What makes a ‘designer’?
What makes a ‘designer’?
I’m not sure if it’s the human condition or a remnant of the industrial age that drive humans to label and categorise everything? This practice either denies the deserving of recognition or bestows admiration on the arrogant.
I met Olga Rafalska and Paulina Kacprzak, both former Design Graduates, to record our podcast [Bloc Thinking] recently. During the interview, I asked them if they still saw themselves as designers. I marked hesitation in their voices.
“We’re event organisers.”
Olga and Paulina organise of one of the most notable Design Events in Poland. Element Talks launched five years ago as a project in their graduate degree program. They resolved to turn their ‘project’ into a ‘business’ after an overwhelming response.
They have been able to share their desire to learn what it means to be a design professional, with over 1 500 attendees year on year. Local and international professionals like Erik Kessels and Mike Monteiro have graced their platform filling a much-needed niche in Poland.
Are they designers?
Of course, they are! A dear friend and one of the co-authors of the Event Design Handbook would be quick to lay this topic to rest. Let me on this.
[Everyone has the potential] To be a designer
Fact is, anybody can be a designer. What sets Paulina and Olga apart is their drive, determination, stamina and passion to turn an idea into reality.