Q&A with Doug Kelly, Executive Vice President of Design at Imagination.

What is the future of graphic design in the digital age?

As long as there is a need to present content in a fresh, engaging and visually enhanced way then graphic design will always have a place. Probably even more so now and in the future because of the vast amount of information that is being produced and made available.

What happens to the sensual experience? Will people still want the sensory experience that print graphic design provides?

The digital environment has created a disconnect from a sensory standpoint. You can’t feel the paper, you can’t smell the ink and you can’t hear the pages being turned. I think it’s interesting that digital magazines have worked so hard to recreate the experience of interacting with an actual printed magazine without the finished product. They feel hollow. The iPad and other touchpad devices have at least brought back some of the tactile experience. But it’s not the same. A magazine has weight and feels substantial. An iPad feels light, delicate and breakable.

Does print design create a more intimate experience than digital design?

Print may give you the opportunity to create more impactful design from a scale standpoint but digital allows a deeper experience when it comes to volume. For instance I can use large, dramatic imagery in a print piece that I couldn’t use online because of technological limitations but I can use many more images online to tell more of a story than I could in print because of page count limitations.

Has your job changed based on the emergence of digital?

I need to understand the relationship of print and digital, their strengths and weaknesses and which (or both) do the best job of achieving the client’s goals and objectives.