Episode 13 | Brian Steely

The Atlanta Story

The Atlanta Story podcast features meaningful stories of Atlanta’s builders, creators, and entrepreneurs. In this episode Jon Birdsong sits down with Brian Steely, Founder of Steely Works.

His start in the professional design world began when he sent an unsolicited tour design poster to the manager of Widespread Panic. Their interest and his new found calling sparked Steely’s love for what he’s done for the past 22 years. Since then he’s done design work for restaurants, record labels, and corporations. In this episode we talk about principles of design, how to find the soul of a brand, and the worst career advice he’s ever received.

The Atlanta Story is put together by the folks at Atlanta Ventures -- and we can’t wait to share some of the personalities behind the brand. Atlanta Ventures invests in entrepreneurs through community, content, and capital -- most notably through our Studio with companies like Greenzie and Intown Golf Club. We believe the best entrepreneurs learn from other great artists in different fields.

In this episode, we discuss…

1. Brian discusses his Widespread Panic poster design and what spawned that inspiration and connection. (1:33)
2. How does designing for a corporation like Salesforce vs. a record label or a spirit change in your mind? (10:37)
3. How did you discover your monoline style…or how did it find you? (13:18)
4. How does a designer balance their work and their own following? (17:17)
5. What specifically in Hans Hofmann inspired Brian the most? (19:01)
6. In Brian’s Creative Mornings talk he shared how he used his free time to find your symmetry. He shares the underlying principles in that theory? (19:57)
7. What percentage of design success is salesmanship / marketing vs. creating great design? (21:47)
8. What’s the worst piece of advice Brian ever received? (23:44)
9. How do you balance design and brand? Does the logo drive the brand or vice versa? (25:57)
10. How does Brian figure out corporations v. spirits v. restaurants on what “feels” right? (27:29)
11. Is it true that Brian turned down payment for his design and instead they let him come to any show he wanted to on the tour? What else came from it? (29:26)
12. Brian explains what his creative process and schedule look like. (31:24)
13. What inspires you? (34:50)
14. How does Atlanta's design community compare to other cities? Do we have a niche? (36:05)
15. Why Atlanta and what has Atlanta done for you? (37:45)

Resources discussed in this episode:

Steely Works: https://www.steelyworks.com/

Creative Mornings ATL talk: https://creativemornings.com/talks/brian-steely

How you can get involved:

Visit atlantaventures.com/studio if you’re interested in learning more about Atlanta Ventures and the Studio.

Where you can find us:

Website: www.atlstory.com

Twitter: @theatlantastory

Instagram: @theatlantastory

YouTube: Here

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