Bob Gill - "design as an idea"

Bob Gill is a graphic designer, an illustrator and a writer but what he is most is intelligent and opinionated.
"There's nothing in my head that's original and I'll wager that there's nothing original in yours either. Why? Because our heads are full of junk that's put there by the culture. The only way to clear out the junk is to have an opinion - and if it's an interesting opinion, then the design [that it informs] will be interesting." Bob Gill (33).

Gill's process of working - which has remained unchanged in principle for the 55 years - is all about having an opinion about any given brief and then expressing the resulting idea in the clearest possible way, without having a colour, typeface or particular aesthetic in mind but to let the idea find it's own visual execution.

only watch this if you can handle overly loud jazz

Bob at home doing some of the thinking that's made him so successful and influential. (photo by Mark Mahaney)

Do yourselves a favour, go and research Bob Gill.