FRANCIS KLAESS
VISUAL COMMUNICATION / GRAPHIC DESIGN
CLARITY...
It's the Journey
Create and make is what I have been doing since I could hold up a pencil. Starting in the days of t-squares and triangles, waxers and rapidographs, my rule has always been to move forward and to progress with the times. With the gift (from my boss) of a Macintosh SE, I have always been at the forefront of technology and accompanying trends. As the industry moves forward to a digital-specific world, the UI/UX world presents new ideas and possibilities. Trust me, I am just getting started!
Collaboration
Me, the designer with my editorial partner in crime. Circa 1995.
Working together with talented editors, publishers and fellow creatives has always been an exciting part of the visual communications experience. Designing for companies like Scholastic and Institutional Investor has given me an education into different worlds of thought. Moving forward I seek out the different to work with. It expands my universe and helps me better understand the world.
Art for Arts Sake
Polyphemus. From the series of greek gods. Monoprint.
Every body in motion has its equal and opposite body. As a professional graphic designer my day is spent with the straight and curves as determined by computers. Right angles and typography. In order to bring myself to the full round I delve into the world of pencil, paint, and printmaking. The beauty of this is that the predetermined never is as you would expect it to be.
Write to Know
How can I know what I think till I see what I say? (E.M.Forster)
Often I will be called upon to add text to a project - sometimes an introduction to a book project or it could be a full corporate brochure. Writing is an art unto itself that I have a deep respect for. I work hard at it, do my best, and rely on the kindness of my true friends in the literary world to guide me. When you hang out with writers and editors, something rubs off. Read what I wrote here!
It's the Journey
Rocky Mountain High: Way up in Colorado.
Just go. Don't stop and look back, just go. With the big world - and our small world, there is too much to see and do to remain at home all the time. Whether tripping through an art museum or slamming down a mountaintop on two wheels, the world of ideas and adventure awaits.
Read Everything
No genre too high or low to not be considered.
The One That Got Away ...
GiftCertificates.com billboard. Times Square, NY, NY,
My first and only billboard. And in the heart of billboard central - Times Square, NY. My important and delayed task was to photograph it for my portfolio - and more for the proof that I had actually done this. And it was gone. Taken down. A victim of the dot com bust. But years later, there it was - within the opening spread of a book by renowned architect Robert A.M. Stern. Look to the bottom left... there it is!