Welcome to the Future Talks by RTF, a platform that delves into the innovative minds behind the transformation of our world through design. Today, we have the distinct pleasure of introducing you to a visionary whose passion for graphics and brand design is reshaping the way we experience our built environment. His belief in the transformative power of design is nothing short of inspiring, and his work has the potential to touch our lives in ways we might not even realize.
Our guest, Jeffrey Ramirez, is a true pioneer in this field. He sees graphic design as more than just aesthetic enhancement; it’s a tool that can mold our cities, buildings, and homes into spaces that elevate our daily existence. It’s a concept as powerful as the single yellow line on a road that ensures millions of vehicles traverse safely without incident. Through his unique perspective, Jeffrey is poised to take us on a journey where design and practicality merge, promising a brighter future for us all.
In 2011, Jeffrey co-founded The Up Studio, alongside architects John Patrick Winberry and Adam Wanaselja. Armed with a background in communication design and a wealth of experience gained at various design studios in the vibrant city of New York, he possesses the remarkable ability to translate complex architectural theories into accessible and comprehensible ideas. His work creates consistent visual languages that enable individuals to navigate, comprehend, and engage with the spaces they inhabit.
We invite you to embark on this exciting conversation with Jeffrey Ramirez, where we’ll explore how the world of design is intricately intertwined with our daily lives and how it has the power to reshape the world around us.
RTF: Hi Jeffrey, We are glad to have you as a guest on Future Talks by RTF. Thanks for joining us. How would you highlight the importance of constantly evolving in design? How do you look at it in your work since you began?
Jeffrey: Thanks so much for having me!
I think design inherently requires constant evolution. If we ever stop learning, growing or trying new ideas, then we’re just repeating what has already been done. Creativity requires creation and we can’t do that if we’re not willing to evolve.
With each new home we design we are constantly asking ourselves what we can do better than we did last time – How can we make the next project even more sustainable? How can we make the clients’ experience even better? How can we make our team even more happy to come to work each day? How can the next project become a valuable inspiration for other designers? By constantly asking questions, we are able to uncover better solutions and it drives us to keep evolving.
RTF: What is your idea of finding one’s own design voice in a world full of ideas?
Jeffrey: The reason The Up Studio isn’t named after a single person is because we dont believe architecture is a singular pursuit – our best projects are the result of our entire team’s hard work and brilliant ideas.
So, to answer your question more directly, I think the way that a design studio can hone their design voice is by being diligent in the hiring process and then fostering a workplace where people are comfortable asking questions, challenging each other’s ideas, and are comfortable explaining the concepts behind their choices. – It’s in that collaboration of diverse perspectives that will eventually create a unique brand voice.
RTF: What is the process of establishing a common ground when dealing with a client’s demands and your own ideas? How important do you consider ‘The Art of Persuasion’ for designers?
Jeffrey: Home design is a service. As our studio has grown, we’ve luckily been able to be more and more selective of the clients/projects that we are willing to work on, but once we start working on a project we are in service to that client and the land.
Home design is also incredibly personal. We’ve learned that it’s vital to get to know a client as well as we can before we begin working together. We do this in a series of ways, but most notably, we’ve designed a custom card game that we play with all potential clients. It’s essentially a personality test that lets us get to know them very personally and enables some very important conversations on day one.
We’ve spent over a decade refining our design process (and it continues to evolve). We start with a very simple graphical presentation which helps us visualize our major design concepts. Then, over a series of 20+ presentations, we slowly introduce more and more detail to a project – every step of the way we carefully explain why we have made the choices we’re presenting. [You can see a 10-part video series explaining our design process HERE.]
RTF: How important is being creatively bolstered in the realm of design? How do you define the flow of creativity?
Jeffrey: I find that it’s essential, as creatives, to surround ourselves with other creatively minded people. We’ve been lucky to build out a small team of a dozen brilliant designers who I am constantly inspired by and learn from daily. Not just in regards to our projects, but also from learning about their lives, the art/music they connect with, and the things that inspire them.
RTF: What are your views on working collaboratively? How exciting and challenging is it at the same time?
Jeffrey: Collaboration is essential. However, we also understand that too many voices/ideas at the same time can become severely detrimental to progress. The way we’ve addressed this at The Up Studio is to create specialized micro-teams within our team. At all times, there are different groups working on each project in different phases. This allows every single team member to inject their creativity into every project, while still allowing them to specialize in certain areas of the design process.
We also assign a project leader to each project which gives our clients a single point of contact for the life of their project.
RTF: In your experience of 10 years working in the field of architecture / interior design, how has social media impacted it in recent years?
Jeffrey: In its best moments, social media has the ability to break down the barriers to entry to an industry that has historically been only available to those with means.
We try not to take that for granted. On our instagram account (@theupstudio), we spend a lot of time making sure our posts are always accompanied by a thoughtful description explaining our design choices, and on our youtube channel (@theupstudioarchitecture) we’ve put a lot of effort into creating both helpful and fun videos that educate the viewers on our designs, our process, and our industry.
RTF: How do you approach getting your projects featured in publications? Do you manage the communications and PR in-house or have this outsourced to a PR and communications agency? Which approach do you think is better and why?
Jeffrey: We currently do all of our PR in-house. This is less of a choice and more of a budgetary necessity. However, the best thing to come from it is the relationships that we’ve built with brilliant and curious journalists throughout the years.
The best features that we’ve been lucky to be a part of are a collaboration between journalists, photographers, our team and the families we design for.
RTF: Can you share any challenges you’ve encountered in the process of getting your work published and how you overcame them? Are there any lessons you’ve learned over the years that have significantly improved your success in this area?
Jeffrey: In the early days of our studio we were so impatient. We were so excited to see our portfolio grow with new projects that we were really proud of and we rushed into photoshoots. This often meant that the homes were only partially furnished and the family was rarely even living in the house yet.
Nowadays, we take our time. We help the family with installation on all furnishings and we hold off on photographing until they’ve fully moved in. We design places for people, and I think the projects are best shown when you can see a life being lived in these spaces – and writers/publications seem to appreciate it as well!
RTF: How would you describe your overall design philosophy or approach to design?
Jeffrey: I think “good design” solves problems, so I think it’s crucial to the design process to be constantly questioning what we can do better. Likewise, I think it’s vital to the profession of design that we are clearly translating the why behind our design solutions. This process of asking questions and presenting solutions within a team of brilliant thinkers keeps us continually growing and getting better with every project we complete.
RTF: How do you look at the work beyond designing – such as the need for publishing, handling media and building an online presence?
Jeffrey: As I mentioned, I spend a lot of time thinking about how we can clearly communicate our design concepts to our clients. But, since my background is in brand design, I am also constantly thinking about how we can translate those ideas to a much broader audience so that our design concepts can also have a meaningful impact on our communities, our peers, and our environment. This is where I think brand design, marketing and PR can become an incredibly powerful tool. We work hard to grow, engage and connect with our audience in meaningful ways.
RTF: Where does one find you when you’re not working?
Jeffrey: It’s a huge privilege to be able to live in NYC and surround myself with a huge network of creatives outside of the studio as well. I’m actively involved in groups like Brick & Wonder and CreativeMornings which bring people together regularly to share ideas and struggles about our creative pursuits and you can often find me at an art opening or local concert.
