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Part 2

Could you take us through a day in your life, from a possible morning routine through to your work? Do you have a fixed schedule? How do music and other aspects of your life feed back into each other - do you separate them or instead try to make them blend seamlessly?

Usually I wake at 9-10 A.M. I’m one of those persons who need to have a routine to be more functional, otherwise I can be really lazy. I also need extravagant days like everyone else, but I do not obligate myself to always be on the edge. It’s like peaks.
Usually I work at night after 7 P.M, it’s usually when I feel that I’m more inspired, concentrated and all the ideas are falling into place, I really feel that is when I will be more reliable to work on a project and will give my best. I’m always listening to music, since I get up until I go to sleep, sometimes I even think to myself that it must be exhausting for people around me because there’s always noise where I’m at - at home, at work, in my car, everywhere …
Personally, I try to separate everything; the only thing I want to influence my design work is music and my mind. I always work with music on; I do not dare to create art without music. It’s the main connection. So everything I have been listening to that day, plus what I’m listening to during the art process contributes to the outcome.

Could you describe your creative process on the basis of a piece or album that's particularly dear to you, please? Where did the ideas come from, how were they transformed in your mind, what did you start with and how do you refine these beginnings into the finished work of art?


I would have to choose the first vinyl I designed, that was also my first big client when I lauched TF Concept Design. The design was done doing blend technique. At the time I was experimenting a lot with the tool. I presented a few projects based on that to the duo Vinyl Speed Adjust, they completely loved it, and we went from there. This was back in 2013, I was particularly obsessed with designing vinyl and that project was like a gem, the collective was impressive and the ep was incredible.
That particular creative process came out of experiments with the blend technique. Usually we draw 2 or 3 shapes and then we blend them together, the final result is an object connected by lines and very abstract.

There are many descriptions of the ideal state of mind for being creative. What is it like for you? What supports this ideal state of mind and what are distractions? Are there strategies to enter into this state more easily?

I just need to feel good with myself and happy with the project. If I feel that the client trusts in my work and identifies himself with what I do, that’s 50% of the project done right there. After that, it all goes down to confidence and imagination. It’s very important to play around and enjoy what I’m doing, even if the outcome is not going to be presented, it is the right way to align the conscious and subconscious.
A good place for me is when I know there’s no rush, that I can take my time to create a unique and perfect artwork that I feel good about and ultimately also the client. The major distractions can be adverse to design but it will influence my work and the outcome. Everything needs to click and sometimes it’s normal for it too take a little bit longer.

Is your approach more guided by the emotions or ideas stirred by the music or conceptual considerations?

Definitely guided by the music in question. I can listen to 1 particular track for 2 or 3 hours in a row, this confuses most people I know a lot … So usually, I put the EP in question on loop while I work, that can take up to 3 or 4 hours.
Sometimes I also take a completely different dimension and start listening to soul, jazz, rock, blues, disco, hip-hop … I do not like to work while I’m too emotional, especially if for some reason in my life something is pulling me down, I just freeze and nothing good comes out of it. I need to be in a good place spiritually and psychology to make it all work. It’s like a neutral field.


What kind of materials have proven to be particularly effective to work with? Do you maintain an archive of materials for potential use in future projects?

I do! To be honest I can say that I have around 100 projects done and ready to use, but I don’t use them. Usually I start to work on a project when it’s requested, so it’s always a fresh idea that comes out of the “box”. Mostly it’s artwork I design while inspired and most of them in a row, like 5 or 6 artworks at a time. Usually I put a music set on and start designing. There are times that I’m 1 entire week without working with a client on a specific project so, I just make use of that time to project and design what comes to my mind that day and experiment new things.

Our sense of hearing shares intriguing connections to other senses. From your experience, what are some of the most inspiring overlaps between different senses - and what do they tell us about the way our senses work? What happens to sound at its outermost borders?

Music is a feeling.

Music can take you to places you have never been before inside your mind, it can make you feel happy or sad, it’s something so powerful! Sometimes I know exactly what I’m going to feel while listening to that particular track, it’s incredible, I think the only thing close to that is a very personal relationship with someone. With music you can go from 0 to 100 in seconds. It’s a beautiful thing to be on a dancefloor and some track starts coming and you can’t help yourself, you just smile and dance. If music can make you smile, you can feel it at its deepest.
It’s the same with my work. If I feel the music I have been presented to, the creative process flows naturally and puts me in an incredibly good mood! Fascinating.

Art can be a purpose in its own right, but it can also directly feed back into everyday life, take on a social and political role and lead to more engagement. Can you describe your approach to art and being an artist?

My approach is very striking and bold, creating a beautiful outcome that combines an extremely strong and formal reduction in the use of neutral colors-based products.
In therms of society I don’t think I add anything special. I prefer to touch every person individually by amusing them with the artwork outcome, to raise more interest in art and in different types of art. I want people to question how it’s done and why I do it. Nothing brings me more joy than to see someone conneting with an artwork I have done.

It is remarkable, in a way, that we have arrived in the 21st century with the basic concept of music design still intact. Do you have a vision of it, an idea of what it could be beyond its current form?

I think people should keep relating the two … Art and music. In my opinion they will always be connected, more than people think or realise. The connection is strong and I believe it will keep growing … We can see a good evolution from 20 years ago to nowadays, it’s visible that people have more interest and are proud to present something nice for people to look at. I just hope it keeps growing even more.


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