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- Meagan Hyland
Meagan Hyland
Meagan Hyland is a Design Director and Illustrator currently working in Dublin.
Megan Hyland graduated from LSAD in 2010 with a degree in Visual Communication, after a brief return home, a job search took her to Dublin. She began her career with Catalysto and has since worked in a number of studios in Dublin including, Dunne Stores, Brando, In the Company of Huskies. and Teneo. In addition to working with numerous blue-chip brands across the globe, Meagan has found great success with self-initiated projects that have been featured on Design Taxi, Flavorwire and Quipsologies. In addition to her work being exhibited both nationally and internationally, she served as the designer-in-residence in Facebook’s Analog Studios in the EMEA HQ in 2018. Meagan was awarded the IDI Design Award in 2018 in the personal Illustration category for her work titled, ‘Monty Python Anniversary Show – Quest for the Holy Grail’.
Tell us about starting out as a Designer
After leaving LSAD I spent a couple of weeks in my parents dining room making 1000+ piece jigsaws. I remember it vividly because I realize that I didn’t really know what I was going to do after college had ended so I submitted an advert on Creative Ireland advertising myself with the following opener: ‘1-2 years minimum experience required – Help me solve the dilemma of finding work in the design world fresh out of college when I need experience to get a job and need a job to get experience”. I then listed my college credentials and ended with ‘and I make a damn fine cup of tea’.
By October I was working as a junior designer in Dublin design studio Catalysto. During my two and a half years there, I worked my way up to the title of Designer, working on a variety of projects including the design of annual reports, brand design and a touch of illustration. I also became the studio’s product photographer as I seemed to have a knack for it. During this time I began a side project that I dubbed ‘Meagan’s Movie Alphabet’, as a way to stretch my creative muscles and write my own brief. The finished project landed me on the front page of Design Taxi, Flavorwire and Quipsologies. It was one of the main reasons why I got my next job as in-house designer in Dunnes Stores Head Office.
Two years previous to getting hired by Dunnes, I helped coach a friend from LSAD for an internship interview with them. She went on to be their Product Photographer and Designer before moving to London at which point she introduced me to the team as a potential candidate. Having that connection got me in the door but outside interests other than my client based work were what helped me secure the new position. While there I worked with the marketing team on press ads and campaign visuals and this opened up the advertising side of design for me. I realised that I could exist in this area but I also felt that there was a limit to how much I could grow.
ICAD Upstarts – A Change in Direction
After two years with Dunnes Stores, I applied for the ICAD Upstarts programme and spent 6 intense weeks working on art direction briefs for six high profile agencies, presenting to their Creative Directors each week. At the beginning of the six weeks all the candidates were contacted about internships at Brando, I declined. I knew that my previous experience in design meant that I didn’t have to begin again at the bottom even when moving industries. At the end of Upstarts, Brando advertised for an Art Director on Tinder, at this point I had a book of work to present. I applied for the role in the form of a personal ad “I am on the lookout for a like minded person whose interests include photoshop, piña coladas and getting caught in the rain”. Two of the other Upstarts took the internships, I took the job.
Art direction was exciting to me, I enjoyed the challenging briefs, learning to work on a set, directing other people and working with bigger budgets. At this time I also began writing radio copy (why not!). While working in advertising I didn’t loose my desire for illustration or design. I kept personal projects going in the background so as to keep something for myself. In 2016, just as I was itching for a change in scenery Brando merged with In the Company of Huskies. I remained in the agency for year and a half, working on a team that created the entire look and feel for the launch of a phone network in the Bahamas and picking up awards for my work on the GAA and eFlow outdoor campaigns.
This is where they story stumbles, as with any take over of a smaller agency by a bigger one there isn’t enough room for everything to come with it. I took voluntary redundancy in 2017 and spent some time on the dole as I could not find another role similar to what I had before. Agencies were looking for creatives who could animate and produce video content but I had always stayed within the realm of print. Time spent outside of the conventional working environment cannot be wasted; I traveled, I did a screen printing course, took part in Dublin Canvas, did some work for worthy causes and kept developing my personal work. This kept my mind occupied and helped me to stay creative. In November 2017 I almost took a role I knew I did not want (I was panicking that I would never get another job). I trusted my gut and three months later the same Creative Director offered me a role more suited to what I wanted to do. In February 2018 I started as Creative Consultant for Teneo PSG.
