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NEW COLUMN: FROM THE DESK OF | m.k. butler, graphic designer

I am beyond thrilled to 1) start this new column, and 2) showcase one of my favorite creative people: M.K. Butler! She’s a quirky and lovely soul, and is such a treat to have around. After doing a little soul searching myself for Pinegate Road, I realized that one thing I can never get enough of is hearing about where creatives find their inspiration. I love looking into people of different professions and seeing what drives them. Often times, I find one thing missing among these stories: examples of how inspirations actually inspire the work creatives create. You can always look into that person’s portfolio, but I thought I’d do the work and searching for you, and bring it all together. Enough about that, Let’s all welcome MK to the stage//aka blog and really get this started!

My name is Mary Katherine, MK for short. I am a MFA student in Graphic Design at the Savannah College of Art and Design. I work part time at the Savannah Bee Company and really enjoy honey, cooking and organic gourmet foods. I have a passion for cheese. And baskets. I am getting married in July and am excited to start an adventure with my best friend! I am grateful that I found someone to put up with me!

Where are you at in your career, and what are your future aspirations?
Right now I am student and have had a ton of internship experience. I would like to work at a branding firm, I am really into type design and custom lettering right now. I plan to incorporate this excitement into that kind of work. I would like to do graphic design work at an agency that has the primary purpose of helping businesses find their identity. I would love to work at a company like IDEO doing a lot of problem solving. Eventually I would like to own my own company and to teach.

Where do you live / do you hope to live one day?
I live in Savannah, GA. I am trying to decide what city to conquer next. Currently looking at Seattle, San Diego, San Francisco, Austin and Raleigh. Who knows. It is really important to me to be close to a thriving educational and art community.

What gets you jazzed?
Oh man. Everything! Life is just so fun! I love HONEY, flowers and bright colors. Learning and collaboration. I get really excited when I hear other designers talk about their work. Surfing the internet and other peoples portfolios gets me jazzed, then stressed, then jazzed again.

Other than designing, what other things do you like to do in your free time?
I like to cook! I take walks, hang out with the girls, Skype with my long distance fiance. And reading! Right now I am reading A Tree Grows in Brooklyn and Alice in Wonderland. I played kickball Sunday with my church which was fun! Most of my time that day was spent making daisy chains and pretending I was a bird.

Who are you inspired by most?
I kind of have this image in my head of who I want to be and what I want to look like and that really keeps me inspired. Otherwise…Tibor Kalman and David Carson were designers that really got me going early on. Now it is new designers doing fun things…Underware, Ken Barber, Jessica Hische…this guy: http://www.amronexperimental.com/

Tell me a little about the projects you have above, and how they were inspired:
Well, this particular project was a personal job. I was inspired by the cover of one of my favorite books: Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close. I also am inspired by a lot of the color schemes that Anna Bond does over at Rifle Paper Co. I wanted to convey the quirky and cross country relationship that I have had with my fiance in a fun way.

Are there any other things that inspire you?
Antique shopping, old printed materials, ghost signage, books where people talk about super cool things they are doing to make a difference (Change By Design, Creating Tomorrow’s Schools Today), TED Talks, well designed everyday objects (like these) everything Anthropologie and Kate Spade are doing.

What is your ideal meal? (we do love food here at Pinegate Road!)
I love pizza of all types. Most kids stopped loving it at a young age but my love for pizza just grew and became more refined I guess! I love that it has everything you need to survive, the whole food pyramid. AND it is super tasty.

Where would you like to visit most? 
Italy!! I have never been. I would have to stop by Naples because that pizza is the greatest. There is a little spot in San Diego that has the best Naples style pizza but I want to try the real thing. I would also like to take a tour of the US in an airsteam with my sweetheart. I’ve never been to the grand canyon, would love to see Marfa and the big trees of the Redwood Forest.

If you could give one life tip to the rest of us, what would that be?
Embrace who you are and your own personal process. If in order to be the best version of yourself and do your best work you need to have a dance party at your desk, take a hot shower, go for a walk, shop for antiques or go have a glass of wine with the girls – do it. That and worrying won’t add a single day to your life. In fact it wastes time. Work smart, not hard but play hard. :) And that will help your work anyway.

MK’s PORTFOLIO

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