‘Maintaining the Creative in Creative Industry’, lecture by Michelle Phillips from Studio Yukiko

“The leap between being a design student at university, exploring and practicing creativity every day and learning how to apply all that creative expression I had developed as a student, felt like trying to jump across a canyon when I got my first job. That was 16 years ago. Today I still grapple with the tension between ‘creative’ and ‘industry’ only now I see the challenges that once daunted me as opportunities to grow and thrive. In this lecture, I’ll be taking a deep dive on the lessons I’ve learned from my meandering journey from student to studio, sharing projects and processes that have got me here, the joy of collaboration and letting go of your ego and the importance of finding inspiration outside of the ‘industry’.”

Michelle Phillips studied graphic design at the University of Brighton in England. In 2010 she moved to Berlin and made music videos before co founding Studio Yukiko, a Berlin-based design and creative agency. Michelle is also a founding member and Art Director of Flaneur Magazine and Sofa Magazine and has been on the jury for TDC new york and D&AD awards.

Studio Yukiko was co-founded by Michelle Phillips and Johannes Conrad in 2012, a Berlin-based creative agency specialising in creative direction, art direction, brand strategy, concept generation and graphic design for commercial, cultural and indie clients alike.

The studio also runs its own projects, such as Flaneur and Sofa Magazine. With these research projects Yukiko continually experiments with contemporary forms of visual storytelling and fosters a deeper understanding of the audiences with which its projects engage.