JOE DUFFY

One of the most respected and sought after creative directors and thought leaders on branding and design, Joe Duffy has led award-winning branding efforts for highly admired companies including Aveda, Coca-Cola, Jack in the Box, Sony, Sub-Zero, Susan G. Komen for the Cure, The Islands of the Bahamas, Toyota and Wolfgang Puck. His work is regularly profiled in leading business, marketing and design publications and has been exhibited around the world.

Duffy has served as founding chair of the Environmental Committee of the AIGA, and on the boards of the AIGA, the College of Visual Arts in St. Paul, and the Minnesota State Arts Council. He has been awarded the Legacy Medal from the AIGA for a lifetime of achievement. His first book, Brand Apart, was released in 2005. In 2006, Duffy was featured in Fast Company as one of the "fast 50" most influential people in the future of business and he is now a Fast Company guest blogger.

Where were you born, where do you live, did this effect your design style or sensibilities? I was born and still live in Minneapolis MN and yes, I believe it has affected my approach to design. I'm from Middle America but also from a progressive and very creative community. I believe that has grounded me in my sensibilities to what's going on in the world, while at the same time pushed me towards innovative thinking.

If you were not a designer, what would you be? If I wasn't a designer, I'd probably be a fine artist; it's what I set out to be. I got into design because I became a husband and father at a young age and believed I needed to get a "real job" and provide for my family. At the time I thought I was compromising but I'm glad I did it and have never looked back.

What is one thing you have done to help weather the economic downturn? Five years ago, I separated my company from our parent company and became independent. At that time, after going through four recessions in 20 years, I decided to start a new company with the same basic approach to design but in a smaller form. Technology and the way business is conducted today, has allowed us to do what we do from one office on a global scale. Right sizing has been our answer to deal with yet another economic downturn, albeit the worst one I've experienced.

What is your greatest strength and weakness as a designer? Strength/Weakness — I'm impatient — at times, it's a strength . . . at other times, it's a weakness.

YOUR DESIGN HERO?
Milton Glaser

WORST HABIT?
Procrastination

FAVORITE COLOR?
Green

FAVORITE TYPEFACE?
Beautiful handwriting, like my daughter Bridget's.

FAVORITE TV SHOWS?
The Wheel of Fortune and American Idol

FAVORITE BOOKS?
Old - "The Book of Yeats's Poems" by Hazard Adams; New - "Painting Below Zero" by James Rosenquist

FAVORITE MOVIES?
Saving Private Ryan, Mystic River

FAVORITE MUSIC?
It varies, right now, it's "Country".

FAVORITE FINE ARTIST?
Chuck Close and Claes Oldenberg

FAVORITE GADGET?
MacBook Air

BOOKMARKED WEBSITES?
duffy.com, NY Times, The Dieline, Lovely Package, Weather Underground, ESPN, FFFound, coolhunter, fastcompany, more.

BEST GIFT YOU EVER RECEIVED?
A family trip to Thailand

ONE THING YOU NEVER LEAVE HOME WITHOUT?
Cell phone

ONE THING YOU CANNOT LIVE WITHOUT?
I couldn't live without my wife, Patsy and our family. Any "thing", I can live without.

TALENT YOU WISH YOU POSSESSED?
I wish I could play the piano.