Chris Hitchman (UK)

Chris Hitchman (UK)

I discovered Chris' work thanx to Monster Magnet. His stunning poster for the Spine of God tour was just so perfect I couldn't afford not to have him on the blog. So welcome Mr Hitchman and, of course, a very happy new year !!!

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

Right now silence, but usually my music taste is all over the place and changes constantly, depending on mood and what I'm working on. Melvins, Múm, Brian Jonestown, Dead Meadow, Tom Waits, 13th Floor Elevators, Blonde Redhead, Mazzy Star, Swans, Comets on Fire, Black Angels...  to name a few on the playlist recently, along with some weird noise rock and a load of obscure garage bands.

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

My name is Chris Hitchman. I'm from South Wales. Aged 27. I like art and music and attempting to combine the two. I wish I had more posters to show, I'm actually working on three right now so I'll keep you updated!

When did you start drawing?

As soon as I could hold something to draw with. I think most kids draw and create in their own way, I was just slightly more obsessive about it.

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

Art was my favourite subject in school and I'd quite often get told off for drawing in the backs of my books in other classes. I studied A level art but I didn't really have any direction after that, started a few courses, decided they weren't for me. Worked a few jobs, hated them. It wasn't until a few years later that I decided that this was what I really wanted to do and it's mostly been self-taught, do it yourself, find out what you can ever since there. I think only now, many years later am I finally starting to find a style that I'm comfortable and happy with.

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

Not sure if I'm making a living but getting by, although some awesome projects have just started coming my way so I'm hoping this year will be a good one!

Are you collaborating with magazines/fanzines, regularly?

No. But I'd like to.

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

Life, and pretty much everything around me really. I feel like I follow so many artists, painters, illustrators and poster designers and keep finding new ones each day that If I mentioned just a few I'd feel rude for missing out others!

What are the principal steps in your work?

Think about it for way too long. Then panic that I have no time left. Think again. Sketch ideas. Rip them up and move them around on a lightbox until I'm happy with the placement. Same process with the fonts. My sketches are usually super rough and messy so I'll re trace the whole thing so it's clean and tidy, and then on to the inking. Finally scan it in and add colour if needed.

Do you do everything by hand or on computer?

Mostly by hand with a few exceptions.

How long does it take you to do a poster?

Anything from a day to a week.

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?

I'd like to think if a band came to me they'd have a vague idea of what they were going to expect from me. I wouldn't be comfortable accepting a job in oils as I don't think I'd be doing my best work and that wouldn't be fair, but I'm always up for getting creative and experimenting with different ideas and concepts. I've had some pretty weird ones already so definitely not a problem.

For which band have you already worked for?

Mostly local bands so far. I've been lucky to live in an area with a pretty awesome music scene that I enjoy and that has definitely helped me to get inspired, create album art, tees and posters. My first big job was creating a poster for Monster Magnets 20th anniversary tour of their Spine Of God album and I've recently been asked to design a poster for Mudhoney which I'm way too excited about!

For which band would you love to work?

Melvins!! Seriously though, any band that I enjoy listening to, whether I've heard of you before or not. I think the list would be endless! I think Tom Waits would be a fun challenge, not quite sure he'd dig my stuff though!

Do you choose the artists yourself?

I'm just starting out so I've mostly contacted bands I feel my style may suit, although others have started coming to me recently which is definitely exciting!

What is the most difficult part in designing a poster?

The initial concept and anything that involves using a computer.

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

I'm not too sure how to answer this one. There are other artists that I talk to, who inspire me and are helpful and supportive to each other, but I don't think I belong to a 'scene'. I do what I enjoy and think doing your own thing as an artist is the most important. Saying that though, there's a few artists from South Wales I admire, maybe that's my scene, artist such as Jimbob Issac, Oram, Godmachine and some awesome new talent from artists such as Gareth John Day at the Hand of Doom and Sarah Esprit.

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?

You can find my posters and other artwork at my blog, shop or facebook.

http://chrishitchmanart.blogspot.co.uk/
http://chrishitchmanart.bigcartel.com/

The best praise you received lately?

Most recently 'I like your style', because to me finding your own style is the hardest part. I'm sure I'm still not there yet but that means a lot to me.

What can we wish you for the future?

