Honor Roll: Zach Roszczewski Hey Zach! I just want...

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Honor Roll: Zach Roszczewski

Hey Zach! I just want to start this off by saying thanks for taking the time to chat with me. Tell us a little bit about yourself. Whats your major and where do you go to school?

Thank you for showing interest in my work and featuring me here Mike! My name is Zach Roszczewski and I am currently on my final semester at Central Michigan University. I am working towards my Bachelor in Fine Arts with a Graphic Design Concentration. Aside from school and freelance design, which consumes my life, I try to spend any free time that I have outdoors and away from technology. I love the mental and physical break and really allows me to escape and reflect.

As an undergrad what was the most exciting thing you got to work on? What about it made you so interested in it?

The most exciting project I am working on is probably the one I am currently working on. It is a project about finding a balance between technology and nature, a hybrid lifestyle. Follow me on Twitter to stay updated on the progress. The reason for so much interest is because I am very passionate about this topic. Technology is such a new and huge thing right now, but a lot of people are being consumed by it. We need to find a healthy balance of Technology and Nature if we want to live a fulfilling life.

Where do you get your inspiration from?

I try to get my inspirations from the widest range of places, to keep my style unique for every project that I am working on. Some individuals that I truly look to for inspiration are Justin Mezzell, Emir Ayouni, & Dustin Wallace, all AMAZING Graphic Designers. Dribbble is a great resource for inspiration because it gives you such a wide range of styles. To find the hidden treasures though, I look to my ever-growing bookshelf for unique inspiration, a lot that can’t be found on the web.

I noticed on your dribbble that you were getting into some UI design and I was really loving the balance of your two styles, the flat textured illustration look mixed with the web 2.0 look. Is there a particular style that you prefer? And are you getting into writing any code? How do you feel about the future of design on the web?

I am always experimenting with different styles and trying to blend styles together to create something different and unique. The style I prefer most is ‘Subtle’. Subtle textures, subtle gradients, subtle design elements. Design that is aesthetically pleasing but not distracting to its functionality. Thats what I believe the future of web design will be like for the most part. I do write my own code as of now to better understand Web Design, but I hope that eventually I can just focus on the design and user experience and leave the coding to the programmers.

Take us through a little bit of your process from concept to execution. What do you consider the most important part?

My process is similar to the typical design process, but I believe the most important step is the research. Research is the structure of the process, and without the framework, you have nothing. I get most of my inspiration from researching the topic at hand, and use that information to my advantage in the rest of the process.

Do you have any side projects or an internship going on? How do you handle your time?

Currently I am working at a design firm on CMU’s campus, as well as working freelance part time. The load is heavy but I believe the hard work will pay off in the end. In terms of handling my time, I try to just take it one day at a time and work most of the day, but take small breaks when needed so I don’t go clinically insane.

Outside of design, what are you most interested in?

Nature, Basketball, NHL12 for PS3, Yoga, and good food.

What are your next steps? Are you looking to freelance or maybe live more of the agency lifestyle?

My plan is to find a Graphic Design studio that I mesh best with, I don’t like all the extra business aspects that come with the freelance lifestyle.

Thanks again man! I wish you the best out there in the so called “Real World”. For more of Zach’s work check out his Portfolio or to see some work in progress stuff head over to his Dribbble.