It’s really important as a designer or artist that you find your own unique, authentic way of working. What is your own authentic voice and why is it important?
Signature and authentic design voice
Authenticity is key in you being able to develop your own signature style. It is what you’re going to become known for and why people are going to be drawn to you and your work. So it’s something that you want to develop as a designer or artist.
I know people get very caught up with what their signature design style is, what it should be and what it means. The most important thing to think about when you’re creating your signature style is that it is authentic and it is true to you and the way you work.
Also important to note is that while it is good to be able to develop your own style, it is also good to keep in mind that it is a great skill also to be able to adapt your style to fit with a client’s brief. For example, if they wanted you to create a design that would fit in with their brand and their vision, it’s a good skill as a designer, to be able to adapt your style to fit in and create something to fit their brand.
In comparison, when you’re creating your own designs to sell to clients or if you’re creating your own product then it’s really important that you develop your own signature and unique style.
Something I commonly hear in relation to this is that people feel that in developing their style, they have to have only one way of working. For example, they may feel that they have to select one colour palette that will become their signature. While this may be something you decide to do, this is not true at all.
Your signature style should come from within. And if it comes from within and you develop it really authentically, then it is going to be true to your own way of working and your work will shine through as being yours. You don’t have to stick to five colors for the rest of your career. I know for me personally, I would be so bored if I did that! You also don’t have to stick to designing in one medium either. You can definitely design across mediums.
What you need to remember in terms of creating and developing your own unique style and your own authentic unique style is that it’s going to come through no matter what you do. So if we think about handwriting for example, no matter whether your mum wrote in texta, pencil or charcoal, you would be able to tell it was your mum’s handwriting. Everyone has their own unique handwriting. Whether they write with a red pen, a blue pen, a black pen you can tell whose writing it is.
The same thing is true of your signature design style.
If you let it be something that comes from within you then it will be authentic to you. It’s something that’s going to evolve as you evolve yourself as a designer. Give yourself the time and space and allow yourself to develop.
Finding your own authenticity can take time, practice and effort but if you continue to put in the effort it will shine through.
And don’t worry about what everybody else is doing.It is good to see and to be aware of and see what other people are creating and the way that they work, but you don’t want that to influence your work. Develop something that is unique to you!
