12 questions with: Wotto

12 questions with.. wotto

Here at PopCultureTees.com, we appreciate good design and from time to time would like our visitors to get to know the people behind some of the nicest shirts in the tee world. Our guest this week is wotto. We asked him a few questions (12 to be exact) and here is what he had to say.

PCT: What’s outside your window right now?

Wotto: Palm trees, I am in Southern California right now and it is beautiful. It will be my new home soon.

PCT: How did you get started in design and what inspired you to become a designer?

wotto: Well I consider myself more an illustrator than a designer really. I started illustrating at University and art school. My career as an illustrator started when I left University and freelanced. I got picked up by a .com company and became their in house illustrator, I learned a huge amount from a very skilled team and made some great friends. After that I moved to London and illustrated as a freelancer which was a lot of fun. I have been freelancing ever since.I suppose I was always going to draw and drawing itself was the inspiration. Getting paid to draw is a dream come true for me.

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PCT: Are there any artists (present/historical/on or offline) that you feel had an influence on you?

wotto: Of course there are, hundreds and thousands. I am like a sponge and many artists influence me. I think all artists, designers build up a mental library of artists and images and draw on it to influence their work. Here are one or two that come to mine, Hundertwasser, Picasso, McBess, MissVan, Tamara De Lempika, Junko Mizuno…….

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PCT: What websites do you visit on a regular basis for design inspiration?

wotto: I regularly hit Threadless, Emptees and Flickr. That’s a lot of inspiration right there and also two amazing communities.

PCT: Where have we seen your designs(T-sites and stores)? Any memorable experiences?

wotto: I have seen people wearing my tees and it is always exciting and makes me blush a little. I have a few things coming up that will hopefully make it into retail stores but I can’t say much about it right now.

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PCT: Is there a particular methodology or process you have for creating a design? How about a walkthrough?

wotto: T-shirt design is about two things I think, a style that’s recognisable and an idea or concept. Sometimes I forget the concept and look at asthetic alone. All my work starts as a doodle, whether I am travelling or trying to sleep I always have to sketch the idea down. Then I usually redraw the idea, tweaking bits and bobs. Next I scan it in and work on it in illustrator, adding and chopping stuff as I go. I really like illustrator as a tool but for me it’s all about the drawing. I usually start a design and then leave it alone and revisit a day, week or month later. It’s good to look at a design with fresh eyes sometimes. I usually ask my wife what she thinks too, another set of eyes are useful.

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PCT: All of your designs are your babies, but if you were to pick a favorite, which one would it be and why?

wotto: I love the last illustration I did for about 12 hours and then I start to find fault in it. I think thats good, it keeps me pushing myself and aiming for more. One illustration I am pleased with is a design called ‘Thou Shalt Not Steal’ for Threadless because it’s close to the original visual I had in my head. I also like how it has many imperfections, I wanted it to be like that. Too much design is slick and in my opinion overworked.

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PCT: What do you like to do when you’re not designing?

wotto: I love movies and music. I also like to cycle at high speed down big hills and tracks. I have slacked off a lot though, maybe because I broke both my wrists when I hit a tree. Kinda put me off.

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PCT: Any tips or advice for aspiring designers?

wotto: Commit to your work, work hard, very hard. Never give up. Opportunities will not come after you, you have to work to get them.

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PCT: We have a time machine and are going to set it to 5 years from now. What can we expect to see from you when we get there? Where do you see your design career in 5 years?

wotto: Hard question. I hope to still be designing tees but also doing more painting and having shows. I was in a show recently in O.C and it was very rewarding. I hope to build on that and do more. I’d also like to push my own line a little more too. The uncertainty of what’s next is the fun bit.

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PCT: Any current projects you want to plug?

wotto: Right now I am working on the 2nd set of small paintings I am doing. I am hoping to do another 25 small paintings because the first 25 were well received. I am also working on some exciting tee designs for a range of clients. I am collaborating with a couple of artists on projects but again I can’t say much about that right now. Sorry.

You can also find out more by visting these wotto Links:

wotto website – http://www.wotto.co.uk/
wotto tees – http://wottotees.blogspot.com/
wotto shop – http://wotto.bigcartel.com/

Thanks for the interview, wotto

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