We had the distinct pleasure to interview award winning designer Lenka Polivkova about their original and creative Wallart design work. Lenka Polivkova is an award-winning communication designer, that makes our world a better place with their original wallart works.
Lenka Polivkova ("LP") answered Design Interview ("DI") questions about their award-winning work Take Off Wallart. Interview questions prepared by Frank Scott.
LP : "Sail along with ease while simultaneously experiencing the calming power of tranquillity", such was the intent behind my artistic expression.
LP : My primary aim was to alleviate the dreary atmosphere of the given structure so that it would imbue the person looking at it with a more hopeful and uplifting feeling. My other aim was to hide the depressing façade of the building, which, on its own, is not an overly successful architectonic work, behind the picture.
LP : I am very pleased that this piece of work will have a positive impact on the public and that people will be delighted to return to this place because they feel good and uplifted there. Winning the A’Design Award & Competition gave a huge boost to my energy and zest for getting involved in similar projects in the future.
LP : The task for the project was commissioned in the summer of 2015. And the final design of the work was completed within a month.
LP : The investor’s expectation was not only to brighten up the dreary façade of the Psychiatric Hospital itself but also to significantly improve the overall aesthetics of the surrounding area. It was a challenge to which I responded positively because my professional focus is directed towards the creation of large-scale mural paintings. The façade of the building provided me with a large canvas, as it were, by virtue of which it was possible to realize this task. The investor fully embraced my creative idea and agreed to go ahead with the project. This then started the whole process.
LP : The painting itself will be done by a team of three academic painters in my presence.
LP : As I said earlier, my primary professional and artistic focus is directed towards the creation of large-scale mural paintings. This challenging project, therefore, provided me with the opportunity to design my own creative response to the task set before me by the investor.
LP : The winning design is solely my own vision; the inspiration did not come from another designer, nor was it influenced by somebody else’s creative conception.
LP : In the first place, the motif is specifically designed to affect positively the psychological state of the patients of the Psychiatric Hospital. However, I am certain that it will also arouse positive feelings in the general public as well as the people visiting or just passing through the area.
LP : This design is a monumental mural painting which cannot be simply compared to street art. Neither is it a fortuitous ‘embellishment’ of a public open space. Despite the fact that the design is abstract, it was my intention to imbue it with the feeling of hope and lightness that would uplift this particular place and relieve its bleak atmosphere.
LP : "Take off" in the sense of breaking free of all that depressing stuff that holds one back and makes him or her feel miserable and despairing. That was the first thing that came to mind.
LP : An ordinary wooden pencil, a plain soft pencil eraser and, in the final stages of the work, my laptop.
LP : This design seems timeless and supports the assertion that “beauty resides in simplicity”.
LP : I relied on my own intuition and with respect to the technical matters, I found certain graphic computer programmes useful.
LP : During the making of this design, I conducted no research of any kind. So my project has not been influenced by anyone or anything other than my own creativity.
LP : I had to deal with a very serious problem right from the beginning of the initial work on the design. The problem was that the front wall itself has its uniformity disturbed by four large oblong windows, firmly secured with bars, and placed one after the other all the way down through the middle of the building. Due to the security reasons, it was not possible to conceal them in any way. None of the subsequent designs could shake off the depressing feelings I got every time I looked at the windows. They just reminded me of a high-security prison. The solution came to my mind, however, after I had stopped seeing the disturbing windows as an obstacle. So, instead of lamenting their existence, I simply decided to incorporate them into the initial design. At once, the offending windows became the load-bearing column, the mast, to which I could secure the sails. The sails, in a total harmony with the mast, then unfurled themselves as if by magic.
LP : The decision to enter the competition was made easier by my friends and colleagues who had repeatedly confirmed the uniqueness of my design and encouraged me to enter the competition so that it could be seen beyond the borders of the Czech Republic.
LP : Again, I satisfied myself that a good design emerges as soon as the designer fully understands an assignment. It is not enough that the created work looks good but that it also reflects the purpose for which it was created. To the extent that the designer adheres to this relatively simple rule and does not just try to express his or her own ego, the intuition steps in and opens the way for the right design.