7 years can pass in a blink
When I joined Teneo in 2018, I thought I would stay for a year and move on again. Little did I know that seven years would pass by in a blink (Covid years will do that). In that time, I have seen the structure of the company change, the type of work we do morph, technologies come and go, and fads we thought would be around forever die (Facebook canvases anyone?). From designing social posts for pizzas and ice creams, to three years working from my front room making video content with an iPhone and a prayer, to creating international campaign work for Midleton Very Rare, McDonalds, and Samsung. During that time, I have continued to straddle the line between Designer and Art Director while trying my best to include illustration where I can. I also try to train in new areas each year, most recently exploring Data Visualisation while making time for freelance work where I can. Most recently, this creative work manifested in me creating work for a David Lynch tribute by Little White Lies, https://lwlies.com/articles/twin-peaks-fire-walk-with-me/ .
Self Initiated Projects
While working in Catalysto you began to explore self-initiated work with Megan’s Movie Alphabet. This jump-started some interesting collaborations for you, can you tell us more?
Megan’s Movie Alphabet
MMA (not to be confused with the sport) began after watching Jessica Hische speak at Offset about her ‘Daily Drop Cap’ blog and Olly Moss speak about his ‘Do Something Cool Everyday’ project. I decided to take those ideas and make it about something I love; cinema and typography and Meagan’s Movie Alphabet was born.
I set out a goal for myself, not one a day because I had a full time job and enjoy my time off but once a week seemed more achievable. I would create posters for films in alphabetical order using only the first letter of the film title and elements from the film to create that letter. I posted the artworks publicly on Tumblr so that I couldn’t back out or be late. During the project I was contacted by creative blogs who wished to publish and write about my work when the alphabet was complete. I was shocked by how many people liked the project and how it got picked up by so many sites. One of my posters was voted the 2nd best alternate film poster of 2013 by the Shortlist. The project really thought me a lot about managing time and when to let a piece of work go, you can’t keep tweaking forever if you have a deadline!
Gallery 1988
As a result of MMA I started exhibiting with Gallery 1988 , a gallery based in LA that specializes in pop culture art. I was an admirer of their work for years before I got up the nerve to contact them. I sent the gallery some of my work and as luck would have it, I was selected to take part in an all-female show they were working on.
I love the group shows for 1988 because it never seems like work. They collaborate with film studios and networks to make exhibits based on popular movies and tv shows and as a result I have been able to work with Sony, 20th Century Fox, Focus Features and The Cartoon Network on projects for Ghostbusters, Bob’s Burgers and Rick and Morty.
Screen Printing
Although I only studied it in first year, over the years I have become more and more of a printmaker. Working in design full time doesn’t leave a lot of time to do physical printing so I frequently collaborate with a printer in Greece who goes by the name TIND and Damn Fine Print in Dublin. I love to collaborate on the process because sometimes the best ideas come right at the end. TIND and I collaborated on a beautiful print for Disney’s Alice in Wonderland that really only came to life after he suggested some gorgeous shades of blue.
Dublin Canvas
Dublin Canvas is an amazing initiative and I encourage everyone who can hold a brush to get involved. I had planned on applying the year before I was eventually involved but I missed the deadline. So, determined to not make the same mistake again, I was ready the next time applications opened. I geared my design towards an area that I know and love (The Liberties), and tried to capture little details that locals would understand. Painting the box was great craic. Tourists were coming up, asking me for directions while old lads asked if I worked for the council and whether I could paint them too. It’s lovely to have such a public platform for art and I’m really privileged to get to walk past my design each and every day. The best bit is that it’s something to do with my career and my passion that my parents can understand (not like me trying to explain what a Chatbot is to them!).
