2013 has been a great year! Revision Path was launched, and we’ve done over three dozen interviews with Black designers and developers from Portland to Johannesburg. There’s even more in store for 2014!
To wrap things up for this year, we’ve pulled together our ten most popular interviews here on Revision Path based on page views, social sharing, and overall web traffic. Check them out after the jump and see if your favorite interview made the list!
Dewon Hall came to us from the Black Designers United group on Facebook, and we talked to him back in August about the design community in Greenville, MS. The graphic/web designer is also an actor. Multitalented!
Advice from Dewon: “Align yourself with individuals who push you to become better. It’s important to have someone in your corner who will be honest with you about your work.”
Alrick Collins, Jr. was the first of five New York-based web designers we featured in December. He’s a graphic designer, artist, and entrepreneur who is also a big comic book fan.
Advice from Alrick: “At the end of the day, you can’t do it all yourself and expect to be a master of one thing.”
Alex Pierce. You probably know him best from his popular side project Black in History, but the Dallas art director and web designer is a name you’ll definitely hear about years from now.
Advice from Alex: “Starting out, you’re gonna fall into a lot of common web design traps and pitfalls. The feedback will be harsh, but it will make you better.”
Stesha Doku is a triple threat in this industry — she’s a designer, a developer, and a doctor! (She’s also a pretty dope photographer too!) When we spoke to her back in July, she gave some great information on how designers and developers can help out the medical community.
Advice from Stesha: “Learn to code. Digital design isn’t just about aesthetics. It’s about beauty in interactive function.”
Andrea Williams, a web/mobile designer and art director in Detroit, MI, is another name you’ll be hearing from more in the future. Andrea’s also working with a startup app company called Pavo, which has a focus on the fashion blogger community.
Advice from Andrea: “Don’t wait for the perfect client or project. If you have an idea, just do it. Give yourself the time to flesh that idea out and document your process.”
Dee Speed was the first woman on we interviewed here, and she really dropped some truth bombs about design and creativity that are worth revisiting. Dee also work with interior design, with a keen eye towards mid-century pieces.
Advice from Dee: “You still need something you can call your own that you don’t have to compromise on at the end of the day.”
Chanelle Henry is a woman of many talents. Aside from teaching and being a user experience designer, she’s also working on a mobile app along with another person on our top ten list — Andrea Williams! Her interview back in August also has a bunch of great information for anyone starting out in this industry.
Advice from Chanelle: “My advice would be to always research the field to see what exactly it entails. Also, get about 10 people to follow within the field, and possibly ask a couple to mentor you.”
Carrie Hawks‘ resume as a multimedia designer is super impressive. Cartoon Network. Wired Magazine. Al Jazeera America. And she’s a documentarian! She definitely brings a wealth of experience to this industry.
Advice from Carrie: “Look at great websites. Work on organizing type and information hierarchy. Design a website (for yourself and for other organizations)!”
Brandon Butler is the only podcast interview on our list here, but that’s no surprise. Aside from being our 25th interview, it’s just a really good look into someone who has been through the trenches and has come out on top. It’s definitely worth a listen if only for his anecdote about motivation.
Advice from Brandon: “Set crazy goals.” (But seriously…listen to the whole podcast.)
We talked with Chris Weathers at the end of June and he discussed how he juggles his business along with a full-time job. Congrats to Chris on being our most popular interview of 2013!
Advice from Chris: “Developers should not only learn how to use these new technologies but learn WHEN to use them. Not every framework or programming language is applicable to every situation and it takes experience to determine which one will get the job done at a given time.”
Thanks to all of you out there for reading and listening to the interviews and helping Revision Path thrive. Here’s to a prosperous and creative new year! Bring it on, 2014!