An interview with Nicolas

Its been a while now since we crowned both Lovetab and Play With the Forms champions supreme. Now that the intial shock has worn off, we (well actually Rebekka) sat down with Nicolas aka Lufograf and Kim to discuss their logos, the OLP and life since then.Come and read Nicolas’ interview in the full post. Kims we’ll blog tomorrow.

ps: Oh and one other thing, after the longest of long waits Ina just got her ISO50 prizes (we had to get them shipped via Spreadshirt and then customs jumped in both sides i’m guessing as it took forevvveeeer):

Inadimova with some of her ISO50 prizes

Now back to Mr Play with the Forms:

Tell us something about you: how old are you, where do you come from?

I am 33 years old (call me Jesus!) ^^

I live in a small village lost among vineyards : Chanzeaux (near Angers). A graphic designer who doesn’t live in the turmoil of a town may be seen as a curious specimen! But I love the idea of being free from fashion dictature. I guess it’s only a theory because nowadays the Internet is even more full of that than ever! ^^

When not winning logo contests, how are you earning a living?

I mostly work for the cultural domain (concert hall, music association, local bands, dance company…) but also for an ecological cosmetics brand. All of these works are usually for print (posters, flyers, catalogue, graphic “charter” etc…).

How did you get into Graphic Design?

I do this job because being Zinedine Zidane was already booked. Seriously, as far as I can remember, I have always been found with a pen in my hand. At the beginning it was to re-decorate the walls of my room (annoyance of my parents), after that I was drawing my teachers on the margin of my notebook. My dream was to become a comic drawer…

Now that I have discovered “La Fraise”, I can easily manage my two passions: design and comics!

How did you know about OLP?

I didn’t know Spreadshirt at all, and it’s only on La Fraise that I’ve heard about it and the OLP. It’s also the first time I took part in this kind of contest (except on La Fraise), but surely not the last time!! :D

Where did your inspiration for Play With Forms logo came from?The idea of this logo came after many hours of hard time, working in a lot of various directions. As I watched all these sketches on my desk, I said to myself that it was really difficult to synthesize all that represents Spreadshirt. Then I thought that all these ideas combined in a T-shirt form would be a funny way to express the creative aspects of the brand. And the idea went on.

What tools did you use to create the logo?

The tools I used in this creation are the same for each of my works : Brain > Hand > Pencil > Sweat > Illustrator CS ! In fact, just as in the old times! Except that I replaced the pigments by Illustrator and the wall of the cave by my MacBook !

Why did you choose those particular colours and shapes?

The forms of this logo refer to the Spreadshirt universe : personalization, customer, quality, imagination, fun, business, etc… Once joined together these forms show the most important product at Spreadshirt: T-shirts. (It is still very playful because these icons could also be joined in other forms). In this logo all the ideas seem to spread out of the customer’s head, as if he was creating his own T-shirt, hence his own label. The blue colours are here to reduce excessiveness of the logo : It adds a reassuring touch.

So you spent a lot of time with the OLP?

It’s really hard to estimate the time I spent on it! Because on the same period I was already booked with many works for my “real” customers, and all the job for this logo was mostly done during the nights! So surely many sleepless hours ! But seeing the results, I think I should try to sell my bed! ;)

How did it feel to win the contest?

Winning this contest was a little bit like a dream ! I was still tired because of working on the logo and it was my first trip to Germany, so it was a really curious sensation… I felt as it was not really me who was walking on these beautiful but empty streets in Berlin! I was in such a strange mood and so crazy about Japasa’s work that when Jana started to announce the fourth place I didn’t immediately understand that he wasn’t the winner! ;)

What does winning the Open Logo Project mean to you and how will it help you?

Winning this project (as a freelancer) mean many things for me. There are very few places where you can talk, compare, share ideas and progress, in such a friendly and accurate atmosphere. That’s what this competition was like. That’s why I really want to thank the organizers (they were very good at managing this project) and of course all the competitors (helpers as well as detractors!) who made this project a very international place of meeting and dialog. In a more prosaic way, this prize will help me to pay my heating charges! It will also help me to improve my productivity thanks to this amazing Wacom Cintiq.

Last but not least, it will help me by improving my self confidence!

Thanks for taking the time to talk to us Nicolas and congratulations again, for the 1mnth time.