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ROY WHITE + MATTHEW CLARK
SUBPLOT DESIGN
Subplot Design is a leading brand design firm with international experience in creating breakthrough, category-defining corporate and consumer brands. Headed by Roy White (left) and Matthew Clark (right), Subplot aims to offer international brand talent without all the layers. White and Clark launched the firm in 2004. The partners met at karacters design group, where Clark served as associate creative director for Clearly Canadian Beverages, Reebok International, Urban Fare, Sun-Rype Products and Spike. Clark's work has been recognized in local, national and international design shows and publications. At karacters, White held the position of associate creative director and, in 2003, acting creative director. His projects included Urban Fare, Earl's Restaurants and the Finning annual report. His work has been recognized in design competitions and publications across three continents. In previous positions, White worked on several Olympic-related branding projects, most notably the Olympic Village at Homebush Bay in Australia, as well as design for Sheraton Hotels, Virgin Records, AMP Financial, Rothschilds and the successful re-branding of the Australian Government Services Agency.
Was graphic design your first career path?
MC: I always say I tripped and fell into it. After high school I enrolled in pre-med at The University of British Columbia, but despite top grades even my parents thought I was crazy to ignore my creative talent. So, I changed to a bachelor's degree in fine arts. And, to pay my way, I dropped by a Zippy Print to copy my resume to see if I could get some work in the "graphic arts" while I went to school. I got a job right there at the Zippy Print; I didn't even have to make copies of my resume. That introduction, and subsequent meetings with design professionals, had me running my own small business doing logos, t-shirts and architectural renderings for five years before I joined DDB Canada's design division. So, I never went to design school and had the worst portfolio out there. But I still made it, somehow.
DW: I knew I wanted to be a designer since high school. After graduating from Mander College of Art & Design in London, I cut my teeth at two of London's most respected design firms, CDT and The Partners, for a couple of years, basically wristing for the partners. In early '87, as a very young designer, I thought, "I can do this," and set up The Third Man Design. Four years later and a lot of lessons learned, I realized it was not as easy as I thought! A lot of the lessons I learned from that experience where very useful as Matthew and I went into setting up Subplot. Running a successful design company is not just about being a good designer.
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