Get to know the Valencian Wix Playground Academy alum who is readying himself for his dream role: design mentor.
Tell us about who you are: name, age, location, and current professional status.
Hey! My name is Hermes Mazali; I'm 32 and living in Valencia, Spain. Recently, I started working for a company as a Design Director in a full-time position.
What are the (design or general) topics you’re most passionate about?
I'm passionate about everything that is designed; I can't just choose something specific, haha. In general, I am passionate about movies, books, graphic novels, and architecture.
Tell us about a project that got you excited.
I was very excited to do the "36 Days of Type 2020" project. It was the first time that I took the challenge and I was happy with the result.
Tell us about a collaborative project you worked on.
An iconography project. We had to discover icons for a neighborhood, and we did a workshop with the neighbors so each one could draw their icon. In the end, we chose five and designed those icons.
How was (or is) your first year after school?
It was exciting and a lot of fun; at that point, I was already working freelance, and school was taking up a lot of time. After graduation, I had more time to work and enjoy the projects.
What's the best advice you've received (and from whom)?
From my dad: "only do the things that I am passionate about, and not lose it along the way."
What do you look for in your first job?
I wanted to learn. I hadn't studied design yet, and in my first job, I learned a lot of things that you don't learn at school.
With which projects did you fill your portfolio? What was your selection process?
It was a hard one. I tried to be objective but, in the end, I followed my intuition, based on the most recent projects. Something that represents me and what I like to do.
What are you working (personal or professional) on now?
Thankfully I was really busy working on a lot of things, logo design, visual ID, infographics, web design (for others and myself—I am still refining my website), and icons for different industries.
What do you find most useful in your projects (research, visuals, softwares, etc.)?
I really enjoy researching, getting more questions than answers. The discovery part is a lot of fun, and I try to stay away from any software or computer in that phase.
Book recommendation: what book had the biggest impact on you, and why?
The biography of Steve Jobs, by Walter Isaacson. The book talks a lot about the difficult task of starting something big and making risky decisions. It is pretty motivating.
What was your key takeaway from participating at the Wix Playground Academy program?
Embrace the journey :)
In which design field would you want to focus on in your future?
I want to focus more on creative direction, work with designers of different profiles/skills and guide them.
