From 2006 to 2009 I was a student at the Rietveld Academie in Amsterdam, in the Netherlands. Even though the study only lasted a few years, it left an immense impact on me and my work. 

The difference to other schools is probably that the graphic designer is not trained as a service provider who should be oriented towards a customer and is therefore also susceptible to conventional ways of thinking in graphic design. 

At that time still led by Linda van Deursen, in my opinion the best graphic designer in the world (and I’m very careful when it comes to idolatry), you reached your limits. All your previous views and ways of thinking in design had to be thrown overboard. I know it sounds totally awkward, but you were not only challenged as a student but also as a person. 

At the Rietveld, the focus is on a personal approach, which in the best case also leads to your own visual language. The graphic designer should be able to create content that is relevant and coherent, without being dependent on a client. This demand on oneself is not easy, especially for a young person. Since Rietveld is an art academy, graphic design is treated as an artistic form of expression like any other. 

If you choose this academy, you will certainly not learn how to design an annual report or a logo for a shoe company.

Here are a few of my Rietveld projects.