An interview with Kim

And now for our second part of the meet the winners interview special edition, bigger, longer and uncut logo special interviews boxset.  This time it the Swedish wonder kid Kim Larsen creator of Lovetab. New job, new city, same funny outlook on life. Read the interview in the full post.

Hi Kim, how are you?
I’m fine, and you?

Me too, thanks. What are you doing at the moment?
I am working… it goes at full speed here. We’re about to launch a new version of my company’s website.

What company are you working in?
West Coast Media. It’s a media company that handles marketing and such, for gambling companies.

Did you start there recently? Since in the OLP-blog there’s still the picture that says “Funny, cute & unemployed” or something the like.
Yeah, I started a month ago. It’s fun.

Thats great. Does it have to do anything with OLP?
Actually not. I got the good news on the sunday the week before OLP ended.

Would have been a nice story…
I understand, but for this I only had to show off some of my skills ;-). A guy called me up and before I knew it, I was hired. It pays off to have a portfolio. Getting the job was the easy part. Winning the contest was the hard.

How did you know about OLP?
Well, I remember when I first saw a banner for the competition and since I’ve been involved with Spreadshirt before, I knew that it could be fun. I started by sitting one evening and then I thought that I wouldn’t return until the winners was exposed. I didn’t really think that I would’ve a chance. But I accidentally got back to the OLP site and to my surprise, I had got both my entries to the weekly final. So I started develop the one that got the best feedback and that I really thought could work.

How much time did you spend to create the logo?
3 or 4 hours a day… maybe? For about 4 weeks.

That’s a lot of time…
Yeah, I can’t say that all of the time was spent on develop the logo, much of the time was spent on doing research and checking out other submissions. But all in all I think I spent about 3 or 4 hours a day on the OLP in general.

May I ask something private? You know, personal touch etc.
;-) Sure, just shoot.

Does that work out with a girlfriend? Nights in front of the computer, no more cinema…
Who said I worked in the nights? I was unemployed, just working with some freelance projects.

So it was actually a good project to fill that time?
Probably not. If I hadn’t won I’d be pretty much broke and tired of life by now… Not that I expected to win, just that I spent more time on the competition than I spent on actually making money - if you understand what I mean… But I was in a economical depression….

So probably OLP helped you out of that at least for a while?
It couldn’t be better timing.

Well, Sweden - but beer is expensive, isn’t it?
Crazy expensive, that’s for sure. And as a class 1 beer drinker, a lot of my money is spent on beer.

Could you tell me something about the place where you live?
Right now I live in Malmö. It’s about the best city in Sweden imo. Didn’t think that before I moved here a month ago. It’s creative, not too big and it lies next to my beloved country Denmark
And also… it’s next to Copenhagen, Scandinavias biggest city. Just jumpin on the train and you’ll be there in 20 minutes.

I’ve never been to Sweden so far.

Sweden is actually nice. The people are depressed all of the time except on the weekends. Cus then it’s partyin…

Because of the darkness?

Heh, no… I’m being to negative. It’s a nice country. Especially Skillingaryd where I come from (which I really hate, but I always take the opportunity to promote it ;-)).

How old are u?
23.

How did you get into graphic design?
Well… I’ve known since I was about 10 that I’d be either a rock-star or a painting-artist. So the creative work has always been there, but it really started when I was about 15.

And then? Many people paint, not all of them make it a profession.
It started out with webdesign and some digital artworks, along with my “analogue” painting. And then I became more and more interested in the industry in general, so I took a course in Kristianstad for a year - Graphic Design & Interactive Media. But after a year I rather wanted to work than study - so I started my freelance business.

And then we’re already in OLP-times?
I went with the freelancing for about 3 years. Made my living out of it. But I was too busy partying all the time so I thought that maybe normal employment would be good for me. And yeah… here we are. I could write you a novel about this if I wanted, but it’s not necessary. I think it’s probably a pretty traditional path we graphic designers take. But I really started out with art in general. Painting, making films etc. I did not start off by the computer as many designers do these days. I’m creative all in all… graphic design happens to be what I’m best at. I have promised myself that I have to write a book and direct a movie before I die. I have also promised myself that I’ll start a hardrock band before I die…

How did you know about Spreadshirt?
My friend told me. We were in the works of starting a clothing brand… but we never sold anything. We didn’t have the time. I’ll open a shop now as well… but this time I will deliver a nice pack of cool prints.

Where did the inspiration for your logo come from?
It all seemed to make sense to build something around fabric. I started doing some research on how traditional clothing-brands used their own brand in their own products. One classic example is of course Levi’s red tab, another is Wrangler’s leather patch. People wear them with pride. They really represent something, a history. When it comes to the stitches - I’ve always visually liked stitches. Whether they’re in a face or sewn on to a pair of jeans or, for that matter, in the collar of a t-shirt.

What tools did you use to create the logo?
My crazy mind, graphite, paper, Adobe Illustrator and pure Rock ‘n’ Roll.

Why did you choose those particular colours and shapes?
I tried to make something like “personal branding” visually look like a simple thing. Yeah, I know, love isn’t a simple thing. But to love something you’ve made yourself isn’t that hard. I wanted to embed a symbol that everyone can relate to. The stitched “label” has a symbol that can belong just as much to you as to Spreadshirt. Which is a big thing in this concept. I played alot with the shape of the heart because I didn’t want it to be too obvious and it had to be flexible, leave room for others to interact and play with it - such as Spreadshirts users. The color isn’t welded onto the symbol, I want it flexible so it can take part of the evolution in this creative company.

How was it when you knew you’re one of the winning designers?
I was a bit angry with Adam for putting me through such a journey, knowing that I’d end up 4th anyway. It was hell of a trip. Everything from missing the plane to standing totally broke in the middle of Berlin (my card got hacