15 Artists Under 30: Sean Eidder

Call for entries: HOW Logo Design Competition

Deadline for entry: October 30, 2017

This is the third year we’ve run our New Visual Artists: 15 under 30 issue. What was once a highly edited list of 20 of the best and brightest young designers is now a deeper exploration of 15 of the most original talents working in visual communications today.

This issue of Print comes at an interesting time. This new group of designers, while undeniably adroit, is part of a generation fully proficient in the art of self-promotion in a digital age. Getting the word out about one’s work is now de rigueur. But at a time when new work is relentlessly blasted out on platforms where seemingly everyone in the room is shouting, is it really possible to break through the volume of voices all vying to captivate and capture attention? Moreover, in the Insta-culture of the early 21st century, how does one navigate through the metadata to find the meteoric? As in years past, that’s exactly what we’ve sought to do here. We’ve gone in quest of craft and cunning ideas and ideals. We’ve looked for substance and style and star-power. The list of Print’s New Visual Artists has become a who’s who of the industry’s leaders, and includes Scott Dadich, Eddie Opara, Alan Dye, Jessica Walsh, Jessica Hische, Frank Chimero and, more recently, Zipeng Zhu, Joe Hollier and Joey Cofone. This year’s 15 New Visual Artists are bold in name and in voice, and are bravely making new work in a new world.

“A young visual artist possesses a creative mind that is not bound to the box … and is never afraid to show the crazy, weird and peculiar in his revolutionary artworks—artworks that ultimately define him as a person.”

Meet New Visual Artist Sean Eidder

Age: I am 17 years old, and am just patiently waiting for the 21st of March of the upcoming year to enter into legality.

From/current city: Manila, Philippines.

Education: Because my family has been moving to different places around Manila, and also living abroad in the United Arab Emirates, I have attended quite a number of schools. Now, I am in senior high school at Operation Brotherhood Montessori Center. For college, I am planning to go to art school and take up a degree in multimedia or information design.

Earliest creative memory: Coloring Disney character books around age 3.

Path that led you to design: At first it was just the thirst for fame and approval from everyone, but as I got deeper into every [part] of my design work and learned more about the field, I discovered that the local art scene in the Philippines is not given much importance. I thought that it is high time for the Filipinos to recognize how crucial design is in life.

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Career thus far, in a nutshell: Since I started out at 15, I have had a fair number of published artworks and editorial features in local and international magazines, and in a few institutions as well.

Current place of work: I am a freelance artist, but I occasionally apply for internships in publications whenever there is no school (also just to skip doing all the house chores and enjoy my vacation).

Motto/design philosophy: “If you can dream it, you can do it.” I have always believed in this quotation by the visionary Walt Disney. A few years before I started designing, I was just adoring the collages inside the pages of a local youth publication. Then I got into creating my own artworks. One morning, I received an email from the same publication, commissioning me to create collages for them.

Work of which you’re most proud: The art piece used to accompany Tavi Gevinson’s editor’s letter for the June 2016 issue of the wonderful Rookie magazine. I love how it turned out, and how it defined my artistic taste. It was very dreamy and colorful, just the way I imagined it to be.

Biggest influence: I am inspired by anything! But pop culture and childhood nostalgia would be my fixed influences. Any time I construct my design, I look back to my fun memories as a kid—the toys and games I played with, and the colorful books I have read—and I add in a few modern takes on it as well. Childhood experiences are universal and everyone can relate to them.

Design hero: Creative director Martine Cajucom would probably be on top of my long list of design heroes. She is the branding master of Sunnies Studios, a celebrated local eyewear and lifestyle brand—I strive to be the design genius that she is. I have always taken inspiration from the brand’s retro and classic look with a modern twist. I mean, who wouldn’t fall for vintage-inspired marketing materials drenched in millennial pink?

Favorite typographer: I am an avid fan of Chip Kidd and his works! His works are, indeed, revolutionary.

Favorite writer: Call me biased as I am a huge Potterhead, but J.K. Rowling will always be my queen-writer.

What defines you: I am defined by my body of work. I think that what I create affects how I sense, feel and act. My art pieces are just portions of myself, like pieces of the jigsaw puzzle that is entirely me.

Your idea of happiness: I have a simple idea of happiness, and that is doing what I love and making others benefit from it.

The future of design is: The youth.

Website: www.cargocollective.com/peculiarboy