Colorado Creatives Series
In support of #AIGAatHome, we have launched the Colorado Creatives Series, an opportunity to celebrate and showcase local creatives in our area. Our Colorado Creatives will share a little about their creative process, some of their most worthwhile investments, current reading lists and more. Enjoy!
Name
Jill DeBiase
Pronouns
She, Her, Hers
Where can we find you?
How have you adapted your creative process during this time?
I’ve written down my schedule and taped it to my wall—simple but helpful. There are dedicated periods of work, breaks, and don’t forget 10:30 snack time. (Most important time of the day.) I wish I got out for the walk that’s on my schedule for 1:15–2:00… but I’m still working on that.
Honestly, I should probably iterate on that—I’m on version 3 of the schedule right now. I think it’s important to keep treating your schedule as a living document and change it based on what works for you.
What are you reading, listening to or watching right now?
I’m reading Reason for Hope by Jane Goodall. That lady has balls of steel. The autobiography covers her journey, her work, and she makes salient points about environmental efforts. Who couldn’t use a bit of hope with a dash of badassery right now?
What is one piece of advice you can offer to other designers right now?
Routines, work, social lives—so much has been thrown off the rails. Everything is unusual, so it doesn’t make sense to hold yourself to your usual levels of productivity. If you’re struggling, be gentle with yourself. If you’re not struggling, rock on and remember to eat your 10:30 snack.
What is an unusual habit or an absurd thing that you love?
Two words: fancy pigeons. Did you know Charles Darwin bred these fine-feathered pigeons? Check out this pigeon parkour video (there’s a man doing parkour too, but CHECK OUT THE PIGEONS). If I recall correctly, the pigeons in the video do backflips because certain messenger pigeons were specifically trained to avoid hungry hawks by throwing some mad flips. Those pigeons are now out of service (thanks, SMS, email, and the Internet) but have bred with local pigeons to make the ultimate Parkour Pigeon species. Cool.
