Design by Paula Scher
I'm not a fan of using quotations, generally. The former English teacher in me believes that adding a quotation is a little bit like starting an essay with the dictionary definition of love, or whatever. I feel like it's akin to stock photography in design, a piece you don't own in your own work.
To clarify, for any fifteen year-old working on a paper who may be reading this blog (okay, the odds are low, but I can dream, as that's a fun demographic), I'm not talking about quotations that support an argument. You've got to have those. I'm talking about decoration, or a place to start when you don't know where to start and so you let someone else's words do it for you.
I suppose I can concede that there is a universality to quotations, that it is nice way to get outside voices to support your claim and to use those famous names as a sort of education. Like someone may think, Who's that? They must be important if they're quoted here. I think I'll Google them...
This relates to Paula Scher because I was asked to find a quotation for a new brochure we're working on. I went looking for something that came out of her mouth or pen or keyboard or whatever, because I like her populist ways and design.
Here are three things she said that I like:
“Be culturally literate, because if you don't have any understanding of the world you live in and the culture you live in, you're not going to express anything to anybody else.”
“It took me a few seconds to draw it, but it took me 34 years to learn how to draw it in a few seconds.”
"The thing that's most to be feared, is doing the same thing over and over again."
Also, in the course of this research, I found this inspiring albeit brief article about Paula.
I suppose this post is full of mixed messages: Don't use quotations! Here are three quotations!
Ah, such is life.
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