COFOUNDER/PRINCIPAL, KUDOS DESIGN COLLABORATORY, NEW YORK NY
John Kudos is an interdisciplinary designer whose work embraces strategy, design, and technology. His practice focuses on collaboration and experimentation informed by diverse cultural backgrounds and technological resources. His projects include brand identities, publications, websites, user interfaces, interactive installations, motion, signage, and exhibitions, many of which spans across multiple media. John was born in Indonesia and acquired a BFA in Design with Digital Media concentration at the Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) in 2001. Prior to establishing KUDOS Design Collaboratory™ in 2008, he was at Pentagram for seven years, working closely with partner, Abbott Miller, where he led various cultural, retail, and institutional design projects. Kudos works with a broad range of clients in non-profit, academic, healthcare, design, art, cultural, urbanism, startups, and publishing fields. Clients include MIT Media Lab, Cornell AAP, MoMA, TheMet, SheltonMindel, Metropolis, Sotheby’s, Center for Urban Pedagogy, and Bandung City. He has won numerous awards, including the ADC Young Guns, Society of Publication Designers, The Webby, D&AD, Type Directors Club, AIGA, NY Book Show, and has been published by Graphis, GDUSA, Print, I.D., CA, STEP, and Black Book AR100. Kudos teaches typography and communication design at the School of Visual Arts, and is a visiting critic at The New School and Cornell University.
WHERE WERE YOU BORN? WHERE DO YOU LIVE NOW?
Bandung, Indonesia and living in New York now
DID YOU GO TO DESIGN SCHOOL?
MICA
LEFTY OR RIGHTY?
Lefty
MORNING PERSON OR NIGHT OWL?
Morning, but night owl occasionally
FICTIONAL OR HISTORICAL CHARACTER YOU’VE ALWAYS IDENTIFIED WITH?
The Flash. You can do anything with speed, almost.
ARE YOU MUSICAL AND/OR DO YOU PLAY AN INSTRUMENT?
Self taught guitarist, just for fun.
WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE CHILDHOOD TV SHOW?
My Secret Identity
LAST BOOK YOU READ?
The Power of Habit
ANY PETS?
Not at the moment.
WHAT LANGUAGES ARE YOU FLUENT IN?
English, Indonesian, some Japanese and Chinese.
FAVORITE MOVIE?
Eat Drink Man Woman by Ang Lee
FAVORITE FINE ARTIST?
Sol Lewitt
FAVORITE CHARITY?
Design Trust for Public Space
FAVORITE FREE TIME ACTIVITY?
Watching action flicks or dark science fictions
WHAT’S THE LAST COMPLIMENT YOU GOT?
People were touched by our end-of-year donation to every nonprofit organization with which we worked ‑ it was “awesome.”
DO YOU COLLECT ANYTHING?
Not really
COLOR USED MOST OFTEN IN YOUR DESIGN?
Black, greys, orange, blue
TYPEFACE USED MOST OFTEN?
Different for every client
DO YOU HAVE A DESIGN MENTOR OR INSPIRATION?
Abbott Miller, Erich Brechbühl, my students
GREATEST STRENGTH/WEAKNESS AS A DESIGNER?
Strengths are typography, space, organization, logic. Weaknesses are time management and overcommitting.
ADVICE TO A YOUNG DESIGNER JUST STARTING OUT?
Keep an open mind and commit to growing in a studio/environment where you are surrounded by people that inspire you.
IF YOU WERE NOT A DESIGNER, WHAT WOULD YOU BE?
Programmer
A MANTRA OR SAYING YOU LIVE BY?
Content is king, context is god.
