Caroline Sarrette: Art Director, Illustrator, Sketch-Artist, Resident Expert In All Things French
Your role at PC?
I am the Art Director at PC.
If you weren’t working in advertising/marketing, what would you be doing?
I would be cleaning up the sea from all the crap we throw in it.
What’s the last great show you watched?
The Handmade’s Tale. It’s scary though. Very scary. I read Margaret Atwood’s book years ago and thought it was fantastic. The TV show did not disappoint, in my opinion.
Your New York Top 5…..
Manhattan Skyline
Summer in New York
New York’s inspiring vibe
New York Food, any kind from many places
Brooklyn
Favorite thing to do outside of work?
Drawing and designing, enjoying the weather, going to the beach, hanging out with my friends
Why did you choose to have your photo taken in Prospect Park BKLYN?
I love Prospect Park. I enjoy running there, taking a nice walk, having a bbq or relaxing in the sun beds. To me it represents the Brooklyn lifestyle that I enjoy.
Tell us about how you got here…
I was a Project Manager in eCommerce for the past 10 years. I studied management and found a job as a Project Coordinator in an eCommerce agency in London. They were specializing in fashion websites. It was enjoyable at first and I learned tons. But I always had in the back of my mind to become a designer. Although I didn’t think I had the skills or talent for it. So I focused on my PM career. That actually landed me a job in New York. The agency I was working for in London had an opening in their NY office, so I applied and got the job. A couple of years in NY, I finally decided to go for it, and started taking evening design classes. I took classes at SVA and then joined a 2-year certificate program at Parsons. I built up my online portfolio and then started to apply to design jobs. I met with Ben at PC and started my first ever design job the following Monday.
I am so grateful I finally switched careers and found this job opportunity. Switching careers can be scary but it was one of the best decisions I made in my life.
What’s something people always get wrong about you? (Your chance to set everybody straight!)
I can come across as cold and a bit distant to some people at first (sigh). It’s not the case at all, crack a good joke (if I am not the one doing it first) and we will have a good giggle together. 😉
Where do you find inspiration?
Everywhere! Literally. I walk a lot and always have my phone with me. Whenever I see something I find interesting, I take a picture of it. I might never use this picture but chances are, it will come to use eventually either by sparking an idea or as an interesting sketching subject.
Who inspires you – why?
Design-wise, I started to get super inspired 12 years ago when I discovered Malika Favre’s work. I loved her style back from her days at Airside. I could see the talent right there and now she works for huge brands such as Sephora and The New Yorker amongst many, many others. She is my role model. If I can achieve 10% of what she has achieved I will be very proud. I am also very inspired by Lotta Nieminen, Gemma O’Brien, Louise Fili, Herb Lubalin, Tony Di Spigna to name a few. At the moment, I have a big crush on Yehuda Devir who does the “One of those days” comics in partnership with his wife Maya Devir.
I also love the work of older artists, painters and photographers of course such as Cassandre, Alphonse Mucha, Egon Schiele, Sarah Moon to only name a few.