SPARKED: The 6-Pack Story of Finding Fried
Hey Fried, this is a project I designed to showcase how I found out about Fried Design Company and how it has impacted my design identity and outlook on design. So please, read on and discover the story behind me finding Fried. Oh yeah, the story is told through 6 different beer can designs.
If you’re looking for a targeted portfolio for Fried it’s right here.
ILLUSTRATION | TYPOGRAPHY | PACKAGING
6-Pack Packaging
1. Goin' Nowhere
The story starts way back at the beginning of college. I jumped around majors a good amount and hadn’t found anything that really interested me. Walking around like a zombie, getting nothing done and going nowhere. I cared more about the layout of my class notes, than the notes themselves, I knew I wasn’t in the right major.
2. New Lands
Then one day I stumbled into the Art & Design building and changed majors for the last time. Growing up I was an artistic kid but I never thought I could make a career out of it. New Lands represents getting into design and really finding my groove after looking for so long. I also declared my area of concentration to Technology & Interactivity and landed a UX Design Internship with the great folks at Trinity.
3. Burn Out
My internship with Trinity really opened my eyes to how design works in the “real world” (outside of college classes). I was absorbing so much information from working alongside the design team there and it was a great experience. But slowly, I realized this wasn’t my passion, I wanted to do other things with my creativity and design as a career. This realization really burned me out on design and I wasn’t sure what design field I wanted to go into once I graduated graduation. I had lost my already shaky identity as a designer.
4. The Long Drive
With this internship I also had a two hour round-trip commute. Needless to say I was quickly running out of music and podcasts on the drive and needed to change it up. This is where I started to listen to design podcasts and tried a few out before finding the Perspective Collective Podcast. Listening to industry professionals talk about how they got to their current careers in design was motivational and helpful.
5. SPARKED
And then one day on the drive I listened to an episode featuring some Josh Sullivan dude. I was super intrigued after Scotty’s intro to Fried Design Co. and the work they do. This episode was the first time I learned that a design agency like Fried even existed. I was hooked, I played the episode over a few more times and took notes on what Josh had to say. I knew instantly that Fried was the agency I wanted to work for some day. Not only because of the cool work they do, but because of the emphasis they put on the business side of things, and their outlook on helping people in a pinch.
6. Rejuvenate
Learning about Fried Design Co. opened my mind to what the possibilities are with design. It was refreshing to see that I didn’t need to stay with my current career path as a UX Designer to be successful. Fried showed me that you can be yourself, have fun, and put out out kick-ass work all while being a professional. Armed with this new insight I began to take design more seriously than ever. About a year after hearing the podcast episode I am now wrapping up my senior year at college and looking to enter the “real-world” of design.
Conclusion
Shoutout Fried Design Company. They gave me permission to win and helped guide my career path when I was lost and unsure of where I was going with design. Joining the merry band of misfits would be a dream come true.
That’s it! If you have any questions or want to talk more, I would be delighted! Thanks y’all.