As we enter into the thick of the Christmas season, I find myself spending time thinking back on past Christmases, and I am filled with fond memories of my two grandfathers who are no longer with us. When I think about them, I can't help relate who they were as men and how I have become the person I am today specifically as a designer. From my long, purposeful walking stride to my passion for doing what I love, I can't help but think of the lessons I learned from my two grandpas and how they relate to design.
Before I can tell you about how my grandfathers effected me as a graphic designer first you must know a little bit about my grandfathers.
Grandpa Sell (AKA Grampi)
If you asked my Grampi what he did as an occupation, he would tell you he was a church organist, but he was more than that. Music teacher, choir director, music lover, food connoisseur, world traveler and so much more. He was (and is) the most detailed man I have ever known while having the most distinct taste in things from fashion to Television Programs (his terms, not mine).
He was the most organized man I have ever met. He managed details like a bookie. He was the model for discipline and the way things should be. On the Enneagram, he would be a number one. He was picky about how things should be, but he desired that everything should be the best it can be and not a smidge less.
Grandpa Cressman (AKA Pappy)
My Pappy's career was two-fold. He was a concrete contractor for many years, but during the years I knew him he drove horse-drawn carriages. He was passionate about both things. I grew up hearing the stories about how he was a crazy man on the worksite, "the old man is going to flip-out" they would say about him if he found out something was done wrong or took too long. I also got to see first hand his passion for working with horses when I would help him brush down horses for an event or when I learned to drive carriages at eleven years old.
Pappy had the personality that attracted people to him. He always had time for people, and people knew that if they stopped by to talk to David, they would spend a good time with a person who treated them like family. One of the reasons why I think Pappy was very well loved was because he did things he was passionate about. When you come in contact with someone who loves what they do, you have a hard time not appreciating them because you are seeing them in the space they care for the most.
When I think about myself as a designer, I see both my grandpas in myself. I see my Grampi in my attention to detail and my desire to have everything be just right. I see my Pappy in how my work is my passion and how I aspire to treat people as I work with them.
I spend countless hours trying to perfect the small details of the things I design. Some timetables don't allow the attention to detail I wish I was able to devote to them, but I take every moment of the time allotted to bring them one step closer to perfection. I'm continually working to improve from the moment the project is handed to me to when it is checked off my list of to-dos. Good enough is not good enough for me. It must actually be good, not just satisfactory.
Design is by far one of my passions. I'm a nerd about it. I'm constantly devouring new content to help increase my knowledge of it, and it feels like fun because I love it. I also love to share my passion for design with the people I work with. I want them to leave working with me with the understanding that they have given their project to a person who cares much about the details of his discipline which will help make their purpose shine and thrive.
In loving memory of my grandfathers.
G. Wesley Sell (1930-2017)
David F. Cressman (1937-2013)