Andrew Evans: Design & magic 🪄

Summary

Design Better Podcast Episode Summary: Andrew Evans – Design & Magic 🪄

Release Date: October 30, 2024
Host: Eli Woolery and Aaron Walter
Guest: Andrew Evans, Founder of the Magic Patio

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Introduction

In this captivating episode of Design Better, co-hosts Eli Woolery and Aaron Walter delve into the fascinating world where design intersects with magic. They are joined by Andrew Evans, a designer and magician whose unique blend of creativity and technology captivates audiences. This episode explores Andrew's journey, his innovative approach to magic, and the lessons he has learned about creativity and collaboration.

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Andrew Evans' Journey: From Childhood Dreams to Professional Magic (05:17 - 13:18)

Andrew Evans shares his early fascination with magic, ignited at the age of three after attending a show at Disneyland's Golden Horseshoe. This experience spurred a lifelong passion for performing and storytelling. At six years old, a pivotal moment came when Andrew received a VHS tape from magician Michael Amar, inspiring him to perform his first magic trick at an elementary school talent show.

Andrew pursued higher education at Brown University, where he earned a degree in engineering while immersing himself in theater, acting, directing, set design, and building. This interdisciplinary approach fostered his interest in the intersection of science, engineering, art, and the humanities. He further honed his skills at Stanford's D School, where he embraced design as a field that harmoniously blends engineering and art with a human-centered lens.

Notable Quote:

"I've always been interested in this intersection of science and engineering and art and the humanities. It's always been a little funny to try to figure out how those things overlap."
— Andrew Evans (11:15)

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Integrating Magic and Design: The Magic Patio Concept

While working at IDEO for five years, Andrew initiated "The Magic Patio," a backyard magic show that became a collaborative project involving friends with diverse talents. This venture exemplifies his belief that magic is an art form rooted in storytelling, creativity, and technology. The Magic Patio combined elements like mixology, visual arts, lighting design, and stagecraft, all approached from a design-centric perspective.

Andrew emphasizes that magic, at its core, is about creating mesmerizing experiences through meticulous design and audience engagement. His background in design allows him to craft magical performances that are not only entertaining but also thoughtfully engineered to captivate and surprise audiences.

Notable Quote:

"Magic is, at its core, the art of storytelling. It's about directing attention, making people question assumptions, and blending creativity with technology to change how we see the world."
— Aaron Walter (01:27)

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Crafting Engaging Presentations: Lessons from Magic

Andrew discusses how his expertise in magic informs his approach to design presentations and audience engagement. He compares performing a magic trick to delivering a compelling presentation:

1. Storytelling: Just as magic tells a story, presentations should guide the audience through a narrative.
2. Attention Direction: Effective presentations direct the audience's focus to key elements, much like a magician controls where the audience looks during a trick.
3. Surprise and Delight: Introducing unexpected elements can make presentations more memorable and impactful.

By applying these principles, Andrew aims to create presentations that not only convey information but also immerse and engage the audience, making them feel like active participants in the experience.

Notable Quote:

"Design Better is where we explore creativity at the intersection of design and technology."
— Eli Woolery (01:57)

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The Magic Patio: A Hub for Collaborative Creativity

The Magic Patio serves as a physical and metaphorical space where various creative disciplines converge. Andrew highlights the importance of collaboration in enhancing the magical experience:

• Diverse Skill Sets: Bringing together bartenders, artists, lighting designers, and more enriches the overall performance.
• Design Thinking: Each contributor approaches their role with a design mindset, ensuring that every aspect of the show is thoughtfully crafted.
• Community Building: The Magic Patio fosters a sense of community among creatives, allowing for the exchange of ideas and techniques.

This collaborative environment not only elevates the magic performances but also serves as a testing ground for innovative design concepts applicable to broader creative and technological projects.

Notable Quote:

"Everyone was approaching that show from a place of design."
— Andrew Evans (13:18)

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Overcoming Creativity Challenges: Insights and Strategies

Andrew reflects on the challenges of maintaining creativity and avoiding burnout, especially when juggling multiple interests and projects. He touches upon the possibility of ADHD influencing his deep dives into various hobbies and interests, acknowledging the need for self-awareness and potential professional evaluation.

He offers strategies for sustaining creativity:

• Passion Projects: Engaging in projects that align with personal interests can keep creative energy flowing.
• Interdisciplinary Approaches: Combining different fields, such as magic and design, can lead to innovative outcomes.
• Community Support: Collaborating with like-minded individuals provides motivation and diverse perspectives.

