Why talent working in the Arts Sector need to gain design skills. Meet Brendon.
Brendon Joseph Thearle is the co-founder of a theatre collective and is also heavily involved in videography and marketing. He is a very vibrant talent who enrolled for the Graphic Designer Associate Course so that he could learn how to use Adobe’s Photoshop, Illustrator & InDesign to be able to independently produce great design work. This is his story.
Why did you enrol for the Graphic Designer Associate course?
My main reason for enrolling was because I wanted to try something new. I had dabbled around with graphic design before taking up this course but I never really appreciated nor paid any attention to the finer details. On top of that, I was quite put off with the seemingly complicated-looking nature of the Adobe Suite such as Photoshop or InDesign. Having now completed the course, I’ve realised that graphic design is more important than most give it credit for and really, the Adobe Suite isn’t all that bad, quite the opposite actually, it’s quite fun to experiment, play around and see what the software throws at you – and who knows, you might end up creating something you might not have thought of before. Graphic Design is also essential to most things related to the creative arts industry and helps facilitate in other sectors of said industry, such as videography and marketing, which I am also heavily involved in.
A friend of yours had encouraged you to enrol. What were your expectations for this learning experience?
I was highly recommended to give the course a try by one of my friends, who gave nothing short of praise to ICE Malta. At first, as with everything, I was quite sceptical to hear that much praise for one single institution, and having experienced the creative arts in public education a few years prior and not enjoying it, I didn’t have much hope that ICE Malta could offer as much as my friend was saying they offer, however, writing this now is proof that I took a risk and that risk has most certainly paid off and everything that my friend had said way back when is most assuredly true.
How have Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign skills helped you?
Learning these three tools has made me feel more confident in using the software, taking risks, and trying again if it’s not what I had imagined in my head. Thanks to the course, I have managed to critique my design work more constructively and it has made me appreciate the world of graphic design more openly. Creating and curating social media posts for a theatre collective I co-founded, creating posters for upcoming theatrical projects, designing playbooks, programmes and so on – all these things would have never been done by myself if it weren’t for such a course as the one ICE Malta delivers.
Why do you believe that Adobe skills have become essential for talent and not just designers?
Many of the creative arts sectors have become so intertwined these days that it’s always essential to at least know a bit of everything. Coming from a theatre and performing arts background, nowadays, it’s no longer important to just be able to act but also to know how to design costumes, plot lights, build sets, and so on – even if it’s just a basic understanding of such things, even more so, to understand the concept of, for example, videography – to create a promotional video for a theatre performance, photography – to be able to take marketing photos during a rehearsal, or, more importantly, graphic design – to be able to create a poster for an event or a programme to hand out to audience members. Knowing and at least understanding what other sectors of the creative arts offer can greatly help an individual, especially when it comes to sectors such as the performing arts who struggle financially, it’s always handy to have someone who at least knows something that would otherwise cost even more money and resources and this is something that has helped myself and my colleagues in the theatre collective we run.
What was your educator like? How did she make learning powerful?
My educator was nothing short of fantastic. She really made me and my peers understand and appreciate the concept of graphic design and took the time to explain every little bit in detail, even if that required her to repeat it multiple times. Having hands-on experience with the software also really helped and using modern-day examples, good and bad, of what can be applied to the already vast and complex world of graphic design really helped. Our educator was also always there to help, even out of lecture hours which was incredibly handy whenever I or anyone else got stuck on something and having the playback feature, paired with her great explanations, really helped in learning the software after lectures were over.
What’s next for you? Can you share any of your present or upcoming projects with us?
At the moment I’m currently busy co-directing and gearing up for a performance aimed at children titled; L-Aħħar Siġra for an upcoming children’s festival; ŻiguŻajg, which in turn, having experience in other fields of the creative arts sector is helping me understand and better acknowledge the minor details in the production, such as graphically designing assets for props and offering valid and constructive criticism to other undertakings in the production. In my spare time I also do videography work for clients, which having knowledge in areas such as graphic design, helps me when it comes to the creation of video assets and when I have some more free time on my hands I dabble around with photography and creating graphical artworks.
A message to young talent who want to take their hobby to the next level?
Take risks. I never would have done half the stuff I’m currently doing if it weren’t for taking risks and trying out new things. It’s always scary when something new arrives in your lap and you have no idea how to go about it or what to do with it, and speaking from personal experience, I would have normally put it away and never thought about it again. But, especially in such a vibrant world as the creative arts, if you don’t take risks, big or small, you won’t get far. Some risks may fail and others may succeed and that’s completely fine, there have been many failed risks that I never want to think about again, but personally, if it weren’t for those failed risks, I wouldn’t have learnt anything, and more importantly, be here doing other risks that are paying off. If there’s something you want to do – be it a project and such or want to try something new – such as graphic design, give it a shot.
Brendon realised that learning how to use essential design tools such as Photoshop, InDesign & Illustrator would help him elevate his creative work and we’re excited to see what he produces next. Having the opportunity to mentor Brendon has been an absolute pleasure and we can’t wait to see more of his design work come to life.
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I can now design social media posts, posters, playbooks, programmes & so much more thanks to ICE Malta’s Graphic Designer Associate Course.
BRENDON THEARLECo-Founder / Producer
