We have a lot to be proud of at Graphic Arts Magazine this month. On October 13th, we held our first day conference. Print Survivor was the name of our debut event, and I’m excited to say that we did better than just survive. You will find some of the details and feedback from the event in the wrap-up article. The sessions were informative and uplifting. Sadly, it wasn’t all happy news. Our hearts pour out to the family and friends of George Hurley, the Senior VP and Partner at CJ Graphics, who passed away that day. Long time friend and business partner, Jay Mandarino was one of the evening’s presenters. Jay paid tribute with a moment of silence prior to beginning his talk. Our deepest condolences go out to Mr. Hurley’s family and friends.
As I sat and listened to the seasoned professionals explain how to survive in the graphic arts industry, I tried to find a common thread in their messages—a single, all-encompassing takeaway. I think for me, Arjun Basu, Content Director at Spafax, neatly packaged that message: “Don’t be a Panda!” he urged. Translated loosely, don’t continue to rely on resources that will endanger your existence (eat more than just bamboo = do more than print flyers). I’m going to take the analogy one step further and say that “Don’t be a Panda!” can also mean change what you eat. While there were many different strategies discussed throughout the event, this wildlife survival perspective seemed to encompass the first steps of a majority of these strategies best. In an industry that is shrinking, changing, and morphing into something new, one cannot keep going on the same way. This month’s lead article, Print Through the Ages, is one of many examples where the tradition of print collides with today’s rapidly changing world of information technology. Diana Brown helps us understand the basic methods of digitization data and the importance of archives.