Kristine Boise

Bio:

I am a Louisiana-born resident of the NJ ‘burbs who didn’t discover my passion for design until doing a Digital Media concentration at Loyola College in Baltimore, Maryland. After college I did a lot of freelance work; I loved the challenge of logo design and have always had a secret obsession with typography. Last year I started working as a Graphic Designer for the tech startup Conductor in Manhattan and I have fallen in love with NYC. I’m still relatively new to the design world, and I am eager to learn more, do more, and meet other designers.

I love to travel and photograph different countries – my favorite trips have been living in New Zealand for 6 months in 2007, and going to South Africa to volunteer at a Lion and Tiger Breeding Center in 2010. My next trip? Antarctica.

• Title: Marketing & Design Coordinator at Conductor
• Age: 25
• Location: Union Square
• Contact: @kristinemboise

What are some of your favorite projects you've done while at Conductor?

My favorite project at Conductor has definitely been our customer conference last year. It was our first one, so we did all the preparations in-house. I was able to help with all aspects of the event, from the design side (signage, name tags, floor plans, agendas, etc) to the menu choices, registration, and set-up. It was amazing to see how everything came together in the end.

Lion and tiger breeding!? Antartica?! Sounds to me like you love having a little bit (or not so little) of excitement in your life. When you're not on a crazy adventure, what do you do to get a little blood pumping in the city?

I can’t always be traveling internationally, but I find that traveling around the city is sometimes just as interesting. The same things I would do in other countries – meet new people, try new cuisines, explore new areas – I can do in NYC. Since I’m not a New York native, just walking a different route, eating at a new restaurant, seeing a show, or finding a hidden neighborhood gets my blood pumping. And a metrocard is much cheaper than a plane ticket!

I noticed you said that you are relatively new to the design world and that you are "eager to learn." As someone who didn't go to a traditional art/design school, how did you learn the ins and outs of design? Would you consider going to a design school to further your learning? What are your design pet peeves?

I didn’t realize that I wanted to be a designer until I took a graphics course at my liberal arts college. I was lucky that they had a Digital Media concentration that focused on design so I was able to learn the software and basic skills needed for a career in the industry without transferring to an art school. Once I learned design programs like Photoshop and Illustrator all I had to do was freelance on my own time. The best way to learn is definitely experience, which I am getting a ton of in my current position at Conductor.

As for going back to design school - I don’t think I would really consider it because I feel that the best education comes from the real world. Design school can teach you theories, principles, and software but nothing can replace having deadlines to meet and a boss to impress.

One of my design pet peeves is when something doesn’t have enough white space. I say embrace it! Another one – or maybe it’s more of a design annoyance - is when I can visualize something in my head and can’t seem to get it onto the screen quite as I had envisioned it.