Jonathan McGlothin, the recipient of Veer’s 2005 annual scholarship for students of graphic design, considers his role as designer as carefully as his designs: “The designer is not a technician, but a practitioner of form and shaper of ideas. Not only a sophisticated stylist and informed provocateur, but an active contributor in the construction of culture.”

As a student of the Herron School of Art and Design at Indiana University / Perdue University, Indianapolis, McGlothin has embraced an environment in which “questions are as important as products.” His classic-looking work embraces simplicity, economy, and a keen sensitivity to negative space. McGlothin seeks to “merge idea and form in a way that engages the viewer without sacrificing the overall message in an over-indulgent display of style.” McGlothin’s striking use of space, text, and image ensures the message always retains its power, never getting lost within the framework of its design.

McGlothin cites a long list of influences, including Chris Ashworth, Stanley Donwood, Martin Venezky, Stefan Sagmeister, Joseph Muller-Brockmann, Jan Tschichold, Tibor Kalman, Bruce Mau, and back issues of Idea and Emigré magazine. Rather than mimicking the aesthetics of those design gurus, McGlothin’s work draws from their work to make something fresh and distinctly his.

“Jonathan’s typography is clean and simple, while his use of color and image has a distinctive edge. The combination seems to create a strong design statement without trying too hard. It seems natural and unforced,” says Isabel Veguilla, the education coordinator at the Art Directors Club head offices in New York. The ADC worked with Veer to select this year’s successful candidate. Veguilla’s impressions were shared by the scholarship committee members, who, unaware of her shortlist, chose Jonathan as well.

McGlothin’s video-based projects follow a similarly simplistic and immediate path as his print work. Restructuring a sequence from Martin Scorsese’s Raging Bull, his proposed ad in promotion of TV Turnoff Week is an arresting piece. Instead of merely ripping off an iconic work, it places it in a brilliant new context. In his own words, “There is a fine line between borrowing and thieving from an original source... the use of preexisting material is a statement concerning questions of authorship and so on. When I do borrow, it is with the intent to recontextualize rather than restate.”

Besides his studies, Jonathan keeps himself busy, “Playing bass in a noise band influenced by Sonic Youth, the Pixies, and Blonde Redhead; making collages; shooting photographs of empty parking garages; and catching up on an impossibly long reading list.” One book that left an impression was The Cheese Monkeys, Chip Kidd’s novel about the lives of graphic design students, published in 2001. “I identify with the romantic notion of the idealistic student trying to find a voice and something to say - and somehow coming to terms with the idea that you may not really have anything new to say. I think much of being a student is looking and researching as much from the past as from what’s going on presently, and trying to make relevant and responsible statements.”

Given the deep thought he applies to both his creative philosophy and his designs, McGlothin’s future looks bright. As a statement of purpose, McGlothin already has a noble vision: “It is important to know how to speak responsibly, instigating dialogue rather than simply adding to the noise. My desire is to not add to the noise.” Jonathan McGlothin is surely a designer to keep an eye on, an easy choice for this year’s Veer Graphic Design Scholarship.