whataboutthewhy:

Able Parris, Senior Designer, Big Spaceship, New York | @ableparris

Able had lofty dreams of changing the world through design. But once he started working, he realised you never achieve what you set out to achieve. You never make exactly what you want to make. When you look at a finished piece of work, you never see everything that’s gone into getting it there. Most of what he designs isn’t seen and he’s only just learnt to come to terms with that. But now he views everything he’s done as a prototype for what’s to come. He never expects he’s going to make the final thing, just the next thing. He says the little battles are temporary. And he still wants to change the world, just one step at a time.

I’m humbled to have been able to contribute some of my thoughts on design and the industry to this project. The interview happened on one of the busiest days I’ve had in recent memory, and I wasn’t sure how it would turn out, but it’s actually the most interesting result of an interview I’ve ever given.

Thank you, Victoria.

Be sure to check out the other interviews, including my friend & co-worker Karla Mickens, and my boss Michael Lebowitz.

I photographed my friend, Daniel Mall, for his interview on The Great Discontent. There are actually two photographs for this one. Thanks to Benjamin Bojko for helping make the focus-shift interaction possible. Click-thru for the interview, and to see what I mean by ‘focus-shift’. And while you’re there, get to know Dan a bit.