We, as the Designer Interviews ("DI") had the distinct pleasure and opportunity to interview award-winning, most creative and innovative Qichao An ("QA").
Chinese brand designer, director of WHDS Wuhan Designer Salon, member of Design Special Committee of Wuhan Advertising Association, member of ICVA International Visual Art Council, member of International Youth Art Design Association, founder and design director of Mornice Brand Design. With more than ten years of professional brand planning and design experience, he has won more than 50 domestic and foreign design awards, and has created an original brand design methodology: super focus = super brand. Adhering to the concept that design is a kind of constantly asking people questions, finding and reaching solutions, inheriting ingenuity, and making designs with warmth and emotion.
Qichao An Designs
We are pleased to share with you original and innovative design work by Qichao An.
Qichao An Design - Ideamix Lab Drink Packaging
Qichao An Design - Gojaming Juice Packaging
Designer Interview of Qichao An:
DI: Could you please tell us more about your art and design background? What made you become an artist/designer? Have you always wanted to be a designer?
QA : I have been working as a graphic designer in China for more than 10 years. Since I was a child, I iked various types of artistic creation, and I have been active and uninterrupted, which has laid a solid foundation for becoming a designer. During my university, I used to intern ina few professional design companies and 4A-level advertising companies, which added a wealth of experience and knowledge to my design career. 5 years later, I set up my own independent studio, specializing in brand logo design and product packaging design, which is also the main advantage of our studio. I love design work, it brings me endless joy and satisfaction, and I hope I can keep going.
DI: Can you tell us more about your company / design studio?
QA : After a long period of accumulation and precipitation, I established my own design studio - Mornice Design. The studio is committed to providing innovative aesthetic design solutions based on strategic thinking,under the principle of "reduce the cost of marketing and communication ,prevent useless effort for customer."We aim to combine customer needs with market perspective, combine visual aesthetics with brand strategic marketing; provide customized designs that meet the connotation of the enterprise for customers.
DI: What is "design" for you?
QA : I think design is a way to solve problems, it can better help people's lives. Design work is not a kind of artistic creation but should be find and solve problems. Design should be a system with a complete logical process, and design should not distinguish between beauty and ugliness, only whether it is suitable or not.
DI: What kinds of works do you like designing most?
QA : Early in my career, I preferred designs in impactful and colorful style, and as I grew and gained experience, I started trying with different styles. Therefore, I believe that design works should be diverse, innovative and creative.
DI: What is your most favorite design, could you please tell more about it?
QA : I like a variety of challenging designs, but personally I prefer logo design and packaging design.
DI: What was the first thing you designed for a company?
QA : My company name is Mornice Design, and the first work I designed for the company was our company logo.
DI: What is your favorite material / platform / technology?
QA : My favorite material is paper, paper is the tool for writing, drawing and printing.
DI: When do you feel the most creative?
QA : My most creative time is late at night because I like quiet and it brings me a lot of inspiration.
DI: Which aspects of a design do you focus more during designing?
QA : I think every detail in the design process is important, whether it's images, text, brand logo or even some explanatory text on the side of the packing, it's equally significant to the overall design aesthetic.
DI: What kind of emotions do you feel when you design?
QA : It's a very complex emotion with confusion, exploration, positivity, exciting, joy, pride, etc.
DI: What kind of emotions do you feel when your designs are realized?
QA : The realization of each design work is as excited and happy as the birth of my child.
DI: What makes a design successful?
QA : I think successful design depends on many factors, such as the designer's design ability, the customer's acceptance, the consumer's preference, etc., but I think the most important of these factors is the design itself, excellent design can always be stand out and touch people's hearts.
DI: When judging a design as good or bad, which aspects do you consider first?
QA : I will not judge any design work good or not, it is not absolute, it is only a staged result.
DI: From your point of view, what are the responsibilities of a designer for society and environment?
QA : As a designer, first of all, it is very important to have professional ethics,do not to copy and plagiarize others’ work.Secondly, I think that while getting paid, designers should take on the responsibility of improving social aesthetics, so that more excellent design works can be presented to the public. We alsoneed to take care of the environment, protect our earth, and try to choose environmentally friendly and renewable materials.
DI: How do you think the "design field" is evolving? What is the future of design?
QA : This is an interesting question. With the development and progress of the social, AI have gradually replaced people's work in many fields, there is no exceptionin design industry. We can see more and more AI-synthesized images, which bring more challenges to designers. With higher requirements, we need to constantly be innovating and changing. I believe that the design industry will not be replaced by AI, but closer and more frequently cooperate with AI.
DI: When was your last exhibition and where was it? And when do you want to hold your next exhibition?
QA : I am very honored to be able to exhibit my works in the A´Design Award & Competitions. Currently, my tenth anniversary design exhibition worksis in preparation, and I will meet it soon. I also hope that I can create more excellent design works and participate in the exhibition of A´Design Award & Competitions.
DI: Where does the design inspiration for your works come from? How do you feed your creativity? What are your sources of inspirations?
QA : All design inspiration comes from our lives. Your attitude towards life determines the quality of your design works. At the same time, you need to have a keen insight into the things surround you. I often look at design works in different roles, how do students think about the design, how do housewives think about this design, etc. From different viewpoints, it can bring new design inspiration and ideas.
DI: How would you describe your design style? What made you explore more this style and what are the main characteristics of your style? What's your approach to design?
QA : y design style should be clean, uncluttered, minimalist, I think this design style can be deeply rooted and never goes out of style, people always like simple, clean design, which makes people feel comfortable.
DI: Where do you live? Do you feel the cultural heritage of your country affects your designs? What are the pros and cons during designing as a result of living in your country?
