Welcome Crush Fans. We give you yet another designer dedicated to his work and ability to do what he does best, Seth Erickson. From the early days of typesetting with Corel Draw 4, to Art Directing and mentoring teams of agency designers, Seth’s passion for the creative arts has run deep and continues every day. Seth believes the real key has been his excitement for fresh perspectives and new ways of creating. Seth mentions change is the nature of new media, and after 16 years in the industry, he’s thrived on the challenges of harnessing different design styles to create the best solutions for his clients. This has included work for AT&T, Boost Mobile, Kawasaki, Pentagram, Kroger Foods, LG and Cochlear Global. For clients both big and small, Seth has created projects that range from large content sites to flash and motion design, UX/IA, and photography. Regardless of the projects he tackles, all are a bit different and each having something new to teach.
PageCrush is pleased to give you Seth Erickson…
Q. Where are you located?
Phoenix, Arizona
Q. What is your company/business and its purpose?
Kodis Design is a specialty shop that is used as a supplemental service for larger agencies who don’t have their own in house designers. I also work for anyone who pays well. :)
Q. Seth, when did you get into business for yourself, and how long did it take you to make the decision after working fulltime?
I actually started working for myself when I was 14 as a freelance illustrator for a t-shirt company called “A3″ I later worked for “Graphix” the infamous bong makers, and then was hired as a typesetter. The rest is history until 2004 when I took my first full-time position as an Art Director for Juxt Interactive. That was short lived. I loved it-hated it all at the same time. After that I went back to freelancing until 2007 when I was offered a position as Creative Director for a design company called Graphics.net. I worked at that position for a year, then went back to freelancing. I don’t think there’s anything better than working your own schedule and running your business the way you want.
Q. Is the majority of your work catered to local clients or are you recognized on a national or international level?
Most of my work is not local. Many of my clients are on the East Coast which makes for interesting working hours. I also do international work for Cochlear which has offices in Europe, South America, and Australia.
Q. How do you go about getting clients worthy of such big names, such as AT&T, LG and Kawasaki?
Those clients actually came through my studio experience at Juxt Interactive. I also apply for work on a lot of freelance boards which resulted in work for Nascar, Cochlear, Kroger and other big names.
Q. Do you hire out other freelancers for your work if the load becomes too much, or do you solely work alone?
I’ve hired other freelancers to do work on any AS2/3 and CSS/HTML. Know any good action scripters that work for a reasonable rate and are reliable? I need one.
Q. If you work alone, how do you manage your business, heavy loads and the work to be done by yourself?
I manage my business with several software programs. I use Harvest for time tracking and invoicing. I use my iCal for scheduling and Quicken Online for finances. Other than that I do a lot of communication through Skype, email, cell and IM. As for workload…that is usually managed by telling the client a date and time I can start their work. If they’re interested they will usually be flexible.
Q. In the beginning of your career, how did you build your portfolio and what gave your portfolio strengths for clients to admire your work?
I did a lot of work on the cheap, and I worked for Juxt. Studio experience is vitally important to any designer who wants to really understand their craft. After you know the in’s and out’s of a studio you’ll have a better idea of how to run, or not run, your business to get things done.
Q. What are your biggest project(s) to date?
My biggest project to date would either be Kawasaki’s website because it was such a large name brand or Copper Place because I spent almost 300hrs on it . Unfortunately CP is on hold while the housing market is stalled and the backer is able to support the project. I still feel CP is one of my strongest design pieces.
Q. Can you define what your toughest challenges are?
This may sound stupid but I think my biggest issue is overthinking. I tend to stress too much about what I have to do and how to get it done, and if I’m not focused on that, I’m stressed that there’s so much talent out there and that I’m not good enough to stay ahead of the curve. All the other stuff is easy. I guess it’s just my cross to bear.
Q. Do you find thrill in learning new methods for each project and does each project have its own unique approach?
I’m all about learning new methods. I love taking on almost any kind of project because it’s a chance to try or do something new. For the most part I try to take a unique approach to any project even if it’s bland because of a style or scope. Sometimes the more constrained projects turn out the best because you were creative in a narrow space and met the challenge.
Q. How often do you really get to travel for your work and is traveling in itself an inspiration for design and production within your business?
I haven’t needed traveled for work, yet I do travel 2-3 times a year for personal breaks and take a lot of pictures to add to my personal stock collection for clients. I think travel itself is very inspiring. The ability to soak up all of the diverse cultures, and new ways of looking at the world usually has me chomping at the bit to get back to work once the trip is over.
Q. If your work doesn’t require much traveling, what gives you inspiration the most?
I spend a good amount of time online looking at galleries like the FWA and CSS Mania, but more importantly I find that going to the book store gives me an even fresher perspective. Books tend to give you a lot of variety and aren’t always filled with work done solely by web designers. So you usually get a broader spectrum from other forms of media.
Q. It appears you do it all. What’s your most prominent skill that people seek of you the most? Your niche?
Layout seems to be one of the biggest skills people hire me for. I get projects that have extensive wireframes and large amounts of content that needs to be organized and presented in a way that is easy to digest. I am also hired to do a lot of consulting, AI, and UX design.
Q. With your work, what do you hope to achieve in the long run?
I hope to grow to the point that I can sustain an small but agile team of designers and developers who are limited only by creativity. I think 5-7 would be ideal.
Q. How do you think digital multimedia will be in the future?
I think it will continue to diversify. As technology grows so will the need for interfaces and more media to fill these new technological markets. The iPhone, Xbox Live and interactive marques’s are a perfect example of these new media markets.
Q. Any advice you’d like to leave inspired artists and designers with?
Always work to grow. If you keep designing the same way for too long then it’s time for a change. You will never develop or learn something new. Also, read a lot of books so thatyou continue to educate yourself within your field. Too many designer rely on talent but don’t realize that they have no idea how to use a grid, type, or color effectively, thereby only making them half the designer they could be.
Q. Is there anything else you’d like to share that was not covered above?
Yeah, I do a lot of amateur photography that people can check out on my Flirckr page: http://www.flickr.com/photos/setherickson/
PageCrush would like to say:
Seth, your work has talent and inspiration with a touch of always being prompt on your promise. Keep the creative rolling! It has been a pleasure to have you aboard for this review. PageCrush thanks you for your time and dedication.
To view more of Seth Erickson’s work, please visit: www.kodisdesign.com or view his featured site right within the PageCrush archives.
