David Carson is a graphic designer from California who captured the zeitgeist of the 1990s grunge music and fashion era with his work in the Raygun magazine series as well as creating a style of design called "Grunge Typography". Carson encourages me to carve out a specific niche for yourself and work to build on it.
The duo of Kanye West and Kid Cudi have been making music together since 2008, and have both made incredible impacts on 2010’s music as well as my professional and personal life. Both artists have been incredibly influential in my confidence as a designer and my ability to dive head first into new creative experiences.
Shigesato Itoi is a copywriter, fictional writer and founder of Hobonichi. He is most well known for his creation and development of the video game series "Mother"; the progression of the game has inspired me to add personality into my work so that anyone can connect to it as well as to try new mediums within graphic design.
Takashi Murakami is a Japanese contemporary artist that popularized the "Superflat style" that combines bold, vibrant colors with striking imagery and flat perspective. He is well known for incorporating symbols like flowers and his famous "Mr DOB" into his work to tell layered stories about history, culture, and people. His work has inspired me to get people to feel something within design.
Frank Ocean is an R&B artist who despite only releasing 2 projects on streaming services, has gained several millions of listeners by writing about several important topics such as growing up and learning about yourself. His music has been very instrumental in my personal life, as I have learned to remain humble and stoic about whatever work I create.
Mac Miller was a music artist whose progression from rap to psychedelic to jazz to neo-soul visualized his love and ability in music. I think about design in the same way in that I always want to branch into new areas of creativity. I also learned from him to find simplicity in design, and to always give your work a sense of personality and liveliness.