QA : I was born in China, which has a long history and cultural heritage. Of course our country's cultural heritage will influence our designs. Calligraphy, traditional Chinese painting, architecture and other cultural products with Chinese characteristics provide a wealth of inspiration for our design. With the opening up and development of China, our designs are becoming more international and modern on the basis of retaining Chinese characteristics.
DI: How do you work with companies?
QA : We are happy to cooperate with those customers who share the same goals and pursuits with us. We will sign a formal cooperation agreement, and everyone will abide by it. After we start working together, we will provide a detailed schedule, so that everyone can clearly understand what needs to be done at what time. Sometimes we discusses online, but more often we stay in our studio, face-to-face communication can let us better understand everyone's ideas.
DI: What are your suggestions to companies for working with a designer? How can companies select a good designer?
QA : Like any other industry, communication is always the premise and foundation of cooperation, good communication will greatly improve design efficiency. As we mentioned before, there is no "good" design, only "suitable" design. When choosing a designer, companies should also consider whether the designer is the most "suitable" designer for the project. Trust the selected designer, and both parties work together to make the most "suitable" design.
DI: Can you talk a little about your design process?
QA : Before starting the design work, I will consult various materials of the project industry, ask the experts in the industry, and listen to their opinions. After the research completed, I will start to draw sketches, including the general shape, color, typesetting, etc., and then discuss the design sketches with our team in the studio, clarify the direction of the design ideas, then start the specific design work. In the design, I will consider every detail as much as possible to ensure the quality of the design.
DI: What are 5 of your favorite design items at home?
QA : Dyson hair dryer and vacuum, iMac, Thermos bottle, Paperblanks retro notebook
DI: Can you describe a day in your life?
QA : Firstly,I will check the schedule for the day and complete the work tasks in chronological order. I set myself daily goals that motivate me to do better designs. After work, I will spend as much time as possible with my family, because family is aways the source of inspiration for my life.
DI: Could you please share some pearls of wisdom for young designers? What are your suggestions to young, up and coming designers?
QA : This is a good question. Young designers must focus on the things they loved and observed and think about the things around them. Repeatedly practice, enhance your design ability, try different design styles, and find the style that is most suitable and good at. Prepare a beautiful portfolio that includes different types of designs, such as font design, logo design, packaging design, poster design, etc. This will get you a good job and pay.
DI: From your perspective, what would you say are some positives and negatives of being a designer?
QA : You can make good design works to enhance the value and make your works accepted by people. This will be a great self-satisfaction and a positive side. On the negative side, many times we need to make compromises, whether based on the client or ourselves, which make the design look less than perfect.
DI: What is your "golden rule" in design?
QA : I always follow my design principle of less is more, reducing unnecessary decoration and design elements as much as possible, presenting simple and beautiful design works as much as possible.
DI: What skills are most important for a designer?
QA : I think the most important skill of a designer is observation, not only observation of design works, but also observation of our surrounding environment. Of course, design techniques are also necessary. Without good technical performance, it is difficult to present excellent design works.
DI: Which tools do you use during design? What is inside your toolbox? Such as software, application, hardware, books, sources of inspiration etc.?
QA : Adobe software's Illustrator and Photoshop are my commonly used design software, and hand-drawn tools such as pencil and oil pastel also help me a lot. I think design software is just a tool, more importantly your ideas and inspiration.
DI: Designing can sometimes be a really time consuming task, how do you manage your time?
QA : I'm a designer who works strictly to the schedule, with a detailed schedule at the beginning of a project, specifying when and what to do. The client also knows exactly when the proposal will take place and when the print production will be completed.
DI: How long does it take to design an object from beginning to end?
QA : This depends on the difficulty of the design and the cooperation of the client. Every project is different, so the design cycle is also different. Of course, if inspiration comes soon, the time will be greatly shortened.
DI: What is the most frequently asked question to you, as a designer?
QA : The frequently question is how to come up with the design idea and how much would I get paid.
DI: What was your most important job experience?
QA : When I just graduated from university and was looking for a job in an strange city alone. Although it was difficult, this experience helped me a lot. Start with the simplest and most basic design work, understand and grow step by step. Let me know what I'm holding on to and what I aspire to achieve.
DI: Who are some of your clients?
QA : Our clients come from different industries, ranging from well-known large companies to small start-up companies. The industry covers health, medical, food, technology, industry, media, etc. For a common goal, we come together.
DI: What type of design work do you enjoy the most and why?
QA : Creating new brands with clients is always exciting, and it's my favorite type of work, just like a mother raising her own child.
DI: What are your future plans? What is next for you?
QA : I will still insist on designing excellent works and hope to become the top designer in the world. Also hope to cooperate with customers in different counties of the worldwide.
DI: Do you work as a team, or do you develop your designs yourself?
QA : It depends on different projects, some are done by me alone, and some projects need to be done by our team.
DI: Do you have any works-in-progress being designed that you would like to talk about?
QA : Fortunately, I am doing some interesting designs now, the cooperation of the client requestis very high. I hope that this excellent work can be recognized by A' Design Award and Competitions again soon.
DI: How can people contact you?
QA : You can contact me through my email qichaoan.design@gmail.com, or visit my website: http://www.anqichao.com, the website will have some detailed cases and our way of doing things.
DI: Any other things you would like to cover that have not been covered in these questions?
QA : I’m thrilled to be a part of A' Design Award and Competitions and looking forward to shing or be inspired by great ideas and outstanding talents. Acknowledgment from A' Design will be a great recognition of hard work and brilliant minds for all the designers out there. Winning A' Design Award means a lot in the industry and I want to see that in my portfolio.