#FastCoDesign – Brilliant Words Of Advice From 14 Great Graphic Designers

It’s late in the day, you’ve been working on a project for weeks, and you’re stumped. The client meeting is in hours, and you’ve got tons of ideas, none of which seem to be quite right. Then, self-doubt creeps in: What made you think you could do this in the first place?

Did [insert design great here] have creative blocks? The short answer is yes.

“The nature of process, to one degree or another, involves failure. You have at it. It doesn’t work. You keep pushing. It gets better. But it’s not good. It gets worse. You got at it again. Then you desperately stab at it, believing “this isn’t going to work.” And it does!”
–Saul Bass

“I read once about the concepts of a lateral idea and the vertical idea. If you dig a hole and it’s in the wrong place, digging it deeper isn’t going to help. The lateral idea is when you skip over and dig someplace else.
–Seymour Chwast”

“It is important to use your hands. This is what distinguishes you from a cow or a computer operator.”
–Paul Rand

“Imitate. Don’t be shy about it. Try to get as close as you can. You’ll never get all the way, and the separation might be truly remarkable.”
–Bruce Mau

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