Weekly Creative Biz Note #3

The Life of an Art Director

During my 13+ years freelancing at multiple advertising agencies I worked on many national accounts--such as: United Airlines, U.S. Postal Service, Frito-Lay, KOOL, Lucky Strike, Bally's, LaSalle Bank. Now that I'm illustrating, I have a perspective from both sides. So, I thought this may be a good topic to blog about...for those who don't already know.

I'll start by explaining the creative "ranks". First up, among agencies the titles of artist positions seems to always vary. In simple terms, here's the order: junior art director, art director, senior art director, creative director. The other half of the core team is the "copywriter". He or she will work on concepts, copy and partner with the art director through the entire project. Then there's the "art buyer" who connects the art director with the correct photographer/illustrator and sometimes freelancer. Also, the art buyer will manage the artist (with the art director) and negotiates pricing. A "traffic manager" helps the art director coordinate meetings, etc. with the art buyer, production team or anyone that is involved internally. Make note that some mid-size to small agencies don't have art buyers or traffic people. There can be a multitude of "account managers" on the team too. Typically, one is assigned to work with the art director as the mediator between "art and client". The account person will provide the project details, coordinate deadlines and help sell the concept to the client. So, as you can see...there are a few cooks in the kitchen.

The life of an art director is never boring. There is plenty of stress, late nights, hair-pulling, lack of communication and even tears...yes, tears. I've seen plenty of directors break down. Though when it all goes as planned there is a inspiring sense of accomplishment and you want to do it all over again!!

Most young, fresh-out-of-school, art directors don't mind the late hours. For me, there were plenty of nights that went into the morning--it's part of the job. My day as an art director would start at 9:00am and usually go until 6:00pm. Lunch was sometimes eaten in front of the computer. There are plenty of hours spent concepting, doing electronic timesheets and even figuring project hours/timelines. Three to five meetings during a day wasn't unusual and that doesn't include the countless times people would pop into your office to make their own immediate meeting. From rep meetings to client meetings to gatherings with keyliners. As the art director, you don't always have the time to do the actual work on the computer. Bummer--cause you can slowly lose you computer skills this way! I would have a freelancer or another junior director helping out--that management time would suck up some of the day. Keeping your cool and trying to be organized was key. An art director is bombarded by email constantly throughout the day too. There was meeting maker software that helped coordinate all the team players. As I said,"never boring"!

The process in which a director uses to find an illustrator is a personal preference. There are resource books, the internet or an art buyer. I've had this conversation with quite a few people and it seems to me that the younger generation of art directors are utilizing the internet as their source of finding artists. It's quicker. I'll talk more about this subject next week.

If you have ever had the chance to walk through an ad agency, the creative team cubicles/office walls are covered with art! It's quite a sight to see! All the cool postcards and posters they receive in the mail are inspiring or hung as a reminder to possibly use the artist on a future project.

Thanks for reading!

Next Friday--Weekly Creative Biz Note #4---The Yin & Yang of Source Books
(Feel free to comment, give your experiences or even disagree!)