Our board member Sebastiaan Scheer, MediaMonks, was on stage at Design Village, the biggest design festival in the Ukraine. In front of a crowd of 600+ young designers and design talent. This year’s theme: ‘working together’. We asked him a few questions about his fascinating trip to Ukraine.
How did a Dutch design director end up in Ukraine?
I was asked to talk about how working as a team can make a difference. A difference to the end product, but also to you as a designer. That we, at MediaMonks, are no longer about individual talent, but about using talent as a team. From the beginning to the end everyone is involved. Whether you’re a strategist, developer or designer. To focus on producing the best product out there.
What stood out when you were there?
That Ukraine is incredibly beautiful but unpolished, with so much potential. Life is two-fold out there: rich and poor. And the poor have to work incredibly hard to get where they want to be. In this instance, it is almost impossible for young designers to get their dream job. The market is small. The country is huge. And most of them haven’t got a lot of money to spend. But they have an incredible fighting spirit, and are extremely proud of their country, despite all the obstacles it throws at them.
What inspired you?
Everywhere you go, you can still spot the old Soviet influence. Beautiful murals in the middle of nowhere. Statues. The industrial surroundings. It’s rough and raw, beautiful and tragic at the same time. Yet it was the people who truly inspired me. Their attitude, their willingness. At the festival young designers drove more than 500 miles to listen to people like myself, to be inspired, to try and make their dreams come true. Wow!