This week: Ugh, self promotion. My work in print. New camera, new me. Old animations. The potential of drawing while riding a bike. And more!
🔗 Any text that is underlined is a link that can be clicked 🔗
1. Updating my portfolio
I spent most of my free time this week updating and reworking my portfolio website. I only considered burning it to the ground like 30 times. If you enjoy looking at portfolios and thinking about how to make them better, please take a look at my site and let me know what you think.
Here’s the link → www.volk.design
One thing I haven’t quite cracked is how to thread the needle between:
This is the website of a professional designer and
This is a creative person that likes to make all sorts of things (i.e. animations, prints, zines) even if those things aren’t what he gets hired to do and
This website is a living document that will grow and change
Self-marketing is weird. I feel like such a sell out even though I need money to feed my family and keep the lights on. This Creative Independent article has helped me think about thoughtful promotion and hate it a little less.
Do you struggle with marketing yourself?
2. Sleepcation illustration
I made an illustration for an Isthmus article about going on vacation to sleep. The illustration required something that wasn’t really my style so it was a fun challenge to try and achieve something different.
Do you think Dr. Snooze is a real doctor?
3. New camera who dis?
The camera roll on my phone is the place photos go to die. I take photos occasionally but never really look back through or do anything with them. I take photos with my phone because I can. It’s there, they look nice, it’s easy. But I don’t think much about what I’m doing or why I’m doing it.
I wanted a more intentional way to document our lives so I bought a camera made in 2011 (Canon PowerShot SX230 HS for those of you who speak camera). So far I love it. I know the quality isn’t going to be amazing so I’m not worrying too much about the settings and focusing on having fun taking photos.
That’s exactly what I want. No fuss, just photos.
If you want more photo stuff in your inbox check out
and .4. Drawing with Strava
This week I got a small bike bag thing that can hold my phone (and new camera!) while I’m riding. I’m excited to draw with the Strava app. I’ll keep you updated.
Check out the Let’s Paint TV clip below. He’s painting, making music and riding a bike at the same time.
5. Ghost of animation past
I was looking through my hard drive for portfolio stuff and stumbled across some animations from years ago. Enjoy.
ALSO
Alex Edelman’s Just For Us is hilarious and earnest and not what I expected from a stand up special.
I can’t believe they’re just giving this to us: design tools from DIA
All of the work Buck is doing for UW Health has been beautiful.
I dream of living a car free life – Never Not Nervous
*Carly sets down her dinner and Knox points at the table in front of him* “How about you slide that plate over here.”
“Joe’s wife works there.” “Who’s wife?” “Joe.” “Joe Biden?!”
These days I have the luxury of not needing to promote myself for design work. But I have also had the long term struggle of balancing all of my divergent creative tangents under one roof. All of the usual permutations of website formats and multiples — and of course the self hosted versus portfolio platform seesaw.
As both a casual viewer and when I have been part of a hiring process, I prefer the eclectic, everything in one somewhat organized box. It says “real living human” to me.
Cheers, Mitchell! Thanks for the shout. We still need to get that coffee. This too! https://www.flakphoto.news/p/my-sweet-midwest