|
Staying true to both the product and himself has always been one of Purcell's personality traits. After working as an agency designer at Cornyn & Partners Advertising in San Francisco, Purcell - fueled by a dream to open his own studio - relocated to Los Angeles. It was there in the late 90s that he started a business with a friend from design school. "The studio took off like a comet in the first year," says Purcell, "but the partnership faded even faster." Deciding to go it on his own, Purcell launched DPD, which has successfully targeted youth-oriented companies looking for guidance; clients include Pyramat, Fox Racing, Slednecks, Streetspace, and Concord Records. Purcell spoke to altpick.com from his studio in Los Angeles where he lives with his wife and two sons.
That's a hard one but I think from a learning standpoint, yes. I was the senior designer working on everything from MTV Networks and Liquid Audio to Eidos and Pygnosis. We were in the dead center of the dot com Phenomena and we got our fair share of the work. One assignment in particular stands out for me and that is the work we did for Streetspace: This was their technology start-up that came to us as a test market campaign for their new I-Link terminals that would link the community by allowing users a private network of user-targeted content. What intrigued me most about this project was that we were starting from ground zero. They didn't have any vision of how to capture the college-aged, tech-savvy crowd. It was an extraordinary journey for both the client and me. What is your philosophy towards the work?If there is one thing I try to stay conscience of it's keeping the concept as pure as possible. Sometimes you have to put up a fight but in the end the work is better for it. How has your work evolved? I think my work is constantly evolving, becoming more intuitive and less driven by a vaguely developed creative brief. I feel like I've come full circle. I remember the na�ve days of design school when we focused on the elements of design more than strategy. I miss those days. I still use the creative brief, but I've learned how to distill and sharpen it for each project.
When I was at the agency we had account executives interfacing with the clients. I felt like all the information I got was filtered and was never confident that it was really authentic. I like dealing directly with the client. Sometimes I get bogged down with the administrative part of it all. What is your favorite aspect of the design process? I think the problem solving part is in the beginning, analyzing the problem and going through the rounds of creativity trying to solve the problems in different ways. Striking that perfect solution is exciting. Does dpd studio have a specialty? I have a lot of experience in consumer electronics and video games as well as packaging, advertising and identity development. I am known in the extreme sports industry for dvd packages, press kits and posters. I get a lot of referrals from Fox since I handle all their video projects.
I bring a little bit of professionalism to the extreme sports industry which tends to have a youthful nature. Have you reached the place you want to be?No, I don't think that will ever happen. This may be a character flaw but I am never satisfied." How has the business changed for you in the last five years? I think the business of design is going through some growing pains right now. The 90s was the party that never seemed to stop but the last five years have been the respective hang over. My business started just after the dot-com demise and just before 9/11. It seemed like an uphill battle but the prior client relationships that I've made have been fruitful and supportive. What do you attribute your success to? Intuition. Motivation. Circumstance. - Contributed by Mary-Beth Holland >> See more work from Dennis Purcell >> See other member spotlights on the member spotlight index >> Find out more on how to become an altpick.com member |