To get my art out there... More posters. More album covers. More awesome music!

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

Thank you for finding me!

Rhys Wootton (UK)

Rhys Wootton (UK)

In some way, Rhys' shiny colors remind me of Brad Klausen work. To my opinion, this is already an excellent point for him. But, as Brad's art usually deals with the Seattle 90s music, Rhys is more de desert/stoner rock fan and this is a second excellent point for him :) If you add to those fact, that he runs Octopus Gallery in Brighton, specialsing in screen printed art prints & gig poster, you don't even have to know that I really like his style to be already reading the interview below ;)

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

At the moment I've gotten into the Smiths, after years of really disliking them I've recently changed my mind - I like the honesty in the lyrics, how they explain the nuances in life that we all experience but don't want to admit. When Morrisey's voice starts to grate my nerves I'll revert to some Stoner Rock like Colour Haze or if I'm feeling dirty then the Melvins. I've started listening to the radio more, BBC 6 Music is pretty good.

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

My name is Rhys Wootton (rhyswootton.com), I live in Brighton, UK and I'm a poster artist, illustrator and printmaker. I co-founded an arts collective called BRAGcollective.com in 2006 that got the posters on a roll when I was in my final year of art school.

When did you start drawing?

Like most artists when I was really young, my mother was an art teacher so growing up I was actively exposed to art. Drawing has always plays a pivotal role in my creative process.

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

I never got on very well with academic subjects and I used to get into trouble scrawling heavy metal band art in lessons - art and history were the only subject I was good at. I went to art school in Brighton to study illustration, this is when I started to learn printmaking to make posters. My early schoolbooks played a big part in my poster origin, if I look back all the covers where beginning formats for my posters now. At school I was obsessed with White Zombie and love all the art Rob Zombie creates, so I started doing my own. Being a trash metal teenager I would design my own band merch for Sepultra, Pantera  - the Old school metal bands (although NU metal is more my era, it never really stuck to me) I was going to be a fine artist before I did illustration - drawing epic posters way more fun and I'm glad I changed course.

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

At the moment I'm working full time as an artist, but I normally prefer having some sort of part-time job to get me out the house - doing art full time can make me a little unhinged, I think its from being in my own head too much. I make a sort of living - the UK poster scene is young so it can be a rough ride to make a decent living, especially as my niche is the Stoner Rock scene, so I see it more as a labor of love. Until now I've been employed at local design & print studios to have another source of income. Last year I ran my own gallery in Brighton called Octopusgallery.co.uk, it was a mad year that was really fun, I never planned on running my own gallery - the opportunity just landed on me and I stated with a tiny budget and asked a few favours. This was great as I got to meet loads of really cool people and have awesome parties, all revolved around the love of poster art.  

Are you collaborating with magazines/fanzines, regularly?

I never went down this route but its something I'd really like to branch into. I've been pretty focused on doing posters, the times I have done editorial its been a refreshing challenge as the foundations for working are very different.

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

Chuck Sperry and Ron Donovan from Firehouse posters are my biggest influence, they got me started on the whole poster thing - in 2006 I did a workshop with them that blew my mind! and then stayed at their studio in San Francisco which gave me years of fuel to ride out the hard times.  They're incredible characters with a great outlook and they resurfaced my passion for music related art. Their posters and print skills are unbelievable, they're masters of screen-printing. Roger Dean was a big influence when I was about 15, my Mother bought me a book of his work that planted the seeds. I really love concept art so artists for companies like Weta Workshop give me lots of inspiration.

What are the principal steps in your work ?

I have two ways to make artwork, it depends on how much time I have and how challenging it's to realise my idea, on my website I have two process videos showing how I work. One way is to just draw it all by hand, usually straight from my mind or with the aid of a few reference photos for inspiration - the other is to use photo montage as the foundation for the image that I draw from. Thinking of the initial concept usually comes from listening to the music and waiting for an image to appear in my head. Once the initial idea is set in my mind I spend a while roughing out thumb nails to choose the angle of shot, I really love perspective and making scenes look epic. Then I trace on my light-table a more detailed study (I use a discarded shower door for my light table), ink up and then digitally colour, finally I screen-print my own work. 

Do you do everything by hand or on computer?

