Kimberly Q&As Silvia and Alejandro

In the 1980ies designers and publishers didn't have access to the Internet as an outlet for their work as they do today. Do you consider the Internet as a powerful vehicle in your career since it is a perfect tool for publishing your artworks for a huge number of audience?
If we did not have Internet perhaps the magazine would have had to be an annual issue! A large part of our communication is via e-mail. It makes things easier, we loose less time and money than if we had to communicate by phone. It allows us to send and receive information in a faster way. The Internet also allows us to reach people that are doing the same type of things in different countries, like you.
The arrival of the Internet has been an incentive for the exchange between communities with similar interests. Nowadays, a person has the possibility of finding their wishes (even a boyfriend) while before no one knew even where to look for them.

Would you say that the internet and it's vast possibilities of collaborating with others makes it more easier for a design group to get successful and reach clients oversea?
As to using the Internet for publishing artwork as it is open to a large audience, yes, it is true, a lot of people have access to information that is in the Internet. We appeared on an Italian web page that specializes in design-related themes. Since then, we started to receive e-mails from people from all over the world, but mainly from the USA. We have always tried for our work to reach other countries, we have never planned this project to be only a local one. The Internet offers wonderful opportunities for promoting artwork, but in the case of a project such as ours we do not think that digital support can replace paper.

While other designers work from dawn to night and vice versa in order to earn money and to eventually finance a project such as D[X]I where they don't suffer restrictions, you guys do exactly what you want to.
Come on! like we did not have to do "dirty work" before, ha. We have been working on D[X]I for 3 years. Before then we had several (and not that amusing) jobs. At the time we got involved in the magazine, each of us had his/her own job. We could not leave our jobs as the magazine did not produce any profits. We have been working for several months for our love of art, without earning a penny. Working non stop during holidays, weekends and vacation. And if we made any profits we invested the money again in the magazine. We kept both jobs working. But D[X]I has been growing and absorbing us more and more each time. Nowadays, it is not just about the magazine, but also about developing parallel projects, with clients that we have gained through our work in D[X]I. In this sense, the magazine has been a good business card. People see what we do and we see what others do thanks to D[X]I because managing a publication helps us to get more information than we would if we were only a design studio. The parallel projects are graphic design and communication but we have also organized events and presentations for companies and we are open to requests in the field of product design.

How did you manage this? How much struggle was that?
It is all about organization, tenacity and faith in the project. We have always believed in D[X]I. This has been decisive, as at certain times we were low on strength and/or resources. On top of all this, the experience is still teaching us. We have published eleven issues already.

How is a typical day or week at work with the D[X]I?
A normal work day implies several things at the same time. It depends... It is not the same when we are in the creation process or execution and coordination that when we are in closing days when days are so stressful and unforeseeable! Until a few months ago we only worked on the magazine in the afternoons; in the mornings Alex worked as designer in an interior design studio and Silvia taught classes at university.

Would you say that you are working to live or live to work?
We enjoyed our work but we worked a lot. Not only we enjoy working on the magazine but also it makes us ask ourselves several things with each topic in each issue. Let's say that, in this regards, it is an interesting knowledge exercise. We must also say that our work in D[X]I also entails certain activities a bit more distended/social that we would still do at our leisure time, such as assisting to presentations, parties, show-rooms, etc. So, sometimes we feel like we are not working.

Do you all have the same responsibilities?
We alternate and interchange all responsibilities between us. We don't force ourselves to develop all the time the same tasks. Although it is true that little by little each one have taken position of the part on which we feel more comfortable.

Is there a lead designer?Is D[X]I all about individualism?
Yes, we have an art director. Alex is in charge of it. He coordinates the image of the magazine. The contents are always decided in common, and the accomplishment of all the articles is distributed between the collaborators, putting forward varied visions/attitudes in order to enrich a certain subject.

Does D[X]I supply you with plenty of room for play?
We always try to investigate other points of view. Yes, we are mad about risk, experimentation, and of course we like playing and being lawbreakers. In this sense we are all the "naughty" that we want to be.

How self-critical are you when working on your own projects, concerning the mission, the deadlines and the sales?
We are very critical with our work. We formulate questions about every simple thing, trying to give the best of ourselves. Yes, we are strict with deadlines, since we are collaborating with companies that support us. We cannot failed them. We consider the opinion of the client, but we trust our professional criterion as designers. Normally we have not had problems. People (including potential clients) see the magazine and already can have a certain idea of our way of doing.

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