Occupation: Designer GQ Magazine
Website: www.chelseacardinal.com
A few weeks back the 3rd year students had the opportunity to spend the day with Chelsea Cardinal. Here are some of the students thoughts on the event.
Ian Macfarlane wrote:
Thinking back, what stuck with you? What stuck with me, was the fact that Chelsea was an Illustration major and is now working as a Designer for GQ. It made me realize that regardless of the stream you choose to take, it is possible to cross streams and be successful doing it.
What did you learn? To go ahead and apply for a job even if it does seem far fetched that you would ever hear back. After Chelsea explained how she got in with GQ through an online application, not thinking she would ever hear back about it.
Did it change any of your perceptions? I was definitely inspired by Chelsea's visit, it gives a lot of hope to students, that if your really want that big job with the company of your dreams. A little patience and persistence can go a long way. I also really liked the fact the a she was very down to earth, mellow, and more than willing to help and answer anything we threw in her direction. Overall a great experience.
Vishu Mahajan wrote:
What did you learn? To be persistent. If you want to work with a particular company, don't give up if you don't get the job the first time.
Any surprises? Inspirational moments? So far in ACAD and from professionals in the industry, all we've heard is "it's about who you know" and Chelsea was the first person who has said that she didn't know anyone in the industry when she first started applying for design jobs. She was able to successfully get her dream job through a simple online application and I thought that was pretty inspiring.
Did it change any of your perceptions? Her visit was very encouraging and we learned a lot about her design process and how she has been able to get where she is.
Zhen Huang wrote:
Thinking back, what stuck with you? Her illustration has a random/sketchbook look and it is quite interesting to see some of her stuff was used in GQ magazine; as a graphic design and illustration student I am glad to see that your illustration skill will be used even you work for a graphic design position.
What did you learn? I learned that is is important to always feel confident about yourself and will to try when there's opportunities; Chelsea said that she didn't know that she would end at working for GQ, but she wasn't afraid to apply for it and finally got the offer.
Did it change any of your perceptions? I found even in a big and famous company like GQ, the work space can be still enjoyable as she talked about how they chill together in the studio and watching youtube video; I use to think it would be a really serious space.
Kayla Barber wrote:
What did you learn? I learned that although you may love both design and illustration it doesn't mean that you really have to choose between the two in order to succeed. An inspirational moment was realizing that Chelsea is still a baby in the industry considering she graduated not to long ago. Despite this fact she has still blossomed and is doing really well for herself. Gives hope to those of us that will be graduating next year.
Jodi Skulmoski wrote:
Did it change any of your perceptions?Inspirational moments? In seeing Chelsea speak it really introduced me to a whole new field of design which I knew was there but kind of did not really know much about it. I'd say it made me realize the time and effort put into magazine design, and the fun that introduce to their work. Chelsea seemed really passionate about her work, and inspired me to look into that area of design, our magazine project in type class has really sparked my interest and I'd say Chelsea really inspired me with this direction of Design and the fact that opportunites such as jobs in New York could be obtained with a degree I will soon hold.
*Note: This post has been updated from it's original form to include spreads from the magazine (Thanks go out to Chelesa for providing them!) and has been edited to clarify that Chelsea didn't get her job at GQ with an illustration portfolio, as we had erroneously posted previously. She did go through the illustration stream, but when applying for design jobs, she compiled a portfolio of all design work.