Its a bit of both, each has great attributes to use. I start with hand drawing to computer to screen-print - its a full circle cycle, being finished by hand is important to me, I like art to be tangible and exist in the world, not just floating around digitally. The computer has allowed me to do things I couldn't by hand, but drawing by hand I have more control than with a tablet.

How long does it take you to do a poster?

I'm never too sure about this - it can take a couple of days to a couple of weeks to do the design. I really like deadlines because it gives me a space to work within and I make better art if I don't have too much time to obsess about the details. Just enough time to make something I'm happy with is ideal. Some of my favourite posters I have designed in a night and printed the next day, they retain a level of subconscious energy - my posters have become time intensive and its something I'm rethinking. 

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 ?

I always do artwork how I want to, that's what makes me happy and any client who approaches me for work do so because they like what they see. Its important to me to feel I have put myself into the work, I get very involved, sometimes too much and I have to pull back and see it as a job. I will allow clients to art direct me if they really feel strongly about an idea, this can be hit or miss - it really depends on the initial idea and how much control the client expects to have. I prefer to be left to do my thing.

 For which band have you already worked for?

I work for mainly bands in the post-rock and stoner rock scene, its what I really love and I was mates with a promoter in Brighton who used to put on all the bands I love, so it naturally started here. Bands I've done are Queens of the Stone Age, Acid King, Acid Mothers Temple, Pelican, Rise Above Records, Cathedral, Atomic Bitchwax, Karma To Burn to name a few - that type of scene. Most of the bands I work for are pretty underground in the wider world, I like this because I have more freedom to interpret their music.

For which band would you love to work?

Kyuss would be my top as they're my favourite all time band, Tv on the Radio would be awesome, something fun like Alice Cooper, Pearl Jam would be amazing. I'd like to start making posters for different music scenes, I'm a big fan groups like the Cinematic Orchestra and maybe some hip hop like MF Doom or De La Soul would be an interesting change.  

Do you choose the artists yourself? 

Being friends with promoters I tend to do posters for bands that I like that are on their bills - I'l sometimes get in contact direct if its a really special gig.

What is the most difficult part in designing a poster?

Its different for each poster, I suppose the part if find difficult is waiting to hear if the client likes the concept - most of the time they do, its just waiting to hear that. It used to be the printing stage that would dictate what I could do in the design - earlier in my career I was using print set ups that made it much harder, over the years I've been tweaking my methods and using better print studios that's allowing me to be more adventurous with the mechanics in the design. I'm looking forward to pushing these ideas further.

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

Yeah I see myself as part of the burgeoning UK poster scene, we're a small group that is expanding every year. When I started it really felt like there was only a few of us and now I see more artists emerging. Artists in the Poster Roast, BRAG, Dan Mumford, God Machine, Drew Millward, Switch Open to name a few - we're all roughly from a similar era with some being in the industry longer than me. I tend to be an outsider in any scene, I've always been a lone wolf - working with BRAG is great as it feels good to be apart of something.

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?

You can view my portfolio at www.rhyswootton.com and BRAG artists at www.bragcollective.com. I'm focusing on producing a new line of work in the background that I want to exhibit later in the year but its not ready yet - this art is purely personal and is helping me explore new methods to work and different ideas. I'm just keeping my head down for the time being to focus on making my own work, when its ready I'll start looking to exhibit it.

The best praise you received lately?

I have some posters in the V&A Museum in London in their print collection, this was a great recognition that the scene is getting noticed. At the Desert Fest in London earlier this year I had loads of people come up to me saying they really like my work and have bought my posters - this was great to hear as working alone I sometimes feel disconnected to the audience that sees my artwork. At gigs I love selling the poster because I get to meet people and see their reaction first hand.

What can we wish you for the future? 

If I'm really honest I don't have an idea of future plans anymore - this isn't a bad thing, when I'm busy working good things just seem to appear without needing to seek them. I've had somethings happen to me this year that has given me a whole new outlook, some of these things were good and others really bad - all of it has shown me not to make plans too far ahead and I prefer not knowing where I'll end up. So now I just make plans for 3 months, it keeps me focused in the present. I've taken up Boxing, mountain biking and running which I'm really loving. I've never been big into sport but hunched over a desk for long periods, chain smoking and drinking loads of coffee throughout the night started causing problems, so getting into exercise is inspiring new directions for my artwork.

