Drawing by The Dripping Rain

Melamun dalam Hujan

Hari Minggu ujan, besar dan menderu-deru, plus kilat menyambar, bikin anjing saya ketakutan ngintil terus ke mana-mana. Jalanan basah, daun-daun rontok, dan langit gelap sekali, jam 2 kaya jam 5. Rumah waktu itu lagi sepi, semua pergi kecuali suami yang asik main game komputer. Setelah 2 minggu yang hectic, enak banget, ngelamun dalam gelap liat air ujan mengguyur bikin basah semuanya... Rasanya seperti kekusutan dalam kepala ini diurai rapi lepas teratur.

Lazy Friday Scribble

Jakarta starts to get cloudy and cooler this week. It makes waking up is quite a challenge since atmosphere is so lazy and comfortable to become a sloth. Today I woke very late, 10.30 AM, the record breaking!

I started the day with only half of my spirit like usual, thinking it's Friday and it's already the second week I worked very hard, efficiently and effectively with my best performance ever, but the works still a lot to be done. And I don't really enthusiastic welcoming the weekend tomorrow, I bounded to prepare the presentation for Wednesday presentation. So it means no free Saturday.

The meeting with the big client turned out to be a usual meeting. The client's representative is a guy at around the same age as us. He's a nice relaxing guy who acts in a friendly and helpful manner. We're quite lucky to have him as a connecting guy. Anyway, it's proved again that my fear is always bigger that the actual situation and condition. Sometimes I hate the way I worry about everything. Lucky, I have a bold and optimism husband that push me for always take a step further. 'Take the job first, then think how to do it', like he always said. On the other hand when he becomes too reckless, it's my turn to calm him, make him to think deeper and consider the consequences. We complete each other.

Currently I check the catalog proof print before it's printed. After that, I must work for the company profile as one of the requirements for closing up the deal with the big client.

I should be happy with all these loads, they means more cash to replace our losing money in stocks. But why oh why, I feel lost and drained, that so hard for me to feel grateful for all I have?

Too Many Loads, Too Little Time, and an Inspiration Shortage

Tomorrow afternoon I have to meet this signage client who wants to speed up the design process since many of our design alternatives still haven't meet his boss's expectation. We'll do an on site revisions.

This job is one of the most toughest job ever for following reasons:
1. Making signage actually is not our expertise, but there's always the first time for everything, right?
2. The feedback is always poor. The decision maker, aka. the boss is a kind like a god who's never been seen, talk little & vague, but need to be understand completely.
3. The procedure is complicated. Since they are a magnanimous company, so many rule to follow before we can get work.

I sooo malesss to meet him. I should make two alternatives for Mr. E's blank cards, but I guess I need an extra energy for tomorrow, and after, in case my photographer client need his ad to be revised. He's also so picky and I'm quite loaded by his project. For the coming week, I've already had his stationary and website draft to be done, a draft of agenda for a shipping company, and another wedding book draft to be prepared for presentation.

Arrgh, so many things fill up my head !!! :((( Want to clean them up just in one blew but I don't have an energy and enough inspiration to work on them over and over till night. On 7 or 8 pm I lost my focus and work slower. Working till midnight will deteriorate my energy, make me to get up late. It can happen for a few days before I get to my normal waking hour.

Since I start my own graphic design company, I rarely feel graphic design is fun. I just simply think it's just work need to be done. It' showed in my works. I, personally, saw my works lately have lost theirs edge and warmth. I used to think that good design should astonish the audience. The design with blood, I used to say.

Actually it makes me quite sad since I've ever been in a time when I felt very thankful for being graphic designer.

Well, I know, I know, the reason is I can't work alone, I need to be helped. Maybe next year when we've already recruited someone, I can get more relax and fall in love again, passionately with graphic design.

My Therapy

I promise to Mr. E to give his blank card design today. It's a batik motive, die cut, half of A5 size. He wants to show it to one of his friend, the famous kebaya and cloth maker in Indonesia (I found her showroom in Singapore, but I forgot which mall). If she agreed to make my designs, I'm sure, it will be one of my beautiful portfolios.

Beside that, I've already long tired of my computer with all it's digitized tools that make a line straight 100% and everything you made clean & precision. So the prospect to make some organic form with it's perfect imperfection, got me really excited. I've already started the illustration, happy & optimistic.

I think, it's a theurapetic moment I should have after long hectic weekend crowded with heartless money-interest jobs.

Anneli Olander

I found this art prodigy through one graphic studio website in USA.
She's amazing, very gifted and pretty, too.
Her signature is cool, full of humor but very creative.



Check her out: http://www.anneliolander.com

Tellin' me about your company

We get this giant client by luck. They even didn't asked our portfolio to work on their sign system job. Along with the process of finalize the contract, they asked our company profile.

And here comes the problem... We don't have any. Making the profile a good piece of art work is easy. But making up our history etc. is quite a challenge since we're only two years company with no employee except me and my husband.

Actually we've planned to hire someone, buy a computer, build our website, BUT... after the financial calamity that drain our saving, we have to hold the plan and start from zero to build our financial strength again.

Anyway, what I've to do is only make one simple company profile, one that not too proud, but not too insecure, too.

I'll back later to show the result :D

Another obstacles, and I kept spirited!

Kemarin malam saya kerja dari jam 9 pagi sampai jam 11 malam untuk bikin 3 aplikasi logo klien saya. Karena ngerasa ngga jago-jago amat buat logo, saya sudah mendedikasikan banyak waktu dan konsentrasi saya pada proyek ini supaya klien saya puas. Akhirnya jadi juga 3 aplikasi stationary yang menurut saya 'my best stationary designs, ever'

But the client apparently didn't have the same admiration like me. He just ditched all the alternatives and asked me to develop new versions. He even kicked my dearest alternative.

Rasanya semua jam-jam yang saya dedikasikan langsung jadi abu. Ini kalo 'mellow mode' :P

What's truly happens is I still has'nt give up yet. My years as graphic designer has taught me that client's rejection is part of the design process. Any comments from client are valuable inputs to develop further. We, graphic designers, must respect clients.

Tapi jangan bego juga, telan semua mentah-mentah. Cari tau lebih detail apa mau dia sebenernya.

Seperti yang saya akan lakukan bentar lagi, tapi telpon ngga nyambung-nyambung juga :P

Oh, I have another discouraging news: Our client that we thought will add a large sum of our money this year just said that they cancelled the project. We assumed they preferred someone else.

Well, I started today with not so bright day like days before, but I keep my head up & my mind clear, gracefully accept all good and bad as part of the life cycle all humans must experience.