D&AD chief in ‘work for free’ row

D&AD, whose yellow pencils are arguably more coveted by creative directors than a massive salary, has slammed its own chairman after he claimed young creatives should work for nothing to get a foothold in agencies.
Dick Powell’s remarks were made in a speech to graduates at the recent New Designers exhibition in London, in which he said: “Offer anything, do anything. Work for nothing, make tea, carry bags, and learn, learn, learn.”
Powell, who is also co-founder and CEO of industrial design studio Seymour Powell, added: “Your goal may be to get a job, but your first task is to crack open the door. And you should stop at nothing to achieve that. Be prepared to do anything, anything at all to get into a business. In advertising it’s normal – you don’t get paid.”
However, D&AD, which works to promote and inspire best practice in design and advertising, has stated that Powell’s comments are not official policy.
The organisation has just launched a guide to getting into the industry, called The Creative Notebook. In a statement it said: “To clarify, chairman Dick Powell’s recent comments were not representative of D&AD’s stance on the issue of interns. We endorse paid internships, and are committed to supporting students and graduates entering the workplace.”
Powell has since stated his comments were taken out of context.

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