Looking for design: 24karrots

(I’m completing this series even after having left the country as some of my interviewees have been fairly busy. There are 2 more left and the last one is the best, so i hope you’ll bear with me :) )

I had the pleasure of speaking with Marie-Eve Bélanger who is one of the 4 members of 24karrots a film and design collective working in Montreal.

1. Could you describe yourself and 24Karrot‘s work briefly?

24karrots is a design and video (and everything in between) collective we started exactly a year ago. Vanda and I are mostly design oriented, whereas the boys (Dan and Bobby) are the filmakers of the group. But we all overlap as some point, as our academic paths are quite similar. As for myself, well, I’m mostly a web designer these days (although i like to think i can do it all ;) ). I have worked, in collaboration with Vanda, on fashion projects like the I Love Kyoto shirts and multiple print projects. I also have my own line of work which is web oriented.

2. How long have you been working professionally in Montreal ?
It’s been almost three years now. I got offered a position at an agency while finishing design school 2 years ago after which i got hauled over to 24karrots.

3. Do you have any event or anecdote that is representative of your experience working in Montreal?
Too many – walking on Côtes-des-Neiges, everyday to get to our studio is an adventure in itself.

4. Do you consider design to be well understood in Montreal?
No, not really… Well, there’s a specific, mainstream almost mass-produced design that seems to be well-accepted and loved. I’m talking here about all those nifty bars or boutique-hotels designed to appeal to a certain very specific clientele. Same thing in graphic design. Agencies get all the love. People are still awkward towards low-fi, well-produced, manmade design.

5. In your opinion, what key designers/business are shaping the design scene in Montreal?
I personnally like the grassroot feel of RITA. I would say the works of smaller companies like FEED, atelier Chinotto or even freelancers like Christian Bélanger or Luce Beaulieu are truly pushing the montreal design scene further than any bigger agencies. Their values, craftmanship and rigourous approach to design is what montreal looks like.

6. What is missing from the Montreal design scene?
We need: more craftsmen, more typographers, more international design conferences, more ethical/eco graphic designers, more letterpresses, more independant designers, more perspective, more interaction between designers of any fields

7. What would you say is the hardest thing about working in design in Montreal?
A. Educating clients about good design.
B. Competing with bigger forces than us. Agencies, clients and design-focused media outlets.
C. Being in Montreal: we sometimes see our city as this marvelous multicultural meting pot whereas, i think, we are one of the most self-centered group of designers on the planet.

8. What would you say is the best thing about working in design in Montreal?
A. The tightly knit web community. The cooperation and collaboration between independant designers
B. The vernacular design in our everyday lives that is specific to montreal: metro, architecture, old neon signs, côtes-des-neiges in general.
C. The 5 à 7’s ;)

9. Where do the opportunities lie for the future of design in Montreal?
Designers and businesses need to move out of the plateau and in to Côtes-des-Neiges, NDG, Hochelaga and such. Humbling, inspiring and cheaper ;)
We need to acknowlege the work of smaller businesses and ethical designers. Both in the media and in our everyday lives.

10. If you had the choice to work somewhere else, where would it be?
Berlin, Kiev, Brno, NYC