The Art Department took place in Eindhoven on April 16 and 17. It’s a festival centered on film, animation, and games, where both the final product and the creative process take center stage. During talks, workshops, and panel discussions, questions, choices, and doubts emerged that are highly relatable within our design practice.
What stood out most: strong design work rarely arises from endless references or trends. It stems from constraints, personal experience, and a conscious process. Not as inspiration in and of itself, but as a way to arrive at one’s own perspective.
The speakers' unique approach
- Pernille Ørum launched an illustration project based on colors from her immediate surroundings: rocks, shells, and plants. This limitation naturally led to a coherent and authentic palette.
- Cat Johnston also draws inspiration from her own world. Themes such as allergies, sunburn, or insomnia are not obstacles, but starting points for work that is both personal and relatable. She even turns them into gods, creating an interesting tension.
- According to Nathan Fowkes, the value lies not in how complex or simple a work appears, but in the journey toward it. He referred to the process of Willem de Kooning and Mark Rothko: abstract expressionism is not a stylistic choice, but the result of a long quest. It is not about taste, but about understanding the process behind the choice.
- That same idea came up again with Lip Comarella. He emphasized the importance of “density of expertise”: small, multidisciplinary teams with short feedback loops and direct communication. He called that approach “creative velocity”—teams that can pivot quickly because they work closely together.
It is striking how these insights go against the way creative work is often produced today. The reflex to draw inspiration from design blogs or to endlessly scroll through content within the same industry rarely leads to anything new. On the contrary: we are seeing the same designs more and more often, among both American and European brands, despite their completely different contexts and target audiences.
Need for a personal frame of reference
What’s missing is a personal frame of reference. Work that draws on your surroundings, interests, and experiences becomes not only more personal but also harder to copy. And that’s precisely where the difference lies between work that feels generic and work that sticks with you.
The Art Department makes it clear that it’s not about more inspiration, but about better input. Not about producing faster, but about consciously building a process that leads to something unique, to work that remains relevant, even in the long term.
