Karen Huang, co-founder of Manic Design, emphasizes blending creativity with commerce, embracing compromise.
I first met Karen Huang and her husband Jimmy about 5 years ago when they had just moved into the unit next to ours out by the east coast. New neighbours can be a source of apprehension (what if the party gets too loud?), but I think both of us will unanimously agree that we got lucky with our neighbours!
Karen and Jimmy started Manic Design in 1999 and very recently decided to take a break from the design business and focus on other things in life. It’s been a fruitful collaboration over the last twenty years, with Jimmy helming the business side of things and Karen as Creative Director charting the creative vision of the company.
It’s a Wednesday morning in Singapore when my dog Milli and I drop by their apartment. There are creatives who spend their entire lives getting better at just one thing and then there are those restless creatives who feel compelled to dabble across hobbies. Karen falls in the latter camp, and over the years she’s gone through a whole bunch of hobbies. The house reflects her personality and varied interests, with each corner carrying a creation of hers.
So for a young designer, I think it is important to embrace the “commercial” and try to develop a style (or vision) within the commercial context. Hopefully, that will bring already close the gap between your vision and the client’s.
Bob: So what all hobbies are you into these days?
Karen: My “hobbies” are in fact a source of embarrassment for me or more like guilty pleasures. As you can see, I’m currently into calligraphy. I tend to careen from phase to phase and it’s not good for credibility, nor any semblance of reliability, but I cannot help it.
I have always needed to make things and work with my hands, so I’ve always been into some kind of craft: sewing, patchwork and quilting, making bags and toys.
I was a pretty serious baker at one point, not the fussy chefy type, but I ran this online thing with my mum and a friend for a couple of years. My carrot cupcakes were awarded 5 stars out of 5 by 8 days magazine! That’s one thing I brag about any chance I get.
This year, I finally completed my yoga teacher’s training.
I recently revisited my typewriter collection and suddenly I’ve got 13.
After that, you need to be ok with compromise. Be happy with the fact that the client is adopting 80% of whatever you’ve proposed and concede the rest.
The advice given to me by Stefan Sagmeister when I bumped into him (by chance, in 2008) and asked him the exact same question was: Make as much money you can from commercial projects and use that to fund your personal projects.
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