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Written by Rachel L. Ritter
Melanie Bourgeois is a graphic designer that went to school at the Art Institute of Raleigh-Durham and graduated with Mike and I.
Do you have any favorite artists/designers that inspire you?
I don’t necessarily have a favorite designer but two of my favorite painters are Van Gogh and Salvador Dali. Van Gogh’s style was so unique and intricate. It’s funny because his meticulous detail is the opposite of my style of painting, whereas I tend to stick with smooth transitions. Dali is amazing because his imagination was just so vast. Everything he did was so trippy and reminds me of Pink Floyd, one of my all time favorite bands. I think I tend to like the really crazy people too. In both art and music, they seem to do the coolest work.
Tell us about working at Invitation Box, what’s a regular work day look like for you?
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Invitation Box is a great place to get a foot in the door. The department I am in is called typesetting — people (a client) purchase our merchandise and our group places their (the client’s) text in a professional manner. It’s cool to see the different places people are from and all of the random parties people have.
What kind of music do you listen to right now?
That is always a fun question to answer. I tend to listen to more of the alternative rock and 80′s music most of the time, though every now and then I listen to completely random stations on Pandora including Daft Punk, Coheed and Cambria, and Vivaldi. It can get all over the place.
Show us your top 3 favorite designs.
There’s a lot of designs that are just out of this world but here are a couple that are outstanding in my eyes. The first that came to mind is one of my favorite poster designs by Ignition Print. They’ve done a bunch of my favorite posters. Hunger Games, The Dark Knight, Coraline — When I saw it in the theater I just stared at it for a while and marveled over it. The poster of “From Paris with Love” is just the coolest use of Photoshop ever. Just one giant metaphor and the minimalism is perfect.
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Another design I thought of was a huge series from M.S. Corley. He’s a great illustrator and designer. One of his many projects included a redesign of books and game covers. They’re all super minimal and super clean — super awesome. Click the image to see more of his designs.
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The third is one of my favorite logos and one of my favorite shows. Doctor Who’s 11th Doctor changed the very sci-fi oval shaped logo. The sweet illustrative typography of the initials into the Tardis’ form is so perfectly created it’s just crazy someone didn’t think of it earlier. Plus not only is the logo cool, the writing for the story and the character of the Doctor is just amazing. If you haven’t seen this show before and are into science fiction, definitely try it out.
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What do you like to do in your free time, if you have any?
I try to be productive in some way almost every day. One of my favorite things to do is paint. I’ve lost count of how many canvases I’ve got laying around the house. Tons of acrylic, maybe one or two watercolor.
Recently, I’ve also picked up a new hobby that’s a little bit more sociable — in a nerdy kind of way. For about three months now, once a week, some friends and I have been playing Dungeons and Dragons. Quite an experience.
What’s your favorite technological gadget, and how does it help you in life?
Well there is a gadget that I’ve been wanting and it will most certainly be handy in my field of graphic design. I’m looking into getting a tablet of sorts in order to be more portable with my work to bring along on meetings and whatnot. There is a gadget I have that’s just as fun, however, and that is my Sonic Screwdriver. It opens doors Image may be NSFW.
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Where would you like to be in, say 2 years?
In two years I thinking I will be married and working with a design firm creating and designing. I’d be on the way to the position I’ve been craving and what I really want to be: editor and critic.
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Thanks Mel for your awesome answers & for being a guest on our blog!. If you’d like to learn more about her, check out her LinkedIn profile. Visit her work and other online stuff on her site and Pinterest page. @mellybourgeois
Filed under: Graphic Design posts Tagged: 2013, AI of Raleigh-Durham, art, collaboration, Doctor Who, Graphic Design, graphics, guests, Illustration, inspiration, interview, Poster Image may be NSFW.
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