NMCO’s Web Developer and Designer, Anna Kat Hollis, joined the NMCO team this summer after graduating from New Mexico State University in May. She had the honor of interning with NMCO in the spring.
Q: What made you interested in pursuing Web Design and Development as a career?
Anna Katherine Hollis (AKH): I wanted the option and diversity of being able to work on technical and creative projects. I love coding, but I also love designing and illustrating. After multiple conversations with people and learning more about the industry, I decided that combining design and development was the best fit for me.
Q: How does frontend development differ from backend development?
AKH: Backend development usually involves a lot more hardcore programming and can be extremely technical. Frontend development, on the other hand, can be a lot more design-related and uses a variety of programming languages like HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. In short, backend development focuses on making sure the project actually functions, whereas frontend development emphasizes the project’s interface and experience of the user.
Q: How do you think social media is changing Web Development?
AKH: One of the most critical ways that social media is changing web development is that designing for mobile has never been more important. More often than not, people are interacting with a website on a mobile device or tablet rather than a desktop computer. This means that when I create a website, each element must be responsive and attractive on every digital device.
Q: What do you love about working at a creative agency such as NMCO?
AKH: I love the variety of projects that NMCO takes on. Whether it is a videography project or a web development project, whether the client is a small business or non-profit organization, NMCO does it! It is exciting to see the integration of all the services that NMCO has to offer to create something incredible for the client. It is a wonderful privilege to collaborate and learn from the amazing creatives here.
Q: Top favorite designers or websites?
AKH:
– Lynn Fisher is one of my all-time favorite developers/illustrators/designers. Every year she gives her personal website (lynnandtonic.com) a refresh and it’s always so exciting to see what new trends have emerged. She also has an amazing ongoing project where she makes detailed illustrations using only CSS.
– Jill Kittock is a designer and illustrator. Her work is humorous, but also thoughtful. I tend to be big-picture oriented, so her extremely detailed designs and drawings are truly awe-inspiring to me.
-Lastly, while the website corndog.io, serves no real purpose, it is a true testament to how fun web design and development can be.
Q: What’s your approach to Web Design and Development at NMCO?
AKH: NMCO has taught me a lot about my approach to web design and development. One key thing I have to remind myself is that there should be no pressure to reinvent the wheel every time I create a website. There is a balance between using tried and true elements and integrating new things that help make a website stand out.
Q: What’s on your creative bucket list?
AKH: I think it would be really cool to design and build an app that is accessible in the App Store for anyone to install.
Q: If you weren’t doing Web Design and Development, what other types of projects would you work on?
AKH: I really enjoy illustrating in my free time. It would be so fun to illustrate and create graphics for an entire cookbook.
Q: What would you like to teach people about what you do?
AKH: There can be a lot of negative things about the Internet and social media, but it is not completely negative. Having a fun and well-designed website that helps serve and inform others can be a bright spot and bring good to a community.
Q: What are your favorite projects you have worked on at NMCO?
AKH: I really loved designing a website for a client using existing brand elements that had been created by Tina and Dana. There is a lot of joy found in “deconstructing” brand elements and incorporating them creatively into a website so that it can better tell the story of the individual or organization.
Q: What can we expect to see from you?
AKH: I’m just beginning in my career and exploring the world of Web Design and Development, but for now I’m excited to be creating new, creative, and dynamic websites!
To learn more about different agencies check out “3 Types of Agencies”.
