Melbourne’s Co-op

Who are CO-OP?
October 2008: Co-op is a collective of creatives dedicated to the practise of visual communications. They are both conceptual and visionary in their approach, and are not limited by discipline, instead choosing to work openly and collaboratively across many platforms.

How long have you guys been around?
We have been around for almost 4 years now. Feels like 4 weeks sometimes.

Who are the individual members?
There are only 3 full-time staff. Myself, Paul Fuog (from Melbourne), Dan Honey (from Melbourne) and Bec Worth (originally from sunny Queensland).

What has CO-OP been up to lately?
We are just finishing a pretty big re-branding job for an architects firm. We are also currently working on a identity for an art and fashion PR agency and some event branding for a new client who is establishing an events-based creative community.

How would you describe the work?
I guess we try to be pretty flexible with our style as we work for such a broad sector of clients. We are inspired by modernism so our work always tends to reflect this. We love clean, grid-based design. However, I came from a fine arts background of sculpture and illustration so I try to bring a little bit of this to our work, where appropriate.

How would you describe the “Australian style” of visual communication?
It seems to be pretty diverse, particularly in Graphic Design. I think the “Australian style” might be to not have a one. I guess unlike the U.K or Europe, we don’t have a huge graphic design history so it seems we look elsewhere for inspiration and as a result we probably have an eclectic style. I guess that stands true for a lot of things in Australia, like food and fashion. I have however observed a couple of things about Melbourne-style and one thing we ain’t is showy. Melbourne does have a very down-to-earth style. We don’t like to look like we are trying and we appreciate an effortless looking aesthetic.

You guys do a broad range of work for a variety of clients. What are some of the things you have worked on recently that have been enjoyable?
The jobs mentioned previously have all been pretty challenging and rewarding. For the P.R agency, Grey Aviary, I sourced some compressed metal blocks from a scrap metal yard that weighed about 40kg each. The guy at the scrap metal yard said the 40cm by 40cm block was originally 10 car radiators. He then said the compressing machine could squash myself and him into a block of the exact same dimensions. I wasn’t sure if that was a threat so I picked up my 10 radiators and got the F*@k out of there. After that we photographed the blocks at about 15 different angles. The final photos were then collated and taken into photoshop to create a 3D sculpture. It was a pretty long process but we were really happy with the result.

What is the creative process on the work you do? Do your clients have a particular idea of what they want when they come through the door or are you given the creative freedom?
It changes from client to client but generally speaking they present us with a brief and then allow us to interpret this. We don’t often get clients approaching us with a particular outcome in mind. Most of the time we have creative freedom as long as it is within the confines of the brief.

How do you find the city of Melbourne from a Designer’s perspective?
I think it’s a really inspirational city for designers. Our lack of design history, hence, lack of tradition encourages us all to experiment and try new things. Also, our Aussie ‘have-a-go’ mindset means that it is pretty common for young creatives to be starting up things and as a result there always seems to be something new happening.

What advice would you have to younger designers entering the industry?
Damn! It seems so competitive these days. You really have to put in that extra effort. For graduates compiling their folios, I would say only put the work in that truly represents you and where your heading. Forget about folio fillers. It makes no difference if it’s a job for a real client or for a university project, just put in the good stuff.

Links:
www.theco-op.net.au

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