Ricky Tanner (UK)

Ricky Tanner (UK)

OK you are right, somewhere in the interview Ricky says:"I often create posters strictly for digital promotion", so this interview is not 100% silkscreening driven but... so what ? Ricky's work is nice and personal, it looks so simple that it cannot be and he is a newcomer on gigposters.com, so there are absolutly no reason not to have him here. Welcome Ricky !!!

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

Lately I have been listening to a lot of early Black Sabbath. I have been listening to the Paranoid album. In retrospect it is both dark and quaint.

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

I'm from Berkshire in the UK. I'm a real part timer with posters, design and illustration as I always have to hold down other jobs. I do it mainly for fun and for the musical and cultural connections you can make.

When did you start drawing?

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

I have always sketched since my childhood, but had always lacked any kind of muse, or nay purpose for sketching. So I had always kept it to myself. When I started playing in bands and started needing posters I finally had an excuse to sketch or draw or print. I only really started making any improvements when I left school and joined more bands.

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

I haven't been able to find a value for my work so I'm doing it all for free. So I cannot make a living quite yet! If people offered to pay I'd certainly not turn it down. For the past few years I have been working in either administration or retail so these posters have been my only real source of creativity.

Are you collaborating with magazines/fanzines, regularly?

I work with a blogzine I helped launch a few years back called Here Comes Everyone (herecomeseveryone.org). It focusses on a global music scene rather than local ones. I used to contribute a few pictures and sketches/images for featured blogs (like these http://www.herecomeseveryone.org/_blog/journal.php?id=25) but I usually maintain the graphic design.

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

For posters, it has always been heavily influenced by the screen prints of Jason Munn. His work can say so much with so few colours and shapes. But when sketching by hand, my biggest influence has got to be Sir Arthur Rackham. Rackham was a children's illustrator, illustrating fairy tales with a combination of the beautiful and the grotesque. His drawings are so elaborate, that despite the content, the pictures are always inspiring.

What are the principal steps in your work ?

As I work with friends, they often give me an incredibly vague brief. So I always research the artist, the venue and the sound. I look at their past posters and events and then I think about what this poster needs to be saying and to whom. Then I think about images and iconography that I might use.

Do you do everything by hand or on computer?

Mostly by computer. I usually sketch out my ideas in paper and often I import them into Photoshop or into Fireworks as my primary medium is vectors images. I am working on my Rackham-esque sketches but it'll be a while before I am happy with them.

How long does it take you to do a poster?

It varies from project to project. I often create posters strictly for digital promotion (Facebook, Myspace etc) and they don't require physical printing. In this case detail is not required so I create them within 24 hours. If I am printing them, then it might take anything up to a week in some cases.

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 ?

I have yet to receive a real strict brief. So I have been quite lucky to have the freedom to create what I feel is suitable. However I would jump at the chance to stretch my self and improve myself.

For which band have you already worked for?

Well, there is my own bands Cake Mountain and Debt Brigade, but also acts such as Knoxx, Balowski, Yo! Hipster, Mark T., My Sexy Darling, LowerWay and The Gorgeous Man Circle.

For which band would you love to work?

Acts with a rich visual history that I could add to somehow. Bands like Flaming Lips, Ted Leo, The Black Keys or maybe some more punkish acts such as the Beatsteaks!

Do you choose the artists yourself?

Not yet. I usually get an offer to make a poster,  but I got some good advice recently to perhaps make the poster and send it to the artist prospectively. It might work! Worst case scenario, I will have made some cool fan art!

What is the most difficult part in designing a poster ?

Anything I make, I want it to be collectable. I want people to pull them off of the walls of the venue and to take them home. So I have to make it desirable and relate-able. I find that awfully difficult!

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

Not yet. I am quite introvert artistically. I want to meet more local musicians and therefore hopefully more local illustrators.

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?

You can visit my work at tanner-portfolio.info plus I have a few up at gigposters.com.

The best praise you received lately?

Usually, it just a "aaah, cheers for that mate. Looks good!"

What can we wish you for the future?

I just want an excuse to sketch more than using vectors!

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

A pleasure. Thanks you.

