"Bantjes had great success early in her career, the type that many young graphic designers only hope for. She was the co-owner and creative force behind Digitoplis, a design firm in Vancouver, Canada, where her work gained her critical acclaim in and around the city. However, after the excitement of doing strategic design in a corporate environment wore off, the work Marian was doing became creatively draining, and she realized she was beginning to despise graphic design. After this revelation, Bantjes began taking her work in a more personal direction, much to the chagrin of her business partner. “I needed to have control over my work. I detested dealing with bullshit copy editors and bullshit changes; I just couldn’t fucking stand it anymore. This made me entirely unsuitable as a designer,” says Bantjes with a laugh. “It was like I turned 40 and went into a full-blown midlife crisis. I imagined myself on my deathbed thinking ‘is this what I want my design legacy to be?’ and the only answer I had was, ‘absolutely not’.” Eventually, she and her business partner parted ways, and Bantjes began her solo career as a designer."