How to Always Stay Inspired as an Art Director
Your guide for endless inspiration and references at your fingertips
It’s the new year, time to step up your inspiration game. My personal ‘out’ for 2024 is relying on Pinterest for ideas and inspiration. This year we create our own database, organised, endless and intentionally random to get to the next level of creativity and creating work that feels more personal to ourselves.
Number 1
Create a tab with inspiring artists. If needed, you can create different tabs for clients you work for and one with your personal style. For example, if you have Nike as a client make sure you have a list of creators that fit the style, have sportswear experience or have a vibe that you’d like to merge with the brand. Revisit these tabs regularly and stay updated with their recent work.
Number 2
Follow these artists on social media, if needed, create a separate ghost account where you just follow people that inspire you so work and personal life doesn’t get mixed up, also follow the people they follow and see who they get inspired by.
Number 3
Subscribe to newsletters, read articles on topics that inspire you, look up the journalist or writer and find out who else they write for, who they follow to get first hand resource and get down in a rabbit hole.
Number 4
Actually read coffee table, photography- and art books. These books are often purchased for aesthetic reasons, but the texts up front tell so much about the process of the art and its inspiration. Get inspired by how others get inspired. My favourite places to find art- and design books are Climax books, Super Labo, MACK, Mendo, Assouline and any local bookstore when travelling.