OrtnerSchinko

What is the story of your studio ? Hello, we are Wolfgang Ortner and Kira Saskia Schinko. We are OrtnerSchinko since April 2015. For years, we were both working in big advertising agencies and film companies. We got frustrated by the system of this creative industries and their work ethics: low quality, low passion, money-driven. This is how magic can't happen. We were convinced that we could change the game. Therefore, we decided to open our own studio as OrtnerSchinko.

Can you describe your work ethic ? How are you dealing with each new demand ? We started our studio and our design careers because we always wanted to have our own style. We maintain several principles in our practice. We want to be consistent in what we do. No detail, no matter how tiny, escapes our attention. We do not longer distinguish between print and digital. We follow our projects from conception to production. We always put typographic design at the forefront — sometimes we like it a little bit weird but always simple and contemporary — and we are in favor of using two colors maximum. At the start of each new commission, we immerse ourselves in the world of our client. We like watching our clients' universe, it is one of our primordial steps before starting a project. The best way for us is to come up with a clear strategy backed with our client, then we start with our design work. And sometimes, when we think we have a great idea, before we even get the main brief, we just start to work. We try a shot in the dark. We like to train our intuition and our imagination. It kind of preserves our integrity.

Do you think current graphic designers have to look beyond their domain ? We strongly believe that graphic designers should concentrate on what they can do best, by specializing and not generalizing. However, they should obviously know about other fields of visual communication, understand them, and think ahead while designing. The best for us is always to team-up with partners at our quality level in other creative and strategic industries, and focusing on the things we can do best. The current mediocrity in graphic design should not be a cause of abandon. Nowadays, you can find web-templates for five euros, there are free-fonts, and tons and tons of 'graphic designers'… Our chance ? We are working for people with taste. If you want to keep them as clients, you need to do your best for each project. For the future, we want to learn to develop ourselves more into doing innovative and outstanding stuffs. Not generalizing doesn't mean freezing its practice in the established codes. We try to force ourselves even more to look further. Hanging out on blogs and websites can’t be our only source of inspiration.

How do you see your studio in five years ? We can see a strongly motivated team of around five people, doing international projects with always the same conviction… style trumps money. Interview conducted in November 2015 ©ktlg