Spunk Design Machine in action
It makes so much sense when a couple of guys from a design firm with the name “spunk” in it are enthusiastic, even in the heart of winter. Even through the crappy weather and flight cancellations, Jeff Johnson of Spunk Design Machine fired off emails with exclamation marks as he completed stages of his suddenly canceled trip.
Well, the Spunk Design Machine team made it to Baltimore and for the thirty who braved the weather, they were so much better for it. think about it: they weren’t canceling. Heck, they’re from Minnesota!!! So, they came to rock the house and their presentation
“We believe that all design is an invitation.
We believe in distinction over distraction.
We believe every design has a voice.”
—Spunk Design Machine presentation
The custom poster they put together for the event...
The self-proclaimed research nuts aggressively investigate design problems creating mood boards and through sketches to illustrate their direction as they showed and proclaimed in their presentation. The audience was treated to a number of their approaches—some of which will be profiled in an upcoming book on sketches by Steven Heller—including a collection of images and compositions from the Davis Co-op project. That energy resonated in the diverse body of work and their approaches which went from the “simple” pizza box or the complex.
(C) Spunk Design Machine - An image from the Davis Co-op branding project
(C) Spunk Design Machine - Galactic Pizza Box (a fully sustainable pizza box)
And I had a great time meeting Spunk Design Machine’s Jeff Johnson and Ben Pagel, personally. After the presentation, their four-letter word of choice was “B-E-E-R” and so it was off to Brewer’s Art.