David Carson

Studying at San Diego State University, David Carson graduated with a BFA in sociology and was ranked top ten as a pro surfer. Starting at the age of 24, Carson got into design while teaching at a west coast high school when a simple advertisement for a design course caught his eye. After that he, studied at a commercial art school in Oregon (Newsweek 1996). David Carson is now a principal and chief director of his own design company, David Carson Design, Inc. with two main studios residing in Del Mar, CA and Zurich, Switzerland. This new designer crossed boundaries in design that have never been heard of in the public face of graphic design. As described in “The Font Youth”, an article published in Newsweek, his style is pure madness from mixing uppercase with lowercase and having hundreds of letters blurred over photographs dubs him as one of the most innovative designers in history. His first printed book, accompanied by Louis Blackwell, titled “The End of Print” was published in 1995 and sold a mere 200,000 copies and it was also translated in five different languages as well. The contents of the book are blatantly described just by the title of it. Essentially the book goes into depth about how print is ending and the new medium of digital has blown print out of the water. The book features specifically exhibitions throughout Europe, Asia, Latin America and Australia.

 In an interview by Layers Magazine, Carson talks about one of his books “The Rules of Graphic Design” and how his inspiration for this publishing related heavily to his studies in Switzerland. It features most of his newest works and the most essential part of the book, the official rules of graphic design. Also in the interview Carson was asked where he finds inspiration. He replied:

My environment always influences me. I’m always taking photos and I believe things I see and experience influence the work. Not directly, but indirectly in some shape or color or something that registers. The ocean has always played a big part in my life, but it’s hard to say exactly what that influence is in regards to the work. But I’m always scanning the environment I’m in, and I’m sure it ends up in the work. I think it’s really important that designers put themselves into the work. No one else has your background, upbringing, life experiences, and if you can put a bit of that into your work, two things will happen: you’ll enjoy the work more, and you’ll do your best work. Otherwise, we don’t really need designers—anyone can buy the same programs and learn to do “reasonable, safe” design.

This quote in particular is the key factor of what a good designer is, Carson couldn’t of said it better himself. Being a well-known graphic designer and typographer, Carson has also branched out into doing television and film where text is the main focus that portrays the message. Although it is a different medium Carson explains that he still approaches the situation as if he was designing for print. Once a pro surfer he is now one of the most influential designers.

Reference List:

 David Carson Design. 2011. Bio, David Carson. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.davidcarsondesign.com/?dcdc=top/s. [Accessed 03 March 11].

Layers Magazine. Chad Neuman. 2007. An Interview With David Carson. [ONLINE] Available at: http://layersmagazine.com/an-interview-with-david-carson.html. [Accessed 06 March 11].

Newsweek. 1996. The Font of Youth. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.newsweek.com/1996/02/25/the-font-of-youth.html. [Accessed 03 March 11].