Shaun Fillmore, Interactive Design

It is so much easier for me to list off influences rather than mentors when it comes to design. It is difficult to come up with someone I would consider a mentor. I would have to say, however, that an instructor named Chuck (think Gene Hackman with a mustache) was the closest thing to a design mentor to me. He is the kind of guy that is passionate about design and was always ready with pencil and tracing paper overlay to show you how you can improve your work (but only if you wanted to know). He is the kind of man who made you earn his respect.

Anyone who was in one of his classes will remember the phrase “distort the frame.”

As for true mentors… that distinction belongs to Sid Molenaar (He is husband to Cheryl – who Bryna mentioned in her post). The writing of this post comes at an interesting time for me. I have been reflecting on my relationship with Sid and the impact that he has had on my life. You see I am turning the age that Sid was when I first met him. Actually the first time I met him was at his surprise birthday party.

Sid made a point of taking me under his wing. He is an intense guy and has the ability to see potential in you and bring it out. I guess that is what good mentors do. Thanks Sid. I still want to be like you when I grow up.

Getting back to design – I thought I would let you all in on some of those influences I referred to.

Joseph Müller-Brockmann (One of the pioneers of the Swiss Typographic style and creator of the grid system for graphic Design) you can see a few examples here

Alphonse Mucha (Best known for his posters – incredible illustrator and painter. One of the most recognizable artists from the French Art Nouveau) see some of his work here

Paul Rand (Best known for his logo designs – such as ABC, UPS and IBM) see his site here

There are many more, but these are the ones that spring to mind first. Perhaps I can talk about some other more current influences another time.

Shaun Levy, President/Art Director

Of course so many people are influences in our lives, but there are always a select few that really impact it–True mentors. For me it was a professor at George Brown College, Charles Fisch, RGD. None of the students really liked him, and ironically enough, neither did I until years later.

It was only after looking back on my schooling that I realized what valuable skills and lessons he had taught me. The importance of preparation, planning and research involved in creating effective design.

Some of these steps seemed like a waste of time when I could be saving the world one awesome design at a time. But it was exactly these processes that enabled me to maximize my efforts, and come up with well developed design concepts.

For most design students it is all about how good your final design piece is, but he wanted to see the process–the thumbnail sketches, the roughs, and that the files were properly constructed in the proper programs. He would always say that it didn’t matter how “pretty” the design was if it couldn’t go to prepress and be printed. So now after being in the industry for about 15 years and working in many different roles from a Junior Designer to now owning my own company, I can say thank you Charles Fisch for all the tedious work that paid off!

Three of My Favourite Resources for Design Inspiration:

1. Communications Arts—all things communication, arts, design, photogrpahy. You name it, it’s there.
2. Colour Lovers-monitors and influences colour trends in design. Really cool site.
3. Creattica–news, design, branding, and more.

Today in her daily newsletter, Commentz, Sarah Evans, PR expert, guest speaker, and all around inspiring gal, offered the following question:

Who is your PR mentor/greatest source of inspiration? This person could be the reason you got into the field or someone who has helped you develop your skills…or has the job you aspire to.

Funny enough, this topic was really timely for a couple reasons:

Yesterday I actually met a woman, Cheryl Molenaar, who’s been inspiring me from across the country for the past two years. I’d never met her, and we’d never actually spoken (!) but there are just some people who’s words and deeds transcend all barriers. The funniest thing was that when we were introduced, she told me that I’d inspired her through my work! (Gratuitous hugging ensued, and also a really great connection for some future projects.)

Another moment came  last week when I was invited to speak at my alma mater, Loyalist College, by one of my mentors, Robert Kranendonk. I was with his group of Art & Design students, and I was really hoping that I would have something to give. I’m a writer, not a designer. But the wonderful thing about creative careers is that a lot of the concepts cross borders, and we ended up having a great (two hour long) discussion.

What I’ve learned about mentoring over the past week is that as much as we look up to others, sometimes we inspire them too. I think the underlying, core value of mentoring is mutual respect.

Kathy Filo

In Commentz, Sarah asked us to blog about our mentors. I thought this was a terrific opportunity to showcase some of the people in the lives of the Engine staff, who’ve made a huge impact.  All week long, we’ll be featuring our team and their mentors on the blog. We’d love to hear who inspires you too!

If you don’t know Kathy, she’s our Production Design Coordinator, and she gave us a taste of her design work on the blog, right here. With over 12 years in design, print production, and customer service, Kathy’s experience makes her an invaluable part of the Engine team.

Here’s what she had to say about her mentor, Larry Storing:

It’s funny that Bryna should ask us today who our mentors in business are. A couple of months ago I ran in to my mentor, Larry Storing, at the grocery store. I told him exactly this – that I truly consider him to be my mentor in business. I felt great telling him because I could see that he was proud.

I worked closely with Larry in bindery and prepress/finishing operations for over seven years in Trenton at DL Advertising Inc. before moving on to The Easier To Read Telephone Directory, Essence, Design Guys and now Engine. He was both patient and fun to work with, and he considered me to be one of his peers (being a female in a male-dominated environment, I really appreciated that).

Everything I learned at Mohawk College (I have a Graphic Art Production Co-ordinator Diploma) I put into practice with Larry: dark room camera work, film stripping, platemaking, folding, numbering, trimming, booklet-making, quoting, you name it. I did it. To this day it is that invaluable experience which I take with me every day when I design and quote on jobs for print.

Thank you, again Larry for giving me the tools I needed to succeed in our industry.