Avant:post

What is the story of Avant:post ? AW: We all met when we were students at the ECV Aix-en-Provence. The three of us decided to create a collective with two other girls. We were known as 5M, related to the 3M glue that we often used to display posters in the street. This group allowed us to make different projects from what we could do at school or for clients. At the end of our studies, we continued to run the collective and rented premises, in order to work together on projects, aside from our projects as freelance designers. It was usually non-profit projects, but we really had fun. We continued to work as freelancers on our own. After the girls have left, the three of us ended up together. Johan and Quentin stayed in the South and I moved to Paris. Several years later, we still had this strong connection and this desire to work together, that is why they joined me in Paris to create this studio. QB: It is true that our story is quite ordinary: we started our studies at the same place, so working together was in the nature of things. We live together, we go to parties together… In fact, we spend 90% of our time with each other. We are very close both in work and in everyday life, that is why we are equal partners.

What motivated you to found your studio in Paris ? AW: Settling our studio in Paris was strategic. I came here first, I wanted something else. I had the chance to be hired as a junior art director in an advertising agency in Bordeaux, which gave me some experience. Then, I worked with two or three agencies as a freelancer, then as an art director at Publicis Royalties for identity and branding. I stayed a year and then Johan and Quentin joined me in Paris. JM: Indeed, we were freelance graphic designers in the South and it was starting to work pretty well. What we were looking for by coming to Paris was above all the constant search for quality. In Aix-en-Provence or in Marseille, the competition isn't as important as in Paris, there is not the same requirement. We thought that if we wanted to fully achieve our goals and be able to evolve, we had to move to Paris. QB: Paradoxically, since we are in Paris, we are working even more with our former clients of Marseille. We have more credibility now that we are here. It is reassuring to see that after several years our first clients are still faithful.

Do you have a particular work ethic ? AW: With the 5M collective, we had the chance to make personal projects. Today, we oscillate between a graphic design that many consider elitist, and a more commercial one. We try to approach as much as possible people who are not necessarily connected to the world of graphic design, which can sometimes be too restricted. JM: When we graduated, we always wanted to be trendy, we were less open… Of course, we try to keep this requirement in terms of graphic quality, while being happy to reach as many people as possible with some more commercial designs. It is a constant play between both. We are not always at the forefront of graphic design like some other studios but we try to be more open while remaining demanding. AW: We maintain a balance between form and content. We deliver tailored answers and we have the will to build something unique for each one of our projects. QB: Clients do not come looking for us for a specific project because we work on different fronts. We can show them a variety of different things, that leaves us flexibility. When a studio has a too specific style, it can be hard to get out of it because the client expects a project in the same mood than other works he has seen from the studio before. AW: One of the objectives of this studio was precisely to explore different areas. We do not restrict ourselves. Today, we do things we don't necessarily do when we come from a printed media and visual identity section. We sometimes work on photography and video. It is quite interesting to work in fields we didn't have a specialized education for. For example, we assume an approach to video that is not conventional. We realize that the client usually likes our original vision.

Do you think current graphic designers have to look beyond their domain ? JM: When we switched from freelancing to creating Avant:post, we decided to focus more on our skills of art directors, whereas before we rather defined ourselves as graphic designers. Our education has still taught us how to find solutions to communicate, even if this mean achieving them by someone else. Today we see ourselves more as art directors collaborating with a panel of people specialized in areas that are not directly ours, such as photography, digital... It is true that we love print media and beautiful objects, but we have no idea how it will evolve. Working on several fields is maybe a way to shelter. AW: When you have been ten years in the profession, you work even more faster and everything can quickly become too obvious. A true designer needs to go beyond things he already knows. Interview conducted in January 2016 ©ktlg