What do you do if you're struggling to find your design style as a beginner in the industry?

Si vous avez du mal à trouver votre style de design en tant que débutant dans l’industrie, il est utile d'explorer diverses sources d'inspiration, d'expérimenter différents styles et techniques, et de rester ouvert à l'apprentissage et à l'évolution. Prenez le temps d'analyser ce qui vous attire dans d'autres ?uvres, identifiez vos forces et vos intérêts personnels, et cherchez à les intégrer dans votre propre travail. Soyez patient et persévérant dans votre exploration, car trouver votre style peut prendre du temps et nécessite souvent une pratique régulière et une réflexion introspective.

Step out of your confort zone ! Explore things that are not related to your work, try things, test and have multiple sources of inspiration. You’ll not learn the most important things online, there are thousands and thousands way to learn and to explore !

One of my more successful print design projects was one where I came back to it after spending a while exploring the same theme with fabrics and tactile textures. The time spent with other materials inspired me to break away from the flatness of the print design I was working on and expand it into different dimensions I had not even considered before. In the same way, being open to new ideas, cultural values, design voices or exploring themes outside your purview allows you to understand the thought processes of other designers, enrich your mind and learn to create your own unique style.

"Finding your style" takes time. And the best way to do so is to make a TON of stuff. Avoid perfection. Instead, throw stuff at a wall and see what sticks. ?? Try making ugly things, or recreate one of your favorite posters (don't just google how they did it or use AI ??). Make 50 random things in a weekend or spend 5 weeks on one beautiful project. As you move through new work, you'll naturally revisit certain aesthetics, styles, mediums, etc. Keep showing up and your style will reveal itself over time.

pratiquez quotidiennement en explorant différents styles, techniques et outils. Consacrez du temps à expérimenter et à créer régulièrement pour affiner vos compétences et découvrir ce qui vous passionne. Soyez ouvert aux critiques constructives et utilisez-les pour améliorer votre travail. En restant engagé et persévérant dans votre pratique, vous développerez votre propre style distinctif au fil du temps.

Practice daily, or try to practice regularly. If you can’t, maybe you can set a moment in your agenda to practice just for you. Doesn’t matter if you do it everyday, but like sport, if you have a routine it will be better than forcing yourself 2/3 a year. And most important thing of all: post the work you are not satisfied with, it’s amazing !

Pour trouver votre style de design en tant que débutant, prenez régulièrement du temps pour réfléchir sur votre travail, vos préférences et vos influences. Passez en revue vos créations passées pour identifier les éléments qui vous plaisent le plus et ceux qui vous semblent les plus authentiques. Explorez différents styles artistiques et examinez comment ils résonnent avec votre propre vision créative. La réflexion fréquente vous aidera à mieux comprendre vos préférences et à affiner votre style au fil du temps.

Finding your own style is quite a journey. It takes time. While your doing it, don’t try to make things perfectly, or don’t give yourself too much constraints. Take time, stop for a few days, go back at it, you’ll see your work with fresh eyes ! And share it with people you feel ok with that and ask for feedbacks !

That’s the hardest part. Asking for feedback is so difficult at the beginning. Try to ask for feedback to people you know, to communities you trust. The important part is to ask in places you’ll have constructive advice.

A versatile designer is a much more appealing asset for employers and clients alike. Someone who is able to explore different styles and approaches based on client needs, while also ensuring their work remains unique and memorable will be more capable of taking on a wider range of creative projects. Do not be afraid to step outside of your comfort zone or take calculated creative risks. Push the boundaries of what you have always created, and bring your work to a real of higher quality, intentional design, and carefully crafted visual communication.

Experiment with different techniques and mediums, explore design trends, and seek guidance from mentors or experienced designers. Create mood boards, draw inspiration from diverse sources, and practice regularly to refine your skills and develop your unique aesthetic. Reflect on feedback, stay curious, and keep an open mind to embrace continuous growth. By staying inspired and committed to exploration, you'll gradually find your design style and carve out your place in the industry.

In my experience, styles may develop from being fixated on a core experience that inspired you to take up design or even things that you picked while on your design learning journey. A specific project might unlock skills hitherto unknown to yourself or you may be deeply affected by the style of an established designer and your entire career could be a conscious or unconscious homage to their design style. Everyone has a unique design journey and learning curve and what matters in the end is to be true to yourself and your principles, over time your personality will shine through and one day you will end up with a design style unique to you.

Especially at the beginning, staying inspired can be challenging. Seeking out inspiration through visual research can help craft creative ideas and approaches, but often can bring up feelings of inadequacy or insecurity as a new designer and may even create confusion in terms of the style you are trying to create. Through research, you can analyze work that you enjoy seeing and would like to be able to create. Then find the elements that make it unique to you and seek to explore similar elements or ideas in your own creative process. This way you can not only build your skills but also your creative confidence and ability to bring your vision to life.