What does an environmental Graphic Designer Do?
By Michael Weiman, Environmental Graphic Designer, DEI Incorporated
I have been a graphic designer for over two decades now, and I always find it funny that people don’t know what I do for a living. Most think I make logos all day or just get to doodle. I have watched my parents introduce me and try to tell others what I do, and they even get it wrong sometimes. So, what does an environmental graphic designer do?
Yes, I do get to doodle sometimes, but an environmental designer does a lot more. Environmental graphic design, or EGD, deals with graphic design, art, landscape, architecture, interior design, wayfinding, and the list goes on. Also, as an EGD, I get to express my art in different ways using different applications and techniques. EGD is broad, so this is why some have a hard time narrowing down exactly what we do.
But Michael, you still haven’t answered the question, “What does an environmental graphic designer do?” Let me tell you what it means to me. I genuinely love what I do, I get to help businesses extend their reach to their customers and members. The way I do that is to create an emotional connection between their customer/members and their environment. I want to create a memory in their mind when they enter an environment. That memory could be as simple as being comfortable and using designs that make you feel at home. Or creating a placemaker. A placemaker needs to stay in your mind. It can be as simple as a logo or a beautiful piece of art. The overall goal is to create a memory of that environment with the customer’s branding.
I big part of my job is signage. With signage, the goal is to make life a little easier. Google can only get you close to the building, my goal is to get you to the building in a clear and precise manner. I can do that with wayfinding, which has directions on where to park or which building you are looking for. Or, with the use of branding, put a sign on the building and use the client’s branding to make their business stand out from the others around them. This signage enhances the experience and makes the customer/members lives less stressful as they navigate the environment. It transforms the spaces into memorable environments that are easily navigable and informative, another memory.
This is just the surface of what I do on a daily basis. I get to wear a lot of different hats, from project management to installing graphics on occasions. Like most art, it has its highs and lows but, I wouldn’t want to be doing anything different. It’s a beautiful world I get to help create.
About DEI Incorporated
DEI is a forward-thinking, expert driven architectural design/build company founded in 1985. DEI has designed, built, or remodeled over 1,800 financial facilities and transformed banks and credit unions into retail environments, a place to cross-sell products and services, improve efficiencies and increase the bottom line while connecting to your digital tools and spaces. Learn more at www.dei-corp.com
