by Sally Cox
Editor’s Note: This is one of a continuing series of interviews with notables in the creative industry. This week, we talk with brainiac Sarah Justine Kilpatrick, who graciously took time out of being a busy newlywed to be interviewed. We thank you so much, Sarah!
Your Name
Sarah Justine Kilpatrick
#1 What is your primary job title?
Product Manager @ InVision
#2 Who or what inspires you?
I tend to pull inspiration from anything creative. When I see something beautiful on Behance, or an amazing technical project on Instructables, it inspires me to learn something new and keep creating.
#3 What do you think about when alone in your car?
Car time is often reserved for thinking about lighting projects. My spare time is spent building programmable light systems which require a decent amount of technical planning.
#4 Share a life lesson you learned?
Never stop learning. Go beyond the boundaries of your field and keep building skills. Complacency is the death of creativity.
#5 Favorite period of history?
Right now!
#6 What projects are you working on right now?
At InVision, my team is working on redefining the creative platform. This is a huge (and fun!) challenge as it includes not just innovating our prototyping tools, but solving problems for design teams at every stage of the design process. In my personal life I just bought a house which is a huge project in itself. Destroy all the things!
#7 Describe your personal style.
Probably versatile. I love learning new things and being thrown into situations with new problems to solve.
#8 What tech tools do you use in your work?
5k retina iMac, InVision, Sublime Text, Sketch, Illustrator and Dropbox Paper.
#9 When did you know you’d found your calling?
When I was 11 years old I learned to use Adobe Photoshop, which gave me a much needed outlet for creativity. I fell in love with digital art. I later got my degree in graphic design, worked as a designer/developer for several years and now focus my career on building products for designers.
#10 What’s your super power?
Storytelling.
#11 Peanut Butter: Creamy or Chunky?
Both. Peanut butter is delicious.
#12 What makes you happy?
My friends and my husband. Learning new things. Soldering.
#13 What do you do to relax?
The beach is the one place where I can truly turn my brain off. If a beach isn’t available, zoning out on Netflix.
#14 Your place of birth?
Ottawa, Canada.
#15 Favorite artist or art movement?
Always been a big Saul Bass fan.
#16 Share a funny moment from your career?
Around the time I graduated college I had pink hair. I landed a job interview quicker than I expected, and desperately tried to dye my hair to a normal color for the interview next day. This… didn’t end up well. Instead of a light shade of brown, my hair transformed into a fiery red/pink hue. I was mortified but went to the interview anyways because hey, you miss 100% of the shots you don’t take. It was a panel interview with about 4 people. After introductions I told them, “ Alright, I’m fully aware I look ridiculous right now. Just want to get that out of the way,” and explained my sad hair situation.
#17 Color of the car you drive?
Charcoal.
#18 Any new skills you’d like to learn?
I’d like to learn more about 3D modeling so I can 3D print creative projects.
#19 How do you get your news?
For creative news I follow my Muzli dashboard. For day to day stuff Reddit or the news app on my iPhone.
#20 Advice to other creatives?
Fake it ‘til you become it. The creative industry is very intimidating to break into. For every inspirational person you meet, know that they started right where you are. Keep pushing outside of your comfort zone and learn from others to keep getting better.