Vimal Krishnattri - Graphic Design Focuses on Building a Bridge Between Businesses/Individuals and Their Audience (Graphic Designer & Influencer From India)

 

As a Graphic Designer, you need to balance both Aesthetics and Function. You focus too much on Aesthetics, you're an artist. You focus too much on Function, you're an Engineer. You need to make sure the visuals look good while ensuring they're doing what they're supposed to do.

1. Tell us about your background and journey. 

I grew up in a middle-class household where you're encouraged to work towards getting a government job. I've always been good at the arts and really enjoyed it. I was also pretty good at academics, so naturally, I went for Engineering. During my Graduation in Mechanical Engineering, I realized this is not what I want to do for the rest of my life.

I almost quit after the second year. I was still a Grade A student but I just wasn't enjoying it. I did, however, decide to continue and finish my graduation.

I was a part of the College Offroad Vehicle Design team and I really enjoyed working on that project. So after my graduation, I pivoted my career to something I enjoyed working on, Automotive Design, and started preparing for Entrance Exams like NEED and CEED.

 

2. When and how did you choose to be a graphic designer? 

During my Graduation, I was working as a Freelance Sketch Artist, so I was always interested in exploring my creative side. After my Graduation, I started preparing for Design Entrance exams like NEED and CEED.

During this time, I started working as a freelancer on Upwork to sustain myself. On Upwork, most of the jobs I got were related to Graphic Design, like Posters, Ebooks, Flyers, and Social Media Graphics. This made me interested in Graphic Design as a career, and I really enjoyed working on these projects.

I was rejected at NID and IITs for the Master's program. So I started studying online using Platforms like Skillshare and Udemy. A few months later, I joined a custom apparel startup as a Design Lead and was sure Graphic Design is what I want to do.

 

3. What is the role and scope of work for a graphic designer?

Anything that requires visuals, requires graphic design. Graphic Design focuses on building a bridge between businesses/individuals and their audience. As a Graphic Designer, you need to balance both Aesthetics and Function. You focus too much on Aesthetics, you're an artist. You focus too much on Function, you're an Engineer. You need to make sure the visuals look good while ensuring they're doing what they're supposed to do.

The work you do as a graphic designer is really diverse - from packaging design for a product to social media content for an influencer, the possibilities are endless. As a freelance graphic designer, everything from ideation and research to the creation of the final deliverables is your responsibility. But you can always outsource parts of a project to freelancers who specialize in a specific niche.

 



4. Which are some of the tools & software that a graphic designer must be aware of? 

As a Graphic Designer, you have a wide variety of tools to choose from. I primarily use Adobe Creative Cloud apps, which include Photoshop, Lightroom, Illustrator, Indesign, XD, and others. But it's a personal preference. A lot of the professionals also prefer Affinity and CorelDRAW.

Apart from these software suites, there are tons of Free Open Source alternatives available, like GIMP, Pixlr, Canva, Inkscape, etc. These are great for Hobbyists or someone who's just started learning.




5. How in your opinion has this profession changed over the years?

Graphic Design is constantly evolving, and you need to stay updated with the latest trends. In recent years, like in most other fields, Artificial Intelligence has had a great impact on Graphic Design.

A.I. has been a part of Design Software for some time now, but you see it being integrated into Design Software more and more. Photoshop's neural filters and Luminar AI are great examples.

Apart from this, projects like Dall E, and Mid journey, which use AI to generate images from text, can have a huge impact on Graphic Design. Tools like these can make parts of the Design process obsolete. A Designer's scope of work goes beyond just creating the final Design. Pretty soon, all designers will need to adapt and adopt these new technologies.

 


6. Do you often have to keep upskilling yourself in this field? 

Definitely. As a Designer, you need to have a strong foundation of knowledge, but you also need to keep yourself updated with the latest technology and trends.

You need to do the smart work, and use the new features and tools to your advantage. You also need to learn new relevant software, to make sure you're not doing more work than required. This helps you invest more time in other important parts of your Design Process.

 



7. How do you help brands? 

Branding is an important part of any business. It's what guides people's views and thoughts about a company. In today's social media world, Personal Branding is also very important for individuals. I work with Brands and Companies to tell their story and ideas to their audience using visuals. I try to create distinct but uniform branding, that is recognizable and also displays the traits and values of the company/individual.




8. What are your views on internships? Did you do internships in your college? 

Internships are great for an individual's growth. It's like getting paid to learn. My College Internships were in the Engineering sector, and have little to no impact on my current career. But I did do an internship when starting out as a graphic designer, before getting hired full-time. As an Intern, I was working on real projects, while learning, and that really helped me understand how to tackle client issues, and also helped grow my knowledge of Design Tools.




9. Does one need some prerequisite skills before entering into this field or anyone can learn graphic designing?

You do need to have good observational skills, but anyone can develop these skills. You need to have a curiosity about the design process and visuals in general. If you're uninterested in Graphic Design and approach it like other career paths just to make money, it's really hard to grow and find success.

 

10. What advice/tips would you like to give to future graphic designers? 

Make sure you're interested in Graphic Design because it's not a field like engineering, where you can work half-heartedly. You really need to give your all to every project. You need to make connections, deal with a variety of clients, research, study a lot, and know how to sell a design, making it a very demanding job. So, be prepared for that. But if you really enjoy the process, You'll love it.

For someone just starting out, I suggest they explore all the different niches in Graphic Design to see what they enjoy the most. For example, I usually work on Logo Design and Social Media Graphics now, because over the years I've realized that's what I enjoy the most.




11. Any book recommendations for aspiring graphic designers?

"How to...' by Michael Beirut is a great book to learn how big agencies approach Design Projects.

"Logo Design Love' by David Airey is a really good book for someone looking to explore Logo Design.

Bio -

I'm a Graphic Designer and Illustrator, specializing in Logo Design and Social Media Content. I have a freelance career spanning 5 years and have worked on projects for many global companies, startups, and personal brands. I'm also a content creator with over 300K followers on Instagram, where I share Design Tips and Tutorials.

 

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Interviewed By - Shashank Sehgal