These insights underscore the importance of balance and intentionality in nurturing sustained creativity and innovation.

Notable Quote:

"I like the fastest way I know how to break these. And then stack those on top of each other."
— Andrew Evans (05:35)

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Conclusion

Andrew Evans' unique blend of magic and design offers valuable lessons in storytelling, audience engagement, and creative collaboration. His journey from a childhood magician to a professional designer and magician illustrates the power of interdisciplinary approaches and the importance of nurturing diverse interests. Through initiatives like The Magic Patio, Andrew demonstrates how blending different creative disciplines can lead to innovative and captivating experiences.

For those looking to enhance their own creative practices, Andrew's experiences emphasize the significance of collaboration, design thinking, and maintaining a playful yet thoughtful approach to creativity.

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Notable Quotes Summary:

• "I've always been interested in this intersection of science and engineering and art and the humanities. It's always been a little funny to try to figure out how those things overlap."
  — Andrew Evans (11:15)

• "Magic is, at its core, the art of storytelling. It's about directing attention, making people question assumptions, and blending creativity with technology to change how we see the world."
  — Aaron Walter (01:27)

• "Design Better is where we explore creativity at the intersection of design and technology."
  — Eli Woolery (01:57)

• "Everyone was approaching that show from a place of design."
  — Andrew Evans (13:18)

• "I like the fastest way I know how to break these. And then stack those on top of each other."
  — Andrew Evans (05:35)

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For a visual demonstration of Andrew's magic trick, visit Design Better on YouTube or head to designbetterpodcast.com.

Transcript

[Aaron Walter]

Hi there, Aaron Walter here. If you're hearing this, you're not currently on our premium subscriber feed. Design Better premium subscribers Enjoy weekly episodes, four episodes per month in total rather than two, all ad free and invitations to our monthly AMAs with the smartest folks in design and tech. You'll hear a preview of this episode, but if you'd like to hear the full conversation, please consider becoming a Premium [e-mail] subscribe. It's just $7 a month, and it supports not only your personal growth, it also makes our work at Design Better possible. The podcast is available to everyone through our scholarship program. If you can't afford a subscription, email [e-mail] and we'll help you out. This is a special Halloween episode of Design Better with video. To watch Andrew perform some amazing magic, visit Design Better on YouTube or visit designbetterpodcast.com One of the things I love.

[Andrew Evans]

Doing is like leaving these intellectual breadcrumbs that I know people are following. And then at the very end of the routine, they're like, well, it can't be this, this, this, or this, so it must be this. And then the final thing of the trick is something that closes that door. And they say, well, guess it's magic.

[Aaron Walter]

One of my first jobs as a kid was performing magic shows, and it taught me a surprising amount about creativity. Magic is, at its core, the art of storytelling. It's about directing attention, making people question assumptions, and blending creativity with technology to change how we see the world. That's why it's no surprise that Andrew Evans, founder of the Magic Patio, draws on his training from Stanford's D School to craft truly mesmerizing experiences.

[Eli Woolery]

We dive into Andrew's journey from his childhood dream of designing roller coasters to creating tree houses, working at Ideo and Nike, and eventually launching a magic show in his own backyard. We also explore how he's honed the art of engaging an audience, and we share tips on how to craft presentations that pull people in and make them feel part of the experience. This is Design Better, where we explore creativity at the intersection of design and technology. I'm Eli Woolery.

[Aaron Walter]

