For years, the creative director title has been a coveted, elusive thing. Reserved for designers of storied houses and image-makers of the highest calibre. Then, a new wave of creatives came through, the term became looser, the Instagram bios aplenty, and the elusive job description became even more ambiguous as people struggled to understand what it was that a creative director actually does. The vastness makes such a title tricky to comprehend—are you making clothing? Shaping the image of a brand? Freelancing to bring campaigns to life? Designing and establishing the creative direction of a magazine? Any of the above can be true. But what is the job really like? Ahead, we spoke to five of our creative and art director friends from respective fields to share what their jobs are really like.
Angel Jhang, Creative Director, Goop
Tell us about what you do...
I am the creative director of goop. I feel there’s so much to be said about creative directors and what they do and that’s all very much relative to the type of brand they’re standing behind or the different industry a creative cirector can be working and operating from. For me, I own, ideate and direct creative across all our (many) brand verticals while also working on and implementing different creative brand strategies on a higher level to support our growth, our brand and protect our creative integrity and consistency.
What does a day look like for you?
Everyday is so different as the brand does so many wonderful things. On a normal day, I usually like to get up early at around 6 am so I have some time to myself before the day officially starts and the notifications start streaming in. My day is often filled with meetings, then depending on what we have in terms of launch, a lot of my time is spent thinking, looking and ideating. I think most people in my field fell into what they do because somehow, they were able to store and retain these reserves of archived imagery in the way of campaigns, photos, films and cultural timelines all in the back of their minds. When I have a brief, that’s the first place I go. From there, I keep going until I land on something that intuitively feels right in every essence and then a creative is built along with a map and a vision on what story I want to tell and more importantly, how I want people to feel. If we're already in production, my day is filled with attending another round of meetings with different photographers, agents and creators to see who fits best as well as briefing all the different teams across the company. If we're shooting, my day starts by getting up early, usually jet lagged, to prep as well as make sure all my teams feel supported. You then step into a day of directing and orchestrating a room full of people and a million moving parts before entering the next phase which is obsessing and tirelessly piecing it all together to make sure the story is told, the feelings are felt and the strongest foot is put forward for the brand.
How did you get into your field?
I really admire and have always been envious of people who knew what they wanted to do from a young age. I never meant to step into the world I did. I moved to New York when I was really young with a fistful of cash and it wasn't until a really painful heartache forced me into wanting to take more control of my own life and do something or try something different. I was waitressing at a restaurant called Lovely Day downtown and started assisting stylists I admired during the day to fill up more time and stay out of trouble. From there, I went to styling on my own then transitioned into the role of an art director as for me, I quickly soon realised that building a story felt so much more exciting to me and felt like a natural move as styling and art direction always went hand in hand. It took a lot of years of really hard work and a lot of self sacrifice but art direction became creative direction and I never take for granted the hard work or the privilege I have to say that's where I am today.
What’s the common misconception about your job?
That it's glamorous and easy.
What’s inspiring you at the moment?
A good rest, a sleep in without an alarm, a great book and my own warm bed.
Neada Deters, Creative Director & Founder, LESSE
Tell us about what you do...
I'm the founder and creative director of LESSE—a line of clinically advanced, natural skin care founded on the philosophy less is more.
What does a day in your life look like?
I oversee all creative, brand, and marketing as well as formulate all of our products—so every day is different. I'm often reviewing marketing assets or packaging samples, pulling together creative briefs for an upcoming shoot or print asset, on calls to discuss events or collaborations, working through strategy with our marketing manager, or researching ingredients and concepting new technology or innovation for future formulas.
How did you get into your field?
I was an editor and writer prior to launching LESSE. It was such an invaluable foundation for the work I do now, as I had the opportunity to test thousands of products, learn the industry inside and out, and direct hundreds of shoots over the years. It gave me a deep understanding of not only ingredients and formula development, but how to shape a brand through product, visuals, and words. I also briefly consulted for brands as a freelance creative director during the research and development phase for LESSE.
What's a common misconception about your job?
That it's easy, unstructured, and requires little experience. Many of the hardest working and most devoted people I know are founders and/or creative directors! It's a job that requires constant focus, research, and years of relentless work and understanding of the creative industry.
What's inspiring you at the moment?
Nature. Sculpture and ceramics of the 20th century. Moments of quiet amidst chaos.
Greg Jackson, Founder & Creative Director, Greg Laboratories
Tell us about what you do...
I’m a apparel design consultant and the director of my own brand Greg laboratory.
What does a day in your life look like?
I try to start my day off with a run or a bit of meditation though it sometimes doesn’t go to plan. I head to my studio in the garment district where I juggle freelance design projects as well as designing and managing the day to day operations with the brand.
How did you get into your field?
