Conquered!

Alas!

Writers block is a thing of the past, my new children's book will be called:
(Drum Roll Please)

An Interview with a Peanut.

This story will be based on an interview I will conduct with a young girl who has just become a big sister.  She will be asking her newborn brother a series of questions, this will make up the content of the book.

Possible medium considerations are: digital, lithograph, or watercolor.

Parents have always worried about how their children will adjust to a new edition to the family.  It should be a great coping mechanism for growing families.  I feel a strong connection to this book because there has always been an age gap between my younger siblings and myself.

Please leave comments below and let me know your thoughts!

Brand-o-Rama: Exciting Opportunities

First off I have to say that when good things happen, they happen all at once!

Not one, not two, but three design projects all in the same two weeks.  I'm excited to get started, they are all in different stages of production with fast approaching deadlines.  Not to mention three different kinds of companies.

The first being a special events & public relations consultant group called Palette.  As a result of even shorter deadlines, this has already been sent to print, as in business cards and other digital uses.  The colors chosen are light, feathery, and have an airy quality.  For this I used many colors in a swatch collection called 'beach.'  I assume it refers to sea foam, water colors, and the warm soft peachy colors of shells.  For the font I didn't want the style to be distracting so I went with more plain and clean to go with the airy effects of the colors.

The second being a cupcake company called Lucky Duck Cupcakes.  I'm working with a young lady and her mom on developing a brand for her newly designed company making cupcakes.  The logo here is a fun-loving, eclectic, and animated.  The color palette chosen is a cool and saturated blues, purples, red purple, and titanium white.  I want this logo to speak about this young lady and her cupcake driven ambition.  The medium this will be printed on will be stickers, possibly digital use (blog/facebook/twitter/pintrest), and basic business card stock.

The third being an electronic music DJ known as YEGA.  This project I hope to experiment more with different printing surfaces and a symbolic quality to the logo, with that said, more on this particular project at a later date.

Lastly and not least, I've picked today as the day to announce the creation of a new children's book.  The title and details will be released next week but I am quiet enthusiastic about getting back to writing and illustrating books again.  I'm hoping to have it to print by next week (short deadline I know but you'll know why later).

I'd like to take this opportunity to ask my readers to help me expand my reading audience.  It's quiet small, my follower's group and I'd like you help to expand that.  So, if you could kindly re-post the link and spread the word I would greatly appreciate it!

Pin Project

Since being in a term of service with AmeriCorps I've been looking for something else to take up the time of my day.  I'm used to doing so much all day long that I've found that I most evening free.  I've found this a perfect opportunity to network and get myself out into a artistic side of Lansing/East Lansing.

Last week I designed and painted themed bowling pins to be given away as prizes.  I've called it the Pin Project.  The theme for the bowling event was 80s.  Six pins were donated.  These fun prizes were a great addition and added excitement for the teams participating.  Pictures to follow!

Back at the Ranch:
I've been looking to do design projects on the side to improve my portfolio.  So far I have one client who's having me design his business cards for his DJ business.  On the account of the kind of music he produces I'm looking to do some wild ideas and experiment with textures/printing on those surface.

This link has examples of the box I'm trying to break out of.
http://www.crazyleafdesign.com/blog/35-cool-and-inspirational-business-card-designs/

As for music I've been on a steady IV drip of groovy blues, mellow electronic, and this amazing artist called Gotye.  Just working on loosing up my hands to start drawing, sketching, and feeling what it's like to create again.  Getting my ears listening to tunes should help the juices flow.  Hopefully it'll get me in the mood to start creating a cartoon a week.

Coming Soon: cartoons!
A.Cruickshank

The Door is Wide Open

Alas!

It has been a long time since I blogged about my professional life.  I will now take this nugget of time to get you all up to speed.

After a long 4 years at college I graduated after finishing my Scottish Identity class where I spent a month traveling the country learning about the people, their culture, national identity, and personal drive.  I learned many things about how people (myself included) attach themselves to a culture, idea, or country.

On a personal level being Scottish myself I wondered where my family was from or what it would be like if my family had never left.  I'd like to explore making artwork that explores the concept of loss of speech and identity.  I can recall visiting Sabhal Mor Ostaig (a Gaelic speaking college) and I felt removed because even though my heritage places my family there I have no tongue to speak it.  I was removed from my own land and that because I didn't speak it and I didn't belong there.

When growing up I felt the same way with people who spoke Finnish in Michigan's Upper Peninsula (UP). (where I'm from)  They had a home language to speak with family and friends and you just feel like an alien from a different country who looked different and couldn't speak their language.  I felt like such an outsider to a culture I couldn't tap into because of a language barrier.

At Sabhal Mor Ostaig I felt just as removed and that same isolated feeling that I had as a kid.  I tried so hard to speak it, my tongue felt like it had lost all ability and my frustrations with the language swelled.  They told me that the language wasn't like English or German (a language I dabbled in at college).  In addition it would take years to understand it.  I put it on my long list of things I need to explore more.

A excellent book I found at the Scottish record office in Edinburgh relates to this.  It's called 'Glencoe and the Indians' it's about American Indians and the Scottish.  I feel a strong connection to the displacement in this book because of the Scots being removed form the Highlands in the Sutherland Clearances and a displacement of Indians in America in relation to the cultural displacement in my life.  I suspect my family to be removed from the Highlands and my own suspicions of Native American in my blood.

Venture to even further connect the displacement feeling to the Upper and Lower Peninsulas of Michigan.  As a Yooper going to school downstate I have encountered people who maliciously insult my culture as a Yooper.  Examples are: Why don't you crawl back across the border? or  Don't you marry your own cousins up there?  Although I will never forget, You have running water up there?  The Upper Peninsula in Michigan is viewed as England views Scotland.

I envision a typographic related graphic creation on an image of Sabhal Mor Ostaig about feeling displaced.  Even though you are in a place you are disconnected because of a language barrier.  You can travel thousands of miles to get to a place and you should understand because it's in your blood but everything's in a foreign language.

In other realms of life I got a job with AmeriCorps VISTA at Lansing's Mid-Michigan branch of Junior Achievement this past November.  Junior Achievement is program that promotes financial literacy in public school in classrooms K-12.

Being in Lansing has and will help me connect with getting more work related to my field.  I am very much looking forward to it.  As for right now I'd like to keep the craft a live by creating logos or brands for non-profits free of charge. (because I am unable to make any kind of wage in VISTA)  This would be a time for great experience and help work on my portfolio.  For now I have a million concepts to work with and now it's time to focusing in and making a exciting project.

So many things

So as many of you know that I am over in Scotland currently. My stay has been quite enjoyable. As of yet we have stayed in the following places: Berwick, Stonehaven, and now Dunkeld (though just for the evening). The wireless signal has been weak in most parts of this country (which is why I haven't blogged near as much as I would have or rather should have.

We've studied many things including themes of place, belonging, and a enriched resonance of spirit. The sights are inspiring and breath-taking. There are so many things to see and pictures do not capture this place. I feel like taking pictures is almost an insult to the landscape: trying to capture this epic place with my lens. The colors don't speak as well, you can't smell the salty air of the North Sea in the Mearns. Or the electric life of Berwick which has a large town feel with a small town mentality.

Puzzles of Scotland's past speak loudly around every corner, every bend has something to offer you. You touch the ground and you hear the voices of so many peoples come and gone. Standing Stones, Castle ruins, hidden ebbs and flows of the land. Think too quickly and you may just miss a cathedral that Lewis Grassic Gibbon is buried at (along with many a Cruickshank). I wish I could bottle this and give it to my mother: the ultimate mother's day gift of a lifetime.

Cruickshanks of the Past

You are never going to believe what I've found. Birth records, death records, marriage records, immigrant records, of my great-great grandfather Edward F. Cruickshank. His son, Edward W. Cruickshank, his son Albert Cruickshank, who is my grandfather.

I found that he was born in Toronto, Canada. He lived in Midland, MI and was buried in Beaverton, MI with a lot of my other relatives. The trail ends here for now because the obituary I've found doesn't say who his parents were. I have many leads that he may have come from Nova Scotia and that his ancestors are buried in St. Andrew's United Church Cemetery in Elderbank (Formerly Little River). From there I've found on goCruickshanks.com that there are 1,500 other Cruickshanks (with various spellings, ex: Crwikschank) this is a website calling all Cruickshanks!

On GoCruickshanks.com there is an article I found that there were many Cruickshanks in Nova Scotia... as said the listings at the cemetery there in Elderbank. It makes sense because Nova Scotia stands for New Scotland. I can access the passenger lists from Scotland to Nova Scotia but until I can find someone I'm related to I'll just bookmark that tool. (On a side note I did find there is Nova Scotia College of Art and Design. This makes me feel like being an artist was something more then what I was called to do but something I was meant to do. Imagine that they have a MFA program for what I would like to do. There's a thought!)

On a slightly different topic, Cruickshank belongs to the Clan of Steward. This clan has 7 kings of scotland making it the House of Steward, this is the longest house in rule over Scotland until the birth of Mary Queen of Scots. (And I'm geeked because I know who that is cause I own the Elizabethan movies with

Cate Blanchett). I keep trudging forward, there are still so many things I have yet to explore before I leave this Friday to go over there. Yay, royalty and clansmen!

More to come and keeping you posted,

A. Cruickshank