10 Questions With Neela Kler
With a recent promotion and celebration of her 7th anniversary at Farmboy, Neela is an inspirational leader who we know will get up to amazing things in her new role as Art Director.
Describe what you do in 5 words.
Collaborate, Curate, Direct, Support, Imagine
What are some of your top Farmboy projects or pieces that you’ve worked on?
Though not a full project, I do enjoy creating bespoke systems to help develop and drive design projects. They can be a great tool to encourage discovery and conversation in the early stages, especially when working with a large group with multiple opinions.
I also really loved working on developing the wayfinding wallcoverings for our Piedmont Hospital Project, in Atlanta, GA (below). It involved a concept based on forest stratification and the final designs included illustrations of medicinal plants and a color gradient that acted as the wayfinding element.
Who are some of your favorite artists?
This is a very long list that seems to keep growing, but I’ll name a few: Julie Mehretu, Howardina Pindell, Joan Mitchell.
Where do you go to find new inspiration?
A walk in nature, in any season, will get me inspired.
What is important to you when developing an art narrative?
The Art Narrative is such an integral part of our projects. I think it’s important to let the narrative surface organically and not be something that you are trying to force. I start by workshopping with stakeholders to gather all the elements, next I spend some time with those elements until something evident and meaningful emerges, and I capture that!
Where are your favorite place in the world?
The Okanagan Valley, Toronto, Berlin.
What are you learning about right now? (Doesn’t have to be work-related)
Currently reading a book about Corbusier in Chandigarh – a favourite subject that I often return to.
What’s your most streamed song?
Freddie Freeloader – Miles Davis.
And finally, what does our purpose of changing lives with art mean to you?
I love thinking about this because our purpose is so open-ended. And I think that art changes lives in both direct and indirect ways. At Farmboy, art brings us together to connect with our clients, our teams, and the artist who we are fortunate enough to work with, changing all of our lives in the process.