I studied industrial design in school, but with the permission of my professors, they let me do apparel design for a few projects. My work was noticed by a few recruiters from different sportswear companies and 13 years later here we are.
What's a common misconception about your job?
I think the most common misconception is that making clothes is the work of one person, but actually it’s the work of multiple people with years of experience. it’s impossible to do on your own.
What's inspiring you at the moment?
My friends that are owners of their on respective brands are inspiring me right now. I have the most talented friends in the world, and I love seeing them succeed and come up with cool ideas. It pushed me to try harder.
Paulina Paige Ortega, Freelance Creative Director & Designer
Tell us about what you do...
I'm a creative director and designer. I work with brands, publications, and individuals to help shape how they look, feel, and interact with the world. This can extend to developing brand identity systems, creative directing campaigns and lookbook shoots, designing logos, picking which fonts work (sometimes developing these from scratch), choosing colors, selecting talent, designing books, or even identifying specific photography styles that can capture a certain point of view. Some days, it feels like I am a professional discerner—'yes' vs. 'no', 'right' vs. 'not right', 'pretty' vs. 'not quite it'. But mostly I am a visual communicator. I work with people and brands to make the right things happen.
What does a day in your life look like?
A million tabs open all at once. Some days I sit in front of my desktop all day working on a logomark or custom typography, on others I am deep in reference research building out concept boards for fashion campaigns. Other times, I am on set at photoshoots pretending not to eat all the pastries. My days tend to be varied. I can just as easily be running a strategy meeting, reviewing packaging prototypes, and having after work martinis with a client within the same day.
For all its variety though, everyday feels different but the same—the same creative direction skill applied across different 'surfaces', if you will.
How did you get into your field?
I got my start as a bossy little kid who had opinions on everything. I'm kidding. I started my career as an Art Director and Graphic Designer and worked my way up (in a sort of diverse, meandering manner) from there.
What's a common misconception about your job?
That it's simply Instagram bio fluff.
What's inspiring you at the moment?
Creativity in friendships. I'm particularly fascinated by the joy and beauty (and tension) that can be born from collaborative relationships. Like Joan Miro and Josep Lluís Sert, Raf Simons and his babies Matthieu and Pieter. Raf Simons and Mrs. Prada, come to think of it. Sofia and Marc. Massimo and Lella Vignelli. Piccaso and Braque. Mel Ottenberg and Addison Rae. I love the idea of creativity as a vehicle for friendship and idea exchange. The betterment of one’s practice, the expanding of one’s world view. I’m curious about the communal beauty that is born from that. These are relationships I treasure in my own life as well.
Chris Luu, Art Director, Wieden + Kennedy
Tell us about what you do...
I'm an Art Director at Wieden+Kennedy, an advertising agency based in New York City. If my mum asks me what I do I'll say "I'm responsible for the visual communication of brands". If friends ask, I say "I look at Google Slides all day".
What does a day in your life look like?
Get up, neglect the gym, roll into the office, daydream for a few hours, drink four coffees, pat office dogs, daydream some more. I'll get assigned a brief then if I'm at my desk most of the time I YouTube things, poorly skim articles, go to the bookstore, take photos of pages I think are useful and try not to buy it. Eventually I'll throw some ideas into a deck. Then I'll show my boss later all of the ideas i've accumulated throughout the day.
How did you get into your field?
Growing up in Perth, Western Australia, we weren't spoiled with a lot of examples of people making creative careers. So if you wanted to be a professional creative, the only three options that were presented to me was architecture, advertising, or be a broke artist who drinks dark red wine in a corner and performatively writes life complaints disguised as a thesis in a tattered moleskin. I tried the first two early, and third later on in my life. I liked Art Direction because we were taught that communication had to be disarmingly simple and the whole job was contributing purely based on concept, which means that you can change the course of your career if you present the right words and visuals on one page. So I worked an unpaid internship for six months, got fired even though I wasn't getting paid, then jumped on a plane to New York and cold emailed some people until one guy gave me a chance.
What's a common misconception about your job?
People think my job is a "Creative Director", which in my industry is a role earned through seniority, experience and a wealth of great work behind you. I report to a Creative Director and work with them. Who helps shape, package and guide ideas while also managing the tantrums. You only become Creative Director when you've made work others want to make. I don't think there's many misconceptions about my job title, mostly because 98% of people I meet have no idea what an Art Director is. It becomes tricky when you have to explain that you get paid to just daydream for a living.
What's inspiring you at the moment?
I enjoy seeing artists and brands spend their money recklessly. Like, truly recklessly all in the name of attention, spectacle or what they would deem as "perfection". It's ambitious, sure. But it's even more fun to have an opinion on. It's inspiring to me seeing other people do things I would never do. Go spend your money so we can be invited to have thoughts on it!