Dublin chapter of Ladies, Wine & Design
Ladies, Wine and Design, started by Jessica Walsh of Sagmeister & Walsh in New York, is an initiative that seeks to help address the gender imbalance in the design world. Within the world of design, there are plenty of women in junior roles but not a lot at the Creative Director level. The group aims to address this issue through organising mentorship circles, portfolio reviews, talks, and creative meetups. With chapters in over two hundred cities all over the world, it’s a real force for change. I got involved with the project and ran the Dublin chapter for a number of years. The Dublin chapter of LWD has been a huge success, helping to connect women with job opportunities, collaborators, and new friends to have a drink with.
Design Process
What is your design process?
In terms of my design process, I find that it hasn’t changed all that much over the years; rather it has refined itself. Working hand-in-hand alongside planners in the advertising world has helped me understand how to approach a project with better understanding of the target audience and the end user. I’m much better at including this tone of voice in the thought process from the very beginning now. This saves me a lot of time as it prevents me from following up on ideas that will never make it past the first round of critique.
Inspiration
Where do you find inspiration?
In terms of research, I try to avoid looking at work in the same field as a first source of inspiration. I find that it limits your ideas to things that have already been done before. I’ll look to film, music, architecture to get inspiration, get outside and away from the screen. Take a course unrelated to what you do, just to do it.
For graduates, no one is going to come knocking until you tell them where you are. Advertise yourself well, keep your website updated, comment on things on LinkedIn. Email creative people you admire and ask for advice on your portfolio even if they are not hiring. Be sound.
Advice for Students
What advice would you give students who are beginning their studies?
Advice for students: go to bed at a reasonable hour. It’s not a badge of honour to have been up all-night working on something. It just means you’re not able to function the next day in the studio. Learn to switch off and use your time working effectively. Do not have your first draft too polished, keep it as rough and simple as possible so the client only sees the idea and doesn’t focus on details that shouldn’t be set in stone yet. Do not compare yourself to your classmates, it will only make you feel inferior. Everyone has different strengths and some people might completely change career after graduation. If you’re working on something that is going to be printed, never start on screen. Computers are to design what microwaves are to cooking: they are a tool. You are the designer. Be ballsy, talk to people who intimidate you and squeeze everything you can out of them. When I was in fourth year, I went to Offset with a dicta-phone and talked to every designer of note about my thesis. Learn to use tools from other disciplines, they might come in handy.
And for students about to graduate?
For graduates, no one is going to come knocking until you tell them where you are. Advertise yourself well, keep your website updated, comment on things on LinkedIn. Email creative people you admire and ask for advice on your portfolio even if they are not hiring. Be sound. When studios are hiring, they are as much interviewing your personality as your portfolio. No one wants to spend eight hours a day with a 22-year-old who thinks they’re above it all. If you are interning, treat it as a proper job. “Not my problem” should not be in your vocabulary. Offer to help with everything, show that you are hungry and willing. Do not clock out at five every day, people notice. If you have something that needs twenty more minutes, its worth doing when you have momentum instead of trying to find energy again the next morning. Similarly, learn to ask for help – it will be given. No one expects you to know everything right away. Most importantly, if you’re given a brief you’re not particularly excited about, tough. Every brief deserves equal respect. You have to realize you are making work for someone else and it’s your job to impress them. A Creative Director will spot unenthusiastic work every time and clock you for laziness.
My biggest piece of advice would be don’t let your day job determine who you are. Have outside interests and personal projects. It’s good to see what you can do when no one is watching. I would have quit design long ago if I didn’t have my self-initiated projects to work on. Not only that, these projects have helped me find new opportunities. A drawing blog led to galleries which led to making licensed prints for Rick & Morty, Bob’s Burgers, and Focus Features. This, in turn, led to me making prints for Disney. I’ve been included in three different books on pop culture art and helped co-author a book on hand-lettering too. All because of work I did for fun. And if you don’t like the industry, change it. Three years ago, I helped set up the Dublin chapter of Ladies, Wine & Design which aims to foster mentoring and community between female creatives. Through these meetups we’ve helped people break into the industry, meet collaborators and find jobs. You only get out of this job what you put in, so give it your all!
