Davide Colombino (Italy)

Davide Colombino (Italy)

Mama mia!It seems that everytime I will have an italian designer on the blog, I will have to thanx IPRA for their work. So, once again, no doubt that without those italian guys I would maybe have never heard about Davide, and this would have been a shame as he is the first one (as far as I can remember) who clearly define himself as a graphic designer and more or less nothing more. He even recognizes that his drawing skills are not that tremendous. A lesson of humility directly from Italia !

Hello, of course as every Crewk interview, first question: what are we listening to when we come to visit you?


At the moment i'm listening to a local band called Little Chestnuts but I usually listen to a lot of different music...from Jazz to Grindcore.

Can you tell us more about yourself, who are you, where are you from, what do you do?

I'm a 28 years old graphic designer, i live in Genoa, Italy.

When did you start drawing?

I went to the catholic school, they made me draw scenes from the lives of saints when I was 3 … that explain why I can't draw and why I listen to Black Metal ;)

I'm a graphic designer, not an illustrator, so, I kinda suck in drawing...

Did you follow any course or did you improve by drawing in the margins of your schoolbooks?

The fact is: i followed a course (at the university) to learn drawning...it was quite useless...but I have a lot of crayons now ….

Today are you living from your art, or do you do something else for a living ?

I'm a freelance graphic designer and I'm collaborating with an advertising agency and a book publisher. But it's not the best time ever for being a graphic designer...

Are you collaborating with magazines/fanzines, regularly?

No

Where does your influence come from? Is there any artists/graphists you particularly like, what are your influences?

Reid Miles Peter Saville and Storm Thorgerson are my favourite designers...Malleus and Chuck Sperry my favourite poster artists …

What are the principal steps in your work ?

Get the idea >> find the perfect size for the poster >> find the perfect font >> find the perfect colour >> do the poster >> print the poster >> think: “OH my god, why I did not do that poster in that other way!! (that happens all the time)

Do you do everything by hand or on computer?

I use the computer. I can't live without a computer

How long does it take you to do a poster?

From 2 / 3 hours to a week... it depends

You have a very distinctive style, are you doing only what you feel like or if tomorrow somebody asks you an oil painting with horses running out of water with a sunset backdrop, is it a problem or are you up for it ?

An oil painting is not graphic design … if the client ask for something I can't do (illustrations usually) i’ll call an illustrator!

For which band have you already worked for?

I've made posters for concerts of “Gentlemen & Assassins”, the american singer “Nikki Forova”, the french band “Celeste” and a lot of italian and local bands.

For which band would you love to work?

Pink Floyd ? (is it too much?). Tool ? My list can be infinite!

Do you choose the artists yourself?

A lot of band i've worked for are friends... I play in three band so, I often design my band's posters too...

What is the most difficult part in designing a poster ?

Like everything in this job, the most difficult thing is to have the idea. The other things will come naturally.

Do you think you are part of a "Graphic Scene", if so who else ?

I don't feel like a part of some scene, I just know a few people who make posters...

A bit of self-promotion, take advantage of it, it's free, where can we see your work , on the web or in real life?

I'm working on my website, you can find my posters on italianposterrockart.com

The best praise you received lately?

Never received any praise...that's too bad!

What can we wish you for the future?

Berlusconi get killed by a stray bullet or in the old fashioned “Carrero Blanco style”. The end of the economic crisis (that should be a consequence) and a lot of work for me.

Thanks for answering my questions and see you soon on the website !!