Quiet winter time! Ahh, time to enjoy how laid-back Tokyo can be in this coming New Year’s week. As every year, people flock home, cheerfully go for snowboarding in Hokkaido or recover at a nice onsen in the countryside – and leave this sprawl deserted, at least for a couple of days. (Peaceful time, though everything is shut down!) Here, at the PingMag headquarters, we are still fondly reminiscing last year’s famous Enochichi illustration special. This year, our Holiday Special is reserved for three projects/folks/collectives from all sorts of genres we always wanted to show you – but somehow couldn’t make it during the year.
The first would be San Francisco-based Stan Zienka, design director of branding and design agency Attik. And no, we are not showing their commercial works now – especially for PingMag, Stan let his mind run wild and made some fine experimental graphics:

Written by Verena

Now, tell us a bit about your work process, please.

It all depends on the project. For instance, if it is an identity job, the amount of research and strategy development is quite extensive. In contrast, if it is a more “artistic” type of project, such as a music package, it’s more individual, intuitive and abstract. You try and create a piece of communication that relays the mood of the music to the eye. Of course, what someone “sees” while listening to music is completely subjective, so you might get it wrong… but that’s half the fun now, isn’t it?

What would be your inspiration…? Please name something that you found remarkable, either recently or in general…

Everyone should have a different response to this, don’t you think? I think it’s actually more important to find out “when” and “where” you find yourself most inspired – because if you force yourself to go there more often you might increase your personal inspiration. I find inspiration late at night commuting on empty trains and buses while listening to my headphones. But if I had to list a few “inspirational” things it would be these (in no particular order): vacant streets at night, Autechre’s “Amber” and the words of Hunter S. Thompson.

What would be the motto for your job every day?

Oh, please don’t let me draw a blank today… and please, let there be coffee.

What’s your vision as Design Director for 2008: How would or could advertisement develop or change?

I would like to see more mixing of creative solutions – and I think its starting to happen now. We are seeing a massive convergence of so many different types of creative people that it should yield some interesting results. The way that the mediums are blurring together and disciplines are joining forces, it would be a waste if innovative solutions and ideas didn’t come from it. Of course the client has to be prepared to take a leap of faith too. Thankfully I have been able to work with a few clients like that; not all, but some.

Tell us about your exciting projects for 2008, please!

For 2008, we will be doing more Scion and NoiseFive will be coming out (thank God!!).

We’re eagerly awaiting NoiseFive then! Thank you, Stan of Attik! Merry Christmas (afterwards) and a blissful New Year!