Adrian Dutt (UK)

Adrian Dutt (UK)

First time 0 saw Adrian's work was through the Josh T Pearson poster you can see below. Adrian just arrived on gigposters.com and I immediatly thought this was a talented guy and I had to interview him. The posters shown on gigposters.com were pretty good indeed, but I must recognized I really felt in love with his work when I saw other ones he was showing on his own site amongst a wide variety of other stuffs such as record covers, books and even interiors. Believe it or not but today, one of the best thing coming from the UK are not the olympics but definitly Adrian Dutt !!

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

Ty Segall’s new album Slaughterhouse! A good old fashioned slice of fuzzed out garage noise

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

Well, my name is Adrian Dutt, I’m an illustrator based in Bristol, England. When I’m not drawing, I co-run a noisy record label called ‘Howling Owl’     

When did you start drawing? 

I’ve been drawing since as far back as I remember. I was obsessed with birds as a kid, so I would spend endless hours drawing eagles and falcons. Then I discovered comics and started to emulate the images I was seeing! The older I got, the more focused I became and everything started looking better!

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

I studied Illustration at university, and came away with a 1^st, which is nice. I always knew I wanted to draw, but finding which part of the industry I suited best was difficult. Luckily my obsession with music exposed me to so many awesome illustrators so I knew where I wanted to go with it all! I started getting work properly in my 2^nd year of uni, so I kind of got a head start on people! I graduated last year, and havn’t looked back since!

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

I get by on it, being freelance is so tough. I work in a record shop to supplement it all. But it pretty much leaves me with no spare time…even sleeping seems a chore these days!

Are you collaborating with magazines/fanzines, regularly? 

Fanzines are how I really started to get my work out there, I really can’t stress how important it is for people to just spread your wings and get into the world, exposure is hard! I still work for fanzines today, and it’s a priceless output for my illustrations.

Where does your influence come from? 

I’m influenced by nature, the imagination, and the dark places that exist inside us all! I like to bring those places to the foreground and create imagery that people can get  lost in. Everything around me can spark an idea, if I’m struggling with a brief then I go for a walk, or sit outside with a sketchbook, and things usually happen!

Is there any artists/graphists you particularly like, what are your influences?

I was really influenced by Edward Gorey, Norman Rockwell and David Roberts. I love narrative work, and I try to make my imagery exciting using a narrative theme. Im a traditional hand drawn illustrator, only using a mac to colour things, I wish I could paint like Rockwell! One day….! Just browsing the artists on gigposters.com is mind blowing, there is some incredible talent out there, and the way peoples minds work is phenomenal! Saul bass and Olly moss are awesome graphical based poster designers who I look too when lost! The illustrators affiliated with Mondo Tees are all incredible! Also my father is an incredible sculptor, growing up surrounded by wildlife models really gave me an interest in the subject. 

What are the principal steps in your work ? 

I usually get an idea in my head at a random time, I then sketch that down somewhere and go back to it later. I work up roughs in my sketchbook, working out composition and then I get cracking. I hand draw my fonts, so working out what fonts I think will suit is usually an integral part of the process as the poster sometimes revolves around that!

Do you do everything by hand or on computer? 

Everything by hand, then scanned and coloured on a computer, or layered on a photocopier!

How long does it take you to do a poster? 

It can be anything from a few hours, to a day. I try to finish once I’ve started! It depends on how intricate the poster is!

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 ?

My style has somewhat matured in the last 2 years, so I’m always looking to improve and adapt to new scenarios!  I am trying to get better at painting, so I think I would give it a go!

 For which band have you already worked for? 

Recently, First Aid Kit, Josh T Pearson, Memoryhouse and Sharon Van Etten have been my faves! There’s a lot more though!

For which band would you love to work? 

A Place to Bury Strangers, Sonic Youth, Ty Segall! There’s literally a million artists I would love to do show posters for, hopefully I can get out there more and tick them off! The National too, that would be big!

Do you choose the artists yourself? 

I get commissioned to do them. If I had the time I would do it all off my own back and speculative, if I see any of those bands playing in the UK soon perhaps I CAN BOMBARD THEM!

What is the most difficult part in designing a poster ? 

Making sure someone hasn’t already done it first! It would be embarrassing to do something, then get it sent back rejected because someone did it 6 months ago!

