95 WINK
Asked to design a poster for their presentation to The Art Directors Association of Iowa, the founders of the Minneapolis-based firm Wink, Scott Thares and Richard Boynton, repurposed an old cliché: “Two cocks crowing in a barn, in this case, equal two designers talking about their work in an auditorium in Iowa,” explains Boynton. “The only difference is that roosters don’t get really nervous when asked to crow. Scott and I are very uncomfortable with public speaking, or speaking about ourselves seriously in any way shape or form for that matter.”

Nervousness didn’t push Wink to approach this project in a safe, tried-and-true format. Boynton says the duo took an almost “improv approach, as an actor or comedian might.” Ordinarily they present multiple concepts, and whichever design is chosen moves forward accordingly, but for this project the two worked in tandem. “Scott’s idea of having two roosters crowing proudly seemed to fit,” says Boynton, “as there is a self-deprecating facet underlying the double entendre.” During this process they arrived at a style that according to Boynton, “seemed all at once vintage, geometric and almost children’s book in nature. We probably won’t be asked to speak again by the ADAI,” he says, “not because we did a poor job, but because usually clubs don’t ask people to speak more than once. They just move on. Sniffle.” by Tami Terrell