And I'm Aaron Walter. You can get AD free episodes, bonus content, discounts on our workshops, and access to our monthly AMAs with big names in design and tech. By becoming a Design Better premium subscriber, it's also the best way to support the show. Visit designbetterpodcast.com subscribe to learn more. We'll return to the conversation after this quick break. Hey, web designers. Let's talk about creative burnout. You're working on a site for a really big client, but between resourcing, feedback, tight budgets and even tighter deadlines, it just doesn't make the cut. Wix Studio helps close that gap so you can deliver your vision with less friction. Built for agencies and enterprises, you get total creative control over every last pixel. With no code, animations, AI powered tools, reusable design assets, advanced intuitive layout tools, and a figma to wix Studio integration, which is very cool. You can design the way that you want to and deliver when you need to. And if you're worried about the learning curve eating into time you don't have, don't be. Wix Studio is intuitive by design, so your entire team can hit the ground running for your next project. Check out Wix Studio.com that's Wix Studio.com W I X S T U D I O All right, let's be real. If you're a content creator, blogger, or an entrepreneur just getting started, the last thing you want to do is spend hours building a website. But you know you got to do it. You've got things to do. And that's where Bluehost comes in. Their AI powered design tool gives you pro level WordPress sites in a snap. No coding, no stress. Just type in what kind of vibe you're going for and then boom, you got it. And you also get added features like marketing and e commerce tools to help you build, grow and scale your online business. Like a boss. And upgrading to Bluehost Cloud keeps your site running 24. 7 with ultra fast hosting, 99.9% uptime and enhanced security. Always fast, never slow, so you can keep making that dough. It's seriously never been easier to build your website with bluehost. You've got ideas. All you need now is the platform. All you need is Bluehost. Head over to Bluehost.com and start building your dream website today. And now back to the show.

[Eli Woolery]

So we've got a very special design better episode for you today. We have with us the designer and magician, Andrew Evans. And we'll get into his bio shortly, which is also fascinating. But since he's a magician and we are at the magic patio, we thought let's start off with a magic trick.

[Andrew Evans]

Let's do it. Put me on the spot to begin with. I like it. Okay, we're going to try a little something that I find rather fun. So you know, card Tricks. I love a good card trick. It's funny. That's not really what I focus on as much on stage these days, but I think there's something wonderfully accessible about cards. Everyone's familiar with the. These objects, actually. I'll give you this. The bicycle deck. Classic one. But here's the deal. So when I had someone choose a card and I try to find it, the problem with that is, like, people know sleight of hand exists, right. So I could make you check a card or, like, something like that. So there's this new thing that a friend and I kind of came up with, but a friend had a kid at school where they had these cards with a bunch of numbers and then, like, different addition, multiplication, all that symbols. And the idea was you would, like, randomly create math problems that you would have to solve. So this is like a way to do that by picking a card truly randomly. I call this a random card generator. Okay. Actually, here, you can start with that. If you fold in half, like, hot dog style to. Yes. That's what I always remembered is. Yeah. Hot dog versus hamburger. So, like, all of these cards, Right. Are represented roughly on that thing. And then you can tear that in half. So that's how we do this. And then so here, Eli, I'll actually just have you go ahead and take a card. Anyone you'd like. Anyone at all. Okay. Keep that face down. Don't. Did you look at it? Oh, perfect. Keep it. Yeah, that way, actually, no one knows what that is. We get a random one, and then we'll get another random one. Okay. Put those together on top of each other. Yep. And then fold those again hot dog style. Break those in half. Yeah. I feel like this is just the fastest way I know how to break these. And then stack those on top of each other. Okay. And then hold out your hands, Eli, and just start tearing those into. Yeah, like squares into Eli's hands and drop them on in. So we're gonna get all of these in there. Let me know when you got them all. I know this is, I think, the most efficient way to do this, by the way. I've thought a lot about this. All right. Okay. Okay, you got em, Eli, cover your hands. Shake them up. You picked that card at the beginning, and you haven't seen it. I don't know what it is. Okay, I want you to dump these out, like, kind of randomly on this table. Anything face down. Go for it. Anything face down, we're gonna eliminate. So just start. Yeah, so just start moving them out. We can do this together to kind of save some time. Cool. Keep them coming, Keep them coming. This guy. Actually, I probably shouldn't even touch him, but great. And then take. Okay, this is good. So we've got a couple suits left, which is good. Cause we're gonna go for a suit and a number. So take all of those, squeeze here, scoop them into your hand, and you do it this time. I'll get rid of these. We'll get. Cool. Shake them up, shake them up. Dump it over. Sweet. We're getting rid of more. Okay, okay, pause. At this point, we only have one suit left anyway, so we are going with apparently diamonds. All right, Go ahead. Get rid of these. Shake up the rest. Yep. Shake, shake, shake, shake, shake, shake. This is as random as we can get. Beautiful.

[Aaron Walter]

We got two.

[Andrew Evans]

Eli, go for it. Or either one. Yeah. Just kind of get more folks involved. This is. There you go. Take them all. Give them a shake. I know. This is a moment. Ooh, last one. Take them. Give em a shake. Okay, here we go. Oh, we're. Wait, sure. Actually bring those up as they are. Okay. This is a moment. Put them on the table. They fell on the floor. They fell on the floor.