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

I don’t know, Bristol has a great scene which I’m just sitting on the edge of at the moment! I seem to get my work in international places, I’d love to belong to a collective of sorts, maybe I should start one?!

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?

Well, www.adriandutt.co.uk is my website, but my blog is updated regularly at www.adrianduttlikesdrawing.tumblr.com

 

 The best praise you received lately? 

“You have a horribly sinister mind” or Sharon Van Etten saying kind words about the poster. Swoon!

What can we wish you for the future? 

I’d love to get further afield with my work, maybe get some connections in the US, Id love to have a show sometime, if anyone can help with that……get in touch!

I just want to make interesting visual pieces for people to see!

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

Sean Mort (UK)

Sean Mort (UK)

If you like your gigposters full of flashy colors and, lets say, full of small details all around the sheet, then, for flashy colors, go for Kozik (for example) and for details, weel, surf the blog you should find soemeone. But if you like clear, apparently simple and light drawings, full of acertain kind of peace and harmony, then Sean's work is definitly what you need. Somewhere between John Knoerl and, hummm... Ben Chlapek there is definitly a space for this great british ;)

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

Midlake - Bamnan & Slivercork

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

My name is Sean Mort, I'm a designer & illustrator from near Manchester and now I live in Leeds.

When did you start drawing?

From as young as I can remember I was drawing ninja turtles, disney characters and my own football shirts

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

I kind of gave up on drawing in school as it was more like fine art, then I picked it up again when I was around 20 after a conversation with some guy who was working on a book cover. I genuinely didn't know it was something I could do for a career until that point. I know, I'm an idiot

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

I work part time at a merchandise company but this is good as working solely for myself has sent me crazy in the past. It's nice to interact with human beings from time to time. That's why the poster shows are so good

Are you collaborating with magazines/fanzines, regularly?

Not so much at the moment, I do bits for people but I have found my graphic work has slowed since I started doing posters. This is ok as the posters are a great source of inspiration and are way more fun but I'm looking to get back into design more as I enjoy the process of working with a great client

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

I guess I would be called a minimalist. I loved my childhood, I wasn't abused or anything and I try hard to bring that across in my work with pastel colours and playful imagery. Artists I love include Josef Muller Brockmann, Airside, Two Ducks Disco, Saul Bass & Paul Rand

What are the principal steps in your work?

Listen to music, sketch ideas, start working on the computer, print

Do you do everything by hand or on computer?

I start by hand but it's mainly only sketching, unless I'm going for a rough look. Which I rarely do.

How long does it take you to do a poster?

Sometimes it's a really quick process, sometimes it can be horrible. I'd say two days maximum from brain to computer but if I'm on the ball I can get something made in a day. I spend a long time just staring at it afterwards just to make sure it's right as it's something I have to stand by for the next year or so

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?

I could give it a go but I wouldn't want to. It would be a painful process for everyone involved

For which band have you already worked for?

I've been lucky to have worked for many of my favourite current artists already. The National, Fleet Foxes, The Antlers, The Magnetic Fields, Band of Horses and Death Cab For Cutie are all great bands

For which band would you love to work?

The Decemberists would be a particular highlight, there is so much going on in their music that I think it should be easy to communicate my feelings within a poster

Do you choose the artists yourself?

A lot, yeah. It's nice when an artist chooses me but that can sometimes lead to inspiration issues. I was recently asked to do a poster for The XX, it was a disaster from start to finish. My work doesn't fit their mood and their mood doesn't fit my ears. I should have just said no, rather than feel like a failure at the end of a long, unsuccessful process. But, I learned from it and it's all good

What is the most difficult part in designing a poster?

Getting it out of my head into the finished form is the hardest part. It always looks great in my head, it takes a while but I think I eventually do my brain justice

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

I guess so, as I am a graphic designer I just don't know any other way of approaching work. I love artists with a more graphic style, like Telegramme &; Army of Cats

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?

www.seanmort.co.uk & www.seanmortprintshop.co.uk. I will also be doing a load of shows all over the place in the next year

The best praise you received lately?

I got a lot of lovely comments at my recent Chicago show and I'm never ready for them but honestly my favourite thing was getting to know Landland and them wanting to swap posters, it warmed my heart in 100 degree heat. Dangerous.

What can we wish you for the future?

More poster shows and hopefully more great bands to work with would be just perfect