Interview with:Max R. Scheer [rutiso]
DESIGN
 | What is your specialty? Mostly I do web and graphic design for a wide range of clients. That includes identity design, concept and projektmanagement. |
| Where can we view your portfolio online? You can take a look at http://www.rutiso.net . There are a fiew more on the web but this is the most up to date. |
| What made you interested in design? I like to use good looking things and somehow always wanted to do express my and my clients ideas. Started early in my life with print-production and web design was the consequence with respect to the technical evolution. At the end it's my medium of choice. It's never "finished" you can always test and improve. |
| What has been your professional career path? As said before. I started in the print production area when there were no computers or WYSIWYG. After that I studied in the Netherlands. It helped to learn and explain what I was already doing but couldn't explain yet.
I made a short stop as product designer and team leader of a small graphic team then. During my work for the SWR (broadcast / radio in Germany) I could dig into multi disciplinary work (print/web/concept/tv production). My way continued to a Europe wide Agency where I led a small team as Art Director only and was responsible for multi-language web campaigns.
Now I am freelancing as Art Director for different kinds of brands and clients. |
| Have you received any awards for your work in the field of design? Made the first place in an academy intern project for SMART. We did a brand introduction campaign for the Netherlands. |
| What is your motivation? What makes you get up in the mornings? I love what I am doing. Want to be helpful for my clients and it's my passion. Always looking for ways to improve my skills to get the most out of the subject and medium for my clients. |
| How would you define your design style? Don't actually know if I got a style. I am trying to find the right solution for the need or the audience. At the end I would guess it's more minimal and clean than full colored and illustrative. |
| How do you promote and move your work? I am quite active as "rutiso" on twitter and trying to promote some of my work on different platforms but mostly it's word of mouth and networking. |
| In which new areas would you like to experiment? Not getting stuck in old manners and be open for new things is my way of an experiment. Learning as much as I can and evolve my style. |
| Shapes, color, concept: where do you usually begin when conceiving a design? Depends on the subject. Sometimes it's just an idea, a thought or a feeling that drives the design. Sometimes you have to get down to the nuts and bolts to find an interesting aspect. There is no "one-way" option. It's about being able to stand beside and watch from different angles. |
| What are your sources for documentation and to generate ideas? My life is my source of ideas. The web, books and inspiring talks to other designers are contributing too. |
| What is your favourite type of customer? The one that has a clear view on what his goals are. The one that knows, that his own taste might not be the taste of his audience. The client that you can talk and argue with to achieve a more brilliant product/design. |
| To a certain point, is copying justifiable? It's not about copying. It's about being inspired and push the learned and seen things further. You will always reinterpret and never actually "copy" pixel by pixel.
Sure there are things like icons, symbols and patterns (usability) that are "learned" and widely used - in this case the need to reinvent the wheel a 2nd or 3rd time isn't the weapon of choice. |
| List some things you dislike seeing in design. Things that don't communicate.
Things that don't work for the audience.
Things that disrespect people in a cruel way. |
| Do you believe the newer generations are better at designing? The principles stay the same just the options of expressing them change. It's getting easier to do something but not easier to do brilliant things.
They do it in a different way. That's not better or worse. They try to fit into an existing to world with the drive to change it. That's awesome. |
| With which type of client would you decline in working for? Clients that doesn't fit into my world of thoughts. Clients that disrespect me and my opinions. |
| How do you calculate budgets for a design project? Good work takes time. The rest is experience. Sometimes there are projects that aren't billable but give you exposure or any other benefit - that's fine.
At the end I have to pay my bills like everyone and can't work for a handshake. So I have to count up the hours and get payed for the work I have done. |
| Which professionals in your field -contemporary or past- do you most admire? I admire good work. Work that fits it's needs. I am not that focused on "who made" it. |
| Which software applications do you most utilize in your work? At the moment it's all about Adobe. At the end I use everything that helps achieving my goal, no matter what program or technique it may be. |
| Up to what point do your designs reflect your personality? It's always a part of mine. A thought, a feeling or a conviction. But somewhen you have to stand back and let go. Otherwise your work won't get better than yourself. And this would be a major draw back. |
| How do you distinguish passing fads from mainstays in new trends? It's a matter of like and dislike, a matter of time. You can spot good trends but you might fail at it. But not to try is even worse. |
| If you weren't a designer, what would you be doing? Guess I would be chef or something like that. Actually I never asked this question cause what I do is my profession … it's me and my passion. |
| At this moment, what would be your dream job or project? Every project has got it's own charm. Every job got it's own highlights. So when it's traveling the world and working for different clients … hell, yeah, I am in. |
| Can you see yourself in this field twenty years from now? Can you spot what's dominant in twenty years? Go, get your money and invest it.
No, but I am sure it will have to do with design or something likewise. |
| Which design resources online do you frequently visit? My feedreader ;) - That's up to date and the feeds are changing every once in a while. So, no ... there are no special resources on the web. It's the web I visit. |
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Max R. Scheer
Berlin, Germany
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