6      Conversation with Yah-Leng Yu

A multi-disclipinary designer whom I would call him a design rockstar

31.05.11

Seeping hot chocolate on a hot afternoon behind my screen and trying to type out the questions for myself and then answer them all in a bid to unravel the ins and outs of this one-of-a-kind project, we spoke to the mind behind it all.

We first met during my visit to your studio prior to The Design Society Journal last year. Other than a bigger studio, how has everything changed since?

I've always have a penchant for drawing since I was a little kid. I enjoyed art classes offered in school, and have been curious on all things visual. To cut a long history short, I ended up taking graphic design / visual communication course when I left high school because I couldn't afford to study 3D computer visual /motion graphics, my primary interest back then. Pursuing graphic design seems like a natural alternative choice, and the rest is history. In retrospect, I'm actually glad that I develop my interest in graphic design instead.

You are working with a museum in Shanghai on a project now? How did that happen?

There are many figures I look up to throughout the years. Early in my study years, Stefan Sagmeister is a major influence in my thinking. He convinced me till this day the act of 'to touch someone's heart with design'. It defines a purpose for my passion back then, and it continue to instill a purpose to what I'm practicing now.

In my early career years, as my exposures to design industry broaden, many individuals and studios become a yardstick in which I measure myself against with. I look up to the works by Kinetic, and been a given the privilege to join the company, to work under the tutelage of Pann and Roy. I made some of my biggest personal strides by learning from them.

Now that I'm setting up a design practice on my own, I look up to many local independent designers as role model to learn both design and how to run a design business practices from; Felix from Silnt, Hanson from H55, Larry from &Larry, Jackson from :phunk/Black Design and many countless others. They have years of experience running a design business successfully in small scale. I learn a great deal from appreciating their works, reading write-ups about them, and listening to their conversations.

Identity and branding for TABLE No.1, Shanghai

Tell us abit about your background. What and how did you get started on design?

I attribute the fear of making mistakes to the highly competitive nature of design business, and insanely inflated egos instilled in many budding designers. Everyone have the fear to fail. It's a natural, latent behavior in all of us. Ultimately, it's a mental exercise.

Every mistake is rewarding in restrospect - I learn not to repeat them. The usual console for myself is the choices I made that lead to the mistakes, are the only choices I can made at that time, otherwise I would have chose the others.

So, what would you do if you weren't in design?

I think there are always pros and cons for functioning as a big agency and a small studio.

Multi-discplinary approach always gives a better business advantage. To be able to produce design solutions that carry through a series of medium with consistency in communication while offering a better rate is always an attractive edge for businesses.

I also believe in the trend of small independent individual/studio working together on a per project basis with each offers a specialised skill-set, is becoming a viable creative and business model. E.g., A digital installation project with its art direction and design, motion graphics, programming and installation each contributed respectively by individual/studios specialised in them. This model offers a diverse creativity approach, flexibility, and sometimes good economic sense. My own studio, Roots, is taking both approaches.

Identity and branding for Wanderlust Hotel, Singapore

You mentioned that one of the questions you will ask when hiring is if the candidate knows who Karim Rashid is. What's that about?

It started as a personal desire to do a honest, good design to express myself. I wanted it to be more than just a portfolio slideshow site, but with a more narrative style approach with a bit of storytelling, without being too cliche. I wrote down a few bits of phrases that I feel pretty much say who I am, what I do and what I stand for, and starts from there.

Staying true to my cultural roots is a goal. Referencing the visual aesthetics of the cultural arts as part of the design process becomes natural, and that's how I derived the site final presentation.

Success of the website took me by surprise, but it utterly convinced me one thing - simple, honest design is always a good design. It becomes one of the founding principles of Roots.

I'm flattered by the recognitions the website received on international stage. I feel proud to have a simple personal story that would resonates with people from different backgrounds. People continuously write in till now how it inspires them to do good with design. It makes me feel glad that I have, at the very least, 'touch a few hearts with design'.

I recall you saying you are more of a story teller when it comes to design. How so?

Personal works are important to designers (or, at least to me). We become our own client, with self-defined goals and perimeters to work with, and a broader flexibility to exercise our creativity. It's good as well as satisfying for mental health. It encourages us to explore with very few restrictions, and most importantly, to fail without much fear. At least for me, personal projects often force me to confront my own shortcomings - Why I can't do this? Why shouldn't I do it this way? What stop me to try this?.

Identity and branding for Roof, Shanghai

I personally feel that scoring places and being featured and talked about on sites like Twitter, Facebook and blogs is better than winning an award. What are your thoughts on this?

Roots is an interdisciplinary graphic design studio based in Singapore, founded in 2011 by yours truly.

Do you follow any blogs? Who or what inspires you?

I wrote down a principle which I wanted the studio to adhere to, based on what I've learn, experience and understand in my 8-year career.

"Design is about being honest in the communication. Often it requires no more than simple approach in creativity and forward thinking in the execution to relate to the right people. A good outcome is generally the product of good design. Design should touch someone's heart and it is something we love to connect with. At the end of the day, it's about staying true to the roots."

That's how the name Roots came about.

What do you think of the design scene in Singapore now?

The stint was a short one, three months to be exact, but it was fun while it lasts. They do great works there, and I was exposed to production and design environments that are vastly different from what I would have thought of. The experience matured me in some way, much like just when you thought you have seen pretty much what there is, and suddenly you realise you knew nothing at all. 

A side effect from all these is I've grown to love travel now. It is incomparable to what you heard, what you seen as images or read from write-up than to actually being there to experience.

I made a few good friendships there.

Singapore is a great city country to live in, with good design business prospects. Rising living cost is a concern, but I foresee myself to continuously based here. I have many good friends here that I hope to have opportunity to collaborate creative projects with.

Lastly, any words you'd like to share with aspiring young designers?

(Chuckles) Made some progress. Tossing around a few ideas, but nothing concrete yet. Paying homage to a great design influencer is no small matter, let alone interpreting one of his much-honored rules of design. I only hope the final output will live up to the value expected from the rule itself.