This post is a shout-out to all you wild-and-crazy A.D.’s.

Ian Brignell’s strongest professional relationships are with Art Directors. They speak the same language, creatively speaking. Many of them have changed companies, cities, states – even countries but when the right job comes in, they contact Ian.

Ian sings their praises all the time because In the world of commercial art and design, people got to work together and the quality of Ian’s creative work is reliant upon the quality and clarity of the brief.

A gifted Art Director knows and understands what his or her client wants, what they need (because sometimes these diverge) and is able to communicate precisely all these things to Ian. The brief is an exercise in creative direction: How the lettering or logo should feel, what emotional qualities it needs to elicit, size and technical details, legibility issues. Great Art Directors can offer nuanced synopsis about the target market and they are specific about where the design cannot go.

A good brief is Ian’s springboard, creatively speaking. When goals are clearly understood and communicated, art and design flourish.

A good brief has traveled a long road. It begins at the corporate level, moves through brand management, is entrusted to a design/branding agency where it is adopted by the creative director.

When each link in this chain is strong, magic happens.

Shout-out over-and-out.