Hi there.
I’m Max,
Creative Director, husband and father.
I was born and raised in Germany and have worked for agencies of all kinds and sizes in Munich and Boston for over 15 years. If you’re interested in my design philosophy, keep on reading.
WHY I LOVE TO BE A DESIGNER
a manifesto
I believe in the power of design. I believe that design has the ability to make the world a better place.
It also has the ability to sell things. That’s what we get paid for most of the time.
Design isn’t just the shape of a surface or a visual characteristic. It’s the ongoing process of optimizing experiences and shaping culture. It’s what gives our communication a visual form and thus shows who we are, what we’re supposed to do, and why we are doing it.
Philosophy
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The world is a complex place. Our job as designers is to provide orientation. That’s why design doesn’t exist in an empty space. Always be aware of the circumstances your design gets received in. Don’t just design one part, aspect or element. Think of design as an organism inside a living system, that influences it and get’s influenced by it as well.
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“Perfection isn’t achieved when there’s nothing left to add, it’s achieved when there’s nothing left to take away.” - Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. Design is not about making things look good, it’s about making things work. In order to work, things have to be functional before they can be entertaining. Aesthetics leads to usability.
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If you can design one thing, you can design everything. As Designers we are not defined by the act of designing, we are defined by creativity. There’s no such thing as a nine-to-five designer. If you are deeply driven by the desire to create things, solve problems and shape experiences, you’re a designer, no matter what field you’re currently working in.
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Every work of design starts with a problem, and a lot of ideas to solve it. Nevertheless you will experience that in order to progress, you have to leave the known paths, take a step back and sometimes even get back to where you started. You cannot stick with your idea if it leads you nowhere. Design is never a linear process, there are no shortcuts, it’s a certain way of finding things, not knowing where it might lead you.
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Every great designer has started as a scholar. When you first get in touch with creative work, you easily loose track. It seems like there are endless possibilities to solve a problem. As a designer, you need someone to look up to, someone who inspires you, someone you can turn to when you can’t see the light at the end of the tunnel. For me, that’s people like Paula Scheer, Michael Bierut, Stefan Sagmeister and Dieter Rams.
As a Creative Director I usually lead the development of creative concepts and visual look and feels. But I don’t do that on my own, I work in partnership with cross-functional project teams. Also I…
…present creative concepts to business areas, key stakeholders, compliance and legal to gain their support and take and apply appropriate feedback to concepts.
…align concepts, visual direction and designs to the business objectives, strategies, audience(s), brand strategy & standards, messaging, and technology needed to achieve a goal.
…lead visual direction of content and campaigns, in collaboration with creative production and/or strategic partners, to ensure approved creative concept remain intact throughout project’s lifecycles.
…lead in design, brand, compliance processes and improvements within the bounds of and outside of projects that result in increased quality, efficiencies, and overall value to the department.
…anticipate, and consult with creative production, brand team, agencies and/or strategy partners to ensure concepts, design and brand guidelines are achievable.
…lead creative needs during the research phase of projects and I use research to inform concepts and visual approach.
…create working relationships with key stakeholders, project teams and strategic partners.
