Motiviational Nihilism is a reaction to the blinding hyperbole that has veneered much of today’s design landscape. As artisans working within this ocean of pastel-hued trends and immaculately curated authenticity, extracting truthfulness from what we create and for whom we create it has become an increasingly difficult and frustrating task. Yet the platforms for individual expression have increased exponentially over recent years. Why then, do many of us in the design community, in using these platforms, relegate ourselves to regurgitating motivational messaging and imagery that is essentially perpetuating the erosion of actual creativity?

Through projects ranging from typographic pieces to self-reflexive, cardboard robot videos, this talk explores the need to step away from the feedback loop of visual trends and ‘inspirational’ messages such as Hustle Hard, Be Creative, Get Shit Done, etc, and examine the more sinister aspects of what each of these things is actually telling us.

Nim Ben-Reuven is a freelance lettering artist, video producer and Art Director living in Brooklyn. Entwining self-reflexive humor and well-crafted elegance, Nim’s work often defies direct categorization. His lettering pieces have garnered immense critical acclaim from such distinguished entities as his mom and also sometimes his dad. His video work has yet to reach that level of distinction, though. Late at night, he can be found making entirely useless worlds out of cardboard he finds in the trash.

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Check out Nim’s workshop March 11!: Fancifying Letters With Nim
www.nimbenreuven.com
www.instagram.com/nim_br