Illustration Intersects Two Careers: Illustrator vs. Industrial Designer

The use of illustration often crosses paths in the career of an illustrator and industrial designer, but there are key differences between the two careers. Since I come from the marketing side of being an illustrative graphic designer, I found this video by FDZ School to be really interesting. I agree that the two careers from the outside might appear very similar, but there are many differences. The video presentation is really good. Feng Zhu has done this a few times ya’ know, and it shows.

In episode #53, the instructor goes in-depth into the key differences between the two careers and the purpose and roles each serves in the market. I find it fascinating that drawing these preliminary sketches (the characters, environments and sets), all of that work, is viewed differently than that of an illustrator where style, technique, subject matter and the final piece are the value. Industrial design clients are actually paying for the actual content and problem solving from the industrial designers, not necessarily for their stylistic differences.

Industrial designers complete hundreds, or perhaps more in some instances, sketches. That is why choosing to get a degree in industrial design at Academy of Art or another institution is very time-consuming and an industrial designer has different responsibilities than an illustrator. And according to this teacher, they hold a different value than that of a Norman Rockwell as in his example in the video. He goes on to talk about how industrial designers in the entertainment industry see the final product (movie cover representing the film) as having the highest value, not all the work (drawing, design and art) up to the launch of the product. He really goes into many examples of the differences, and it is a thoughtful presentation about the two. Do you guys agree?

Careers: Illustrator vs Industrial Designer

Via: [FZD School of Design]