[Aaron Walter]

And 7.

[Andrew Evans]

Truly as random as it gets at this point. A seven and a seven of diamonds. And Eli, at the beginning, you picked a random card. Can you. Let's see. Flip it over for a face. Let's see. Show that to the camera. Seven of diamonds. Just like that. That's.

[Aaron Walter]

That's pretty incredible.

[Andrew Evans]

Crazy, right?

[Eli Woolery]

Yeah.

[Andrew Evans]

Magic. That's what we do. Yeah, there it is.

[Eli Woolery]

So that's an amazing trick. If you're just listening to this, we will post a video on our sub stack so you can check it out. Or better yet, come to the magic patio. We'll give you the details on that at the end of the show. So let's rewind, and we want to talk about how you got here, but let's start, like, way, way back.

[Andrew Evans]

Okay.

[Eli Woolery]

Andrew, at age 7, 8, did you love magic? Were you into something else? What was your.

[Andrew Evans]

Well, if we go back one more year to age 6, then the answer was yes, I loved magic. I guess. Actually, let's go back to year three. When I was three years old, we went to Disneyland for the first time. I don't have this memory, but apparently we saw a show at the Golden Horseshoe, and I was just constantly recreating that show for, like, the rest of whatever, my third year of life, I think. So I think there was something that I was naturally drawn to with performing but then magic really started. When I was 6, I had a VHS tape that was put out by this amazing magician who's still incredible performing today. His name was Michael Amar. And I believe the thing was just called the Magic Video or the Magic Tape or something, but it was a video I got. Learned how to do some tricks, things you could even make yourself, and they weren't that hard, and that was the starting point for me. So then I performed in my elementary school talent show when I was six years old. I did, like, a trick, you know, it was probably this small for probably 500 people by the time the parents and the kids were all there. And I'm sure no one really saw it, but I figured out how to play for larger crowds later in life. But, yeah, I mean, I've always been pretty deep with my hobbies and passions. So prior to magic, it was funny enough car washes, like, I could just go down the list. But, yeah, I always liked going pretty deep on stuff.

[Aaron Walter]

Is that an ADHD thing?

[Andrew Evans]

Do you think it's funny you ask that? I have recently questioned that for the past couple years. If that's actually something that I should look into or ask about more from, like, a proper diagnosis perspective, I don't know.

[Aaron Walter]

Yeah, it resonates with me and just the way my brain works as well. But we carry forward. And you ended up going to Stanford and studying design, so you've got all these hobbies and interests, but ultimately you're trying to build a career and you find your way into design. Why design? And how did that then transition into what you're doing today?

[Andrew Evans]

Yeah, I mean, I'll continue the rewind a little bit. So prior to Stanford, I went to Brown for undergrad. And really one of the reasons for that was at Brow, there's no core requirements for graduating. You just have to complete your major. But you can do everything else, like an extracurricular. So I have a degree in engineering, but I spend as much time doing theater, acting and directing, but also set design and building. And I almost feel like half of my engineering learnings came from the theater and how to build and just all of that kind of stuff. So I've always been interested in this intersection of science and engineering and art and the humanities. And it's always been a little funny to try to figure out how those things overlap. So in going to Stanford, that choice was really, for me, it was one of the few programs I found at that moment in time that was like, 2009, 2010, that seemed to also have this belief that there was a thing that existed at the intersection of engineering and art, and it was called design. And it was the first time I had really found another group of people who seemed to let both of those passions come together. And then adding the human centered lens was sort of the missing piece that I had never really approached at least much we touched on that kind of in engineering and design classes that I took at Brown. But yeah, what a beautiful education. So that was two years of just doing the things that I had been doing really my whole life, but with a group of people who also did it. And from there, I mean, I'm trying to create like the connection to here. I started working at IDEO right after that design program and I was at IDEO for about five years. But the whole time I was there, I was also doing a magic show in my backyard patio. Like the actual backyard patio of my apartment. Hence the name the magic patio. And I really think it was as much that whole experience and creating that with this incredible group of friends. Everyone brought something to that show. We had bartenders making incredible drinks, an artist making beautiful posters and watercolors, a lighting designer who's ex imagineering designing the lights for an outdoor backyard magic show. Right. But everyone was approaching that show from a place of design.

[Aaron Walter]

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