Angie Von Slaughter Interview – 50 States (Arizona)

Angie Von Slaughter – “it’s Arizona’s people that have affected my work more than anything.”

This week Creative Chair is in Arizona for the 8^th edition of our 50 States series. Aside from having one of the coolest names ever, Angie Von Slaughter is also a talented graphic designer with a fond creative connection to her home state of Arizona.

We caught up with her to find out more.

You can see a lot more from Angie Von Slaughter on her website and Behance

Tell us a little bit more about yourself and what you do:

When I meet someone for the first time, I often ask them “What do you do for work and for fun?” because I remember a time when the two were not mutually exclusive for me. Being asked “What do you do?” felt like a punch to the gut when I was working at a coffee shop by day and a struggling designer by night. Nearly a decade later I now own and operate Mousse Creative, a design agency out of Phoenix, Arizona.

I grew up always having my hands in some form of artistic expression; painting, drawing, music, etc. It was in the 6th grade that I first learned about a field called “Commercial Art” and was fascinated by the idea of a career that married my love for art with my intrigue of technology. I then wrote a report about what I wanted to be when I grew up, and the answer ironically was a Graphic Designer.

After attending Brooks College in Long Beach, California, I went on to struggle as a designer and musician while taking on miscellaneous odd jobs along the way. After years of trying to find my path, I started my own design firm that allowed me to tap into niché markets that I’m interested in such as the music, coffee and cosmetology industries, start-ups and branding and typography.

Mousse Creative is celebrating our 3-year anniversary this year, and I’m grateful to see my vision of being a designer and communicator come to life. I currently focus on design as well as public speaking and often the two have overlapped and served each other quite well.

How has your state influenced the work that you do?

Arizona is a wonderful reflection of the work that I do in the sense that it is varied. My home state is gorgeous! In one hour you can be in the desert surrounded by saguaro cacti and tumbleweeds or drive another hour in the other direction, and you have the stunning mountain ranges adorned with trees. Some of my first logo projects involved state icons, a certain mountain or cactus; it was directly correlated.

But it’s Arizona’s people that have affected my work more than anything. Their kindness, the endless network opportunities, the start-up community and incredible pool of talented creatives… this is what has shaped me.

Of your own work, what is your favourite project and why?

My favourite project is the font I created called Fofer, for a few reasons. It was something outside of the normal scope of work that I do and stretched me as a designer. I also have appreciated free fonts along the way as a designer and wanted to be able to give back and return the favour. We’re a tight-knit community, and I believe in taking care of one another. Fofer also has sentimental value for me in that it was a passion project and named after a childhood nickname.

And finally, if you died and got reincarnated as a song, what would that song be?

One song?! Is that even possible? I would probably be an entire 80’s or 90’s playlist… but this will suffice for now.

The Business of Emotion (feat. White Sea) by Big Data