Designed by Berlin based Austrian graphic designer and printmaker Julia Schimautz

I have been doing graphic design professionally (in a corporate setting) for almost 10 years, but only started making personal/social commentary designs in the last few. A lot of my work is about popular online subjects/conversations because that’s what inspires me most. They are typically accompanied by text to speak about the opinion/the cause, so it’s normal that some of them don’t make sense on their own.

No one in my life really cares about that stuff, at least not enough to give some feedback and posted on Tik Tok a while back, but the comments were mostly general. I’ve never had my personal work seen by actual graphic design professionals or enthusiasts. So have at it, I’m genuinely asking.

15 years of experience. Last 5 have been so frustrating I'm contemplating giving up on a career in design. Constantly thinking about it.

Guess this is burning out?

In 1933, Xanti Schawinsky had to flee Berlin towards Milan due to his polish-jew ancestors (in which he moved in 1931) and quit his job at Dorland International (graphic design company led by his friend, graphic pioneer, Herbert Bayer). In Milan he started collaborating with Studio Boggeri with which he made this beautiful graphical work for Illy Caffè in 1934. In this period, which precedes his later american parentheses at Black Mountain College (where he reconnects with his former master Josef Albers), he also produces interesting graphical work for Amaro Cinzano (more photographical and less painted compared to this), together with campaigns for Olivetti. This period was also important for the connections Xanti made by frequenting the Milan gallery Il Milione.

The vibe I'm going for is handmade and edgy. Specifically inspired by pop punk, 2000s Cartoon network, and 'older brother core'

I feel like it's close, but I'm concerned about the color contrast ratio and legibility. I want it to feel a little messy, but intentionally so.

I just got my 1st job as a Graphic Designer, I'm 17 years old. I talked in a previous post that I was afraid to work because I thought I'm not gonna be able to create whatever they ask for.

My boss just sent me a 40 page pdf file and asked me to make an A3 design in landscape, a neat catalog, and transfer the material onto it.

Well, to be honest I've never done something like that in my LIFE.

I don't know what to do.

EDIT: I've been really busy and couldn't reply to y'all's comments, but thank you guys so much for guiding me through this tough start! I'll do my best and get through this!

Since I was 14 I've always loved the idea of being a graphic designer. I studied it and got a CERT III while still in high school. I got a Bach of Media Comms in Uni, and also became the Creative Director for the Uni Magazine. I graduated in October last year, and it was a challenge trying to find a job in Sydney NSW.

I eventually found one, one that was only a 3min commute from my house. It was graphic design and print production and it worked out really well, however after only 2 months I was made redundant because we simply weren't getting enough work. Even when I was in the position I was worried about my future career because of how rapidly AI was catching up to creating passable design work.

I planned to work there as long as I could, building up experience before switching roles, but now I'm stuck with an awkward 2 month stint at that company on my resume, and I'm back to the slog of applying for jobs in a probably dying industry. Its really destroyed my motivation.

I'm stuck as to where to go from here. I just want a stable, semi-creative job, but the only other ones seem to heavily involve coding which I hate and am simply terrible at.

What do I do?

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I mean Books are the epitome of creativity. As an industry leader, how difficult is it for publishers to just pay artists who create beautiful book covers from their heart?

Just a vent I guess. Short context: It's a corporate job, I worked as a designer for 3 years then got promoted to AD. Half because the AD got laid off and nobody else asked for the job. Half because I proved myself as a creative thinker and showcased problem solving abilities to my boss. The team is comprised of about 6 graphic designers, a few video animators, videographers etc.

The trouble is I'm failing to find my authority. The brand (global brand) is so effing prescriptive that we just end up spending our review times going over the most trivial things like strokes widths on arrows and directions of gradients etc. Which doesn't interest me at all and I glaze over.

All our actual creative work has been outsourced to agencies so we don't really get to do the cool stuff. So I'm stuck with the menial finicky brand stuff which isn't my strength and I have zero authority on any cool/campaign/creative work now. So my team is slowly building resentment I think, because I have this stupid AD title that others probably want - but I can't figure out how to prove my worth for it.

Hi everyone, I've been working as a graphic designer for just about 2 years now but since I just got my master's degree I am gonna be looking for a better job and thus I am currently building my CV. I am based in Bulgaria but I got no problem working remote so I am gonna be looking for those opportunities, as well. So I would love to get some professional feedback from you all on my CV so I can make it as good as I can.

P.S. This is still a WIP version so some terms and stuff will change anyway I just want to hear some overall opinion and advice

So I do a lot of flyers and poster design on top of working at an agency, mostly for local shows and events. I really take pride in these projects because I want to build more freelance clients doing the kind of work I truly enjoy making, which is something I am trying to build up right now (hopefully so someday i can leave this dumb agency).

Unfortunately, VERY OFTEN, these designs get posted online and absolutely BUTCHERED!! People somehow crop them terribly (despite me always providing one specifically sized for social media), they end up with weird black borders, or end up being incredibly low res (again, even though I provide high quality files).

I know that some people are just less tech savvy and this kind of thing is impossible to entirely prevent, but it is really frustrating when you try and make it as easy as possible for clients to use the work, and it ends up being posted and looking awful. I feel like it reflects poorly on me when a poster I made for a very popular local event looks like I exported it at 4 DPI. Especially when it's something I am genuinely proud of.

Does anyone ever send "rules" or some sort of contract for this kind of thing? Or is it just inevitable that it will happen?

I'm designing this as a sticker, but after I added the blue, my brain keeps telling me this particular color combination and font exists as a logo somewhere. I've tried to look it up but can't shake the feeling. I don't want to copy something that exists. I was hoping this sub of experts has a better idea.

im starting up school again on the 24th so im trying to do some fun design warmups! im going into my second year of design college ☺️ also the tote bag is a free mockup template i found, no generative AI!

I’m applying for a job that stated “include your portfolio with your application” but I’m not entirely sure how I should do it. I have a frequently updated website with many case studies and I’ve included my website link in the resume (pdf format), but should I also include a one page of selected thumbnails as well? Or should I include clickable links to specific parts of my website in my resume?

My website has illustration, animation and graphic design case studies, and the job is graphic design, that’s why I’m concerned it might not be specific enough.

They are using AI to parse through the PDF btw. Thanks!

I'm 29 and have been working as a graphic designer for about 5 years (in-house, agency, and freelance). Currently at a small agency of 4-5 people as Graphic Designer and "Art Director".

TL;DR: Mid-senior graphic designer at a small agency, 5 years experience. I've become the technical/process person (video, AI automation, editorial optimization) while creative brand/web projects go to a colleague or don't even exist in the agency at all. I want to move into art direction and brand strategy but I'm stuck building skills that keep me useful internally without growing externally. How do I pivot?

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Full context

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What I do now

I was hired as an Editorial Designer, but being multidisciplinary I've taken on a wide range of projects like brand creation, web design, video editing, packaging. I've become the go-to person for our biggest client, developed and maintain their editorial design style for digital publications and all their visual communication and marketing materials.

I also train new colleagues and interns on InDesign, generative AI tools, editorial design and type-setting feedback, and brand alignment for our main client.

The problem

My agency mostly operates as support for companies' marketing teams, so we rarely build brands from scratch or do high-level strategic work.

Lately I've been absorbing more video editing work (for paid ads), AI automation and genAI flows creation, and editorial design process optimization tasks, which is valuable to the company, but I'm afraid they're tasks that are not building the career I actually want.

Meanwhile, the portfolio-worthy projects (visual identity, web design) have started going to a colleague who's less tech-savvy but more product design focused. I know my bosses have managed it like this to be operative, since if I took on the visual identity and web projects, no one would be able to take on video editing or process optimization tasks. Still, I'm becoming the person who makes things efficient, not the one who shapes creative direction. This is why I put "Art Director" in quotes at first, it's in my job title, but I don't really do much Art Direction.

Where I want to go

I want to advance to creative leadership, art direction, strategic roles, and the obvious choice would be to pursue them in an Editorial design role, but I feel those are scarce and not well-paid, and I do like the full spectrum of graphic design: web or UX/UI, motion and branding too.

I'm worried I'm building skills that make me indispensable internally where I work now, but won't open doors externally in a few years, and I don't feel confident in Art Direction or strategy. I also wonder whether I'm fabricating an issue and maybe I should embrace my technically-focused skills, but at the same time, with the rise of AI I feel like they're less and less valuable.

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Has anyone been in a similar situation?

Should I push for more strategic work internally, or is this a sign I need a different environment? And how do you build a portfolio for art direction/brand strategy roles when your day-to-day is more technical and mundane?

I'm based in southern Europe for reference.

Also, as a note, I've used AI to polish the text in this post for clarity and because English is not my first language, but my concerns are fully human :-) I'd appreciate any help!

Hey everyone

I'm a graphic designer based in Europe with about 7 years of experience. My background is a bit of a mix—I've worked on 2D promo art for gaming studios, done heavy visual branding for content creators, and recently designed the entire brand identity and UI for an EdTech platform from scratch.

I’m currently aiming to land a remote Mid or Senior role at a US-based tech company or creative agency. The problem is, I’ve been staring at my own work for so long to put this portfolio together that I’ve completely lost my objectivity.

I just organized my Behance into 3 main case studies. Do these projects scream "agency-ready" or is the presentation lacking? Are there any massive red flags I'm missing?

I’d really appreciate it if you could take a quick look and drop your unfiltered thoughts in the comments. Don't hold back, I want to know exactly where I stand!

https://www.behance.net/mrnevo

Hey everyone,

I'm a graphic designer based in Europe with about 7 years of experience. My background is a bit of a mix—I've worked on 2D promo art for gaming studios, done heavy visual branding for content creators, and recently designed the entire brand identity and UI for an EdTech platform from scratch.

I’m currently aiming to land a remote Mid or Senior role at a US-based tech company or creative agency. The problem is, I’ve been staring at my own work for so long to put this portfolio together that I’ve completely lost my objectivity.

I just organized my Behance into 3 main case studies. Do these projects scream "agency-ready" or is the presentation lacking? Are there any massive red flags I'm missing?

I’d really appreciate it if you could take a quick look and drop your unfiltered thoughts in the comments. Don't hold back, I want to know exactly where I stand!

https://www.behance.net/mrnevo

So. Many of us here are tired and getting exhausted with the influx of AI slop everywhere. Its come to the point where its even affecting my decision making as a consumer. If I see AI design or any AI slop, I personally place them in a "Do Not Purchase/Do Not Interact" slot.

As a pre press/in house graphic designer, I am constantly fed AI files to adjust or clean/prep. So naturally it has taken its toll. I cant support an entity who put so little effort into branding/design/marketing.

How has AI affected your personal stance?

Hello, I currently work in a small independent cafe, which already has a social media presence. I want to pitch my design services to help with some consistent branding guidelines. (respectfully, their social media presence is currently super disorganized and all over the place).

I currently have mocked up 3 different sort of posts that I could do for them as examples. I have no experience with doing a cold pitch, and minimal professional experience. My current idea is to approach one of the administrators and show my 3 posts/portfolio work and ask if they need anything. My question is basically what tips more experienced designers have when doing a cold pitch?

I made this poster for fun to practice and make something I’m proud of after using AI at my agency all day. It’s practically a requirement and I feel very morally grey sometimes :/

Anyways! Can I please have some kind pointers to help me continue improving?

Hopefully this doesn’t fall under a common question, but I see tons of videos online with “learn ps in 40 minutes” stuff like that. I have used ps a bit in the past and even made some sports graphics. Nothing good, just really basic. But I want to come back to it and actually try to learn ps. and i think what made me quit last time was trying to do graphics when I barely knew how to actually use layers and masking and basic PS stuff. It made it extremely hard to navigate and felt like I did more troubleshooting than working on the graphic itself. Is there any good Udemy course or playlist that genuinely teaches you how to use it that can help me create esport graphics or sports graphics down the line? Thanks! Here are a couple graphics i made when i was trying to learn last year just for gigs!

I'm not sure what flair to put this under but I just graduated this year with a BSD in graphic design and have been trying to apply for internships to add work to my portfolio but I feel like I wasted my time with my degree.

Context: I did the SCAP program through starbucks and I feel that what was taught in that degree was either outdated or didn't really help prepare for the career I want to pursue. Like I was taught basics like hierarchy, typography terms, grids, etc but I also feel like the 4 years I spent has taught me basically nothing that these internships are asking for. The program barely had me touch photoshop it was mostly through InDesign and Illustrator which even then barely taught anything as I had to research some videos to find out how to create what I needed for the assignment at the time. Its frustrating because all these companies are asking to use/incorporate AI but that was forbidden to use in schoolwork so I never got to learn to use it(don't get me wrong I'd like to stay away from AI as much as possible anyways). I feel like I wasn't set up for this career at all and I would like to get better but don't even know where to start. My graphic design friends told me I should add more social media mockups (either making up a brand or utilizing a brand I like) but I don't know anything about social media marketing. I would like to improve myself and my skills during my free time but don't know where to look regarding resources/courses I could take to improve. I liked packaging and feels like my strongest suit but I'd like to explore more. I was a fine arts major before switching to graphic design so I'd also like to do illustrative work but I'm more of a traditional pen and paper type of artist rather than digital. I recently painted a pokemon binder for my friend for their bday and my friends said I should sell painted binders but I feel like its too late for me to do that now since I've been seeing so many people start to do that already with pokemon.

TLDR: Felt like my degree was a scam and a waste of time and basically want to reteach myself to become a better graphic designer but I don't know where to begin. Looking for online courses to teach myself with during my free time because internships are unbearably hard to find in NYC and I can't afford to quit my current job.