Response

It's a given that Julia Hoffman is incredibly busy. As the new creative director of MoMA, she just unveiled the redesign of the museum brand, and she's in the middle of a million other things. I was thrilled that she would take time out of her day—her weekend!—to answer the questions I had for her. I think the one piece of information I really took to heart was the motif of time throughout all of her answers. Most of the work week is spent in at least 4 meetings each day. Her time to be creative doesn't even start until after 6 p.m. Sundays are special to her. She usually doesn't have to work on them, unlike her previous jobs. Her experiences with rebranding are similar to what I have learned this past semester. It's difficult to push your own ideas aside and allow for flexibility.

"It's something you cannot teach," she says. "You need to feel it, it just somehow feels right. It's really difficult to share this with designers who are not as involved with the redesign. You have to put your ego and own preference aside and focus on the brand."