Andrew Slatter
In 1995 I graduated with first class honours in Visual Communication Design from Ravensbourne College of Design and Communication. A junior position at CDT Design was followed by a brief spell at Lloyd Northover. From 1998 to 2008 I was a partner of Unleaded Design with fellow Ravensbourne alumnus Henrik Bodilsen. I now work part-time as an associate lecturer at Colchester Institute and as a freelance design consultant, I hope that design writing and criticism will play a much more important role in my career after graduation.
Why I chose this course?
Throughout my undergraduate design education I was passionate about the historical and theoretical contextualisation of my practical output. I embraced writing dissertations and expressing myself in words alongside making marks. The debates and influences at Ravensbourne in the 1990s and subsequently my contribution to Emigre and Zed magazines allowed me to combine both writing and design, I saw this course as an opportunity to re-engage with both. Since starting the MA I feel energised, I know I have made the right decision to pursue my desire to write.
What I’ve learnt so far?
I write to engage with a reader. At the end of two terms I am exploring and identifying my authorial voice and position, which professionally is of a modernist inspired designer and personally as a gay man. How these two hemispheres will manifest, converge, diverge or abstain in my writing is part of an ongoing exploration. The journey so far has been rigorous, challenging and critical and I’m loving every minute.
