American Operational Guide Book Vol. 1

Beth Mathews August 21, 2018

I once went to a Trump rally in protest of the refugee ban. There was a Trump supporter there who was "Facebook live streaming" us and she put her camera on me and my friend. She said into the camera "just look at them...none of them are wearing red, white, or BLUE!". I thought it was funny at the time. I think there's this narrative in Fox News world that "liberals" aren't American enough. So this liberal here has been making "American Operational Guide Book" posts where we review different aspects of the U.S. Government each week. They're for everyone. Liberals and conservatives. So this is for you "red, white and blue" lady.

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There have been so many times in my career when I’ve been so burnt out as a graphic designer that I just wanted to toss my computer into the sea. It would feel as though my brain couldn’t think of one more idea or that I couldn’t handle one more piece of feedback. I know I’m not alone in these feelings, and I also know how lucky I am that I get to make art for a living. It’s been both things all along. Around 12 years ago, I started making designs for fun in the mornings before work, and it felt like self-imposed art therapy. I figured out that if I could give myself some time to express all of these thoughts, memories, and sparks of inspiration swirling around, I’d be a better person to others and to myself the rest of the day. A lot of this personal work came in the form of storytelling through “graphic props” and intensely studying work from past designers. And magically, nearly all of my current work has come because of those personal projects. I think magic happens when the restraints are lifted and you allow yourself to create for the sake of creating. (Again, how lucky!) I’m posting this because I’d like to start having in-person design workshops where it’s a space to feel that sense of design freedom and excitement. I want to host a two-day workshop where we work with physical pieces of vintage ephemera (postcards, matchbooks, old forms, and pamphlets! Oh my!), learn how to use those references to inform our designs, I’d walk through and teach my design methods, and then have a working session to let the ideas fly. What do you think? Would you come?