Day 4 in New York, and what a lovely day it is! I can't believe how fast this trip is going so far, though I have been busy. I feel like I haven't really seen much of the city because of dashing about to meetings, and spending large periods of time in one place. However, today I plan to spend a chunk of the day relaxing, and exploring downtown. I don't have a particular plan, I just want to wander and take photos - let's see what I find! Before any exploration, I have a 10am meeting at Pearlfisher (HOW EXCITING!!).
Pearlfisher, based in London, New York, Copenhagen and San Francisco, is a strategic creative and brand design agency, that build the world's most desirable brands. They have an impressive roster of clients, including: Cadbury, Starbucks, Reeves, Havana Club, Jamie Oliver, Jim Beam, and Ben & Jerry's. I'm beyond excited to have a portfolio review with Pearlfisher today, as the branding/packaging for many of their clients, are among my favourites that enamoured me as a child, and still do today.
Pearlfisher
Pearlfisher NY is housed in a pretty unassuming building, pretty much identical to those along the street - Broadway, in fact. There is no flashy sign on the exterior, and no exterior branding, besides a small logo on a shared door into a foyer. Because of this, we accidentally took the stairs up to the backs of the businesses, and knocked on the back door of Pearlfisher. In typical Falmouth style, you could say. The office is sleek and modern, yet isn't a sterile white environment like some modern office spaces. It is filled with artwork, a social atmosphere - designers work in an open plan space, not separate offices, much like our studio back in Falmouth. Welcoming us in, our hosts, Kasi and Kitman, showed us to a briefing room, and gave us an insight into the company.
Kasi and Kitman rotated around the table, and saw us one by one, though it was far less formal than The Society of Illustrators. It was more a small discussion, as my peers listened and watched as each person had their review. We discussed:
The design portfolio - aim to show process, as well as product
At Pearlfisher, you must be a team player, and and contribute to the process - being in your junior years should not put you off from giving your insight into the project.
Don't be precious about your work, be open to feedback as this will help you improve.
On my portfolio:
More packaging projects - the ones I have currently are great, and this is an area I am strong in and should develop further.
Continue working on projects you love - it is clear which work I am passionate about.
Including mock-ups in my portfolio was wise, as this gave it a professional edge.
Work with more text - become more familiar with the relationship it has with imagery.
When leaving the meeting, and Pearlfisher, we exchanged business cards, and I of course, left my pack of goodies. This went down particularly well with the team! Another good meeting on the books, and a great start to the day.
The White Horse Tavern
Following my meeting at Pearlfisher, I had a free day. After a little research, I only had one goal: to visit The White Horse Tavern. The White Horse Tavern is known for being one of the few major gathering-places for writers and artists from 1950s and 1960s Bohemian culture in Greenwich Village. The bar opened in 1880, and was known more as a dock-worker's bar, than a literary hub until famous Welsh poet, Dylan Thomas (and other writers), began frequenting it in the early 1950s. Thomas is said to have found The Tavern reminiscent of his favourite haunts in his home country of Wales. I was delighted at this fact, and having not been in Wales for over 3 months, this was very much something to look forward to.
In November of 1953, Thomas beat his own personal record by downing eighteen shots of whiskey. Soon after his last drink, he stumbled outside, and collapsed on the pavement. He was taken to the Chelsea Hotel and there fell into a coma; the next morning he was transferred to St. Vincent’s Hospital where he died. Another of the White Horse's famous patrons is Jack Kerouac, who was bounced from the establishment on more than one occasion - because of this, someone scrawled onto the bathroom wall: "JACK GO HOME!".
