Magnus Hierta interviews Joost for Archinect

Magnus
Can you give us a little information about your design background?

Joost
Ive studied at a graphic design school for 4 years and graduated in '99 in both graphic and industrial design

Magnus
Did you study design in a formal setting like a university, or are you self taught?

Joost
see above :) although for the 3d programs and motion programs (3ds max, after effects) i use im self taught

Magnus
What school did you study at, and would you recommend it?

Joost
I went to Saint Lucas Graphic design school in Boxtel The Netherlands, i
recommend it to a degree of getting a formal education and understanding of
the basics in design.

Magnus
From where do you draw your inspiration?

Joost
Everything and Nothing to summ it up ;-)

Magnus
Do you stay abreast of the work from motion graphics companies in places like L.A. and London, and if you do, do you think it has influenced your work?

Joost
Havent really thought about that to be honest, some of the companies in LA for instance have inspired me like Imaginary Forces or basically Kyle Cooper's work... and for instance Tomato from london is one of the reasons i got into design in the first place... and then again US citizens are exported Europeans anyways ;-) *cough*... so basically lets not nail it down to a couple of cities as influences come from all around...

Magnus
Your work has very strong architectural references and we are wondering about your interest / association with this field.

Joost
I really love architecture, it has inspired me allot too... giving me insight about form, space, light and color in a 3d environment.

Magnus
You maintain a level of visual connection and style throughout your work, is this an objective study in design or simply personal flavor?

Joost
It's surely not a study. It may sound like i know nothing about my own work but i dont really think about it as much when doing a project.
I create what i envision at that moment, atleast thats the case when doing personal projects.
For clients on the other hand it depends on the way i get briefed to create something to fit their needs.

Magnus
Do you principally work alone? If not, is your work in collaboration with other artists, or do you have a production team that you guide creatively?

Joost
I normally work alone, on a few projects i have incorporated photography that was made by others...
no production team, just me working in a small 3x3 meter room in my house :-)

Magnus
What is your design process? Do you work with boards first to develop a style and story or do you jump straight into animation at the beginning of a project?

Joost
For my personal work i often jump into it as ill try to create the style and story thats in my head.
For commercial projects its normally the case that i start with style and storyboards, as they cant see inside my head ;-) 

Magnus
Do you feel that the software you use [Max, Photoshop, AfterEffects, etc.] is subordinate to your design goals or do the limits/capabilities of the software help shape the output?

Joost
Once technology starts to drive you instead of you driving the technology to create something, something isnt right. Atleast thats the way im looking at it now...
These programs are tools, tools like a pen or an airbrush, or your hands with a piece of clay, scissors glue and some carton...
Now with todays technologies the tools can become too automated, like just lookin at the ammount of plugins these days.
So ask yourself the questions, are you gonna hit Auto Generate and have this plugin to create a 160 store high abstract skyscraper and you call it your creation... or, are you going to model that from scratch with what you have in your mind or drwan out on paper.... the latter is what i call real creation of an artist.
Max (or any other 3d app), photoshop, After effects allow you to visually create anything... with the only limitation being your own mind.

Magnus
What direction do you see your work going in the future?

Joost
In the right direction :-P
Dont know yet, i like to keep myself flexible and see were things go.

Magnus
We find your piece "Nike In-Store 3D World" intriguing, it is a very whimsical yet structural environment. Aside from the obvious Nike / Athletic references, what lead you to create that world?

Joost
It was based on an earlier design i did called Progressive/Retrograde were i decided to go back to basics by using primitive shapes...
It was a big challange for me to create this "Nike world" from primitive shapes and make it appear as this huge anti gravity structure.