Interviewing Idols: Jonathan Quintin
British Graphic Designer, Illustrator, and owner of StudioJQ, Jonathan, produces a wide range of inspirational work that combines digital media such as Photoshop and Illustrator to create branding/packaging designs, as well as a vast selection of posters and everything in-between! Jonathan has created a huge following across his social media platforms, and I originally reached out to him on Instagram asking for advice back in 2018!
Jonathan, better known to most people under his design agency name StudioJQ or MadebyStudioJQ, is known by many due to his poster design work, of which is consistency documented on social media, posting multiple times a day, with daily artwork that takes inspiration from all avenues of Graphic Design. From branding to 3D modeling, Jonathan does it all! His clients have also seen this, as he has an impressive list of previous and ongoing clients, such as Bosch, Google, AON/Manchester United, Tommy Hilfiger… I could honestly write for a good while naming all his collaborators!
Why does he inspire me?
As you can tell from my previous interviews, I’m a big fan of consistent designers, specifically 3D designers, that are always trying to get better in their design journey. Jonathan is continuously making work, and I mean, continuously. Jonathan practically makes new work every single day of the year, and if he hasn’t finished a piece, he’ll show some new experiments he’s tried or some new software he’s working with. This is the sort of mentality all designers should have and don’t worry about making every single design be 1000% client-ready. Just enjoy what you do, and never stop learning!
Not only is Jonathan style unique, but it constantly evolves. Changing colour schemes, along with the creative mediums used. From experimenting with Photoshop to developing his skills in the 3D world, Jonathan is a great example of an all-round designer always wanting to be the best.
The Interview Part
I was lucky enough to be able to ask Jonathan some questions about himself and his career. I hope this’ll give you a little bit of an insight into Jonathan’s life, personal and commercial as well as his design process. It’s not every day you get to interview an idol!
1. Would you be able to say just a little bit about yourself and how you started your journey into the world of design?
In short, I am the founder of StudioJQ (MBSJQ) and I started my design journey at University, in which I studied GNVQ, HND & Degree in Design.
2. Since I know you’ve worked in the industry for many years now, what made you want to pursue Branding/packaging? (Extra Question — Why did you pursue Illustration?)
I just love building a brand! Seeing it develop and appreciating when it all comes together and the aim to make it unique! This is what I live for haha!
3. Which Project would you say are you most proud of? (I particularly like your Bald Eagle Beer branding project! Insane work!)
I think my work for Nadal and Tommy Hilfiger, really enjoyed that one!
4. Could you give some insight into your creative process? (e.g. Do you sketch ideas or go straight to digital media?)
I use social channels to research and then do a mood board. I’m not much of a drawer or a sketcher so I normally go straight for Illustrator or Photoshop.
5. What other activities do you enjoy besides Digital Design?
I like to try and keep fit and I also like exploring on day trips! Holidays are a great distraction from the design work, even if they are only in the next town haha! I enjoyed spending time on the PS4, and of course, I love spending some quality time with my daughter.
6. If you could, what career advice would you give to your younger self?
Believe in your style and don’t be afraid of knockbacks. They come and go!
(In response to this, I completely agree with the statement from Jonathan, but as a new designer to the industry, your own ‘Style’ takes time to develop and adapt. Try and do as much different work as possible, you never know what you might be inspired by next!)
7. What piece of advice would you give to anyone wanting to improve their work and grow in the digital design world?
Learn. Learn. Learn! There are so many tutorials out there on Youtube, Lynda, Skillshare, etc… Tutorials are a great learning resource, and I don’t get the stigma of ‘coping’ peoples tutorials. How else are you meant to learn! Don’t be afraid to get things wrong, it’s all part of learning!
8. Do you have any big designs in the works or anything that excites you about the future of your career?
Currently loving my 3D explorations, and I am hoping to progress further into the diverse world of 3D design! As well as this, I have just released a downloadable resource pack called the ‘Abstracpack’.
If anyone would like to download the pack, or has any interest in it, here’s the link! I bought it and I do have to say it’s 100% worth it!
9. Where do you get your inspiration for projects? Who inspires you!
That’s easy! Instagram of course! Every day I’m inspired by all the amazing creatives on Instagram. There is so much work to be inspired by on there, and just by looking are you learning! I love it, and it’s been a fantastic resource in my design journey!
10. Are you going to continue implementing 3D/Cinema 4D into your daily workflow? (Been loving your experiments with Octane Render!)
Thank you, and hell yes! 3D is something I 100% now have a passion for! In just love doing it :)
11. Thank you for taking part In this for my Johnathan. As I said I’ve been following you for a good while now and have watched your progression throughout and it’s been amazing to watch! For the people who will read this interview, what are your social media links for people to follow your future work? (Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Websites, etc…!
Thank you! This was a fun interview to do, and it’s always nice getting recognition for my work :) Here are my social links if you want to check out any of my work, or hire me for any jobs! Thanks again!
https://www.instagram.com/madebystudiojq/
https://www.skillshare.com/user/madebystudiojq
https://www.behance.net/JonathanQuintin
I just wanted to say thank you to Wes for doing this. If you haven’t seen his work before, I urge you to go check it out! He was one of the people who inspired me to pursue a more varied idea of design, has he inspired you to?
Cheers for reading! Here are my social links if you wanna check out my work
xientce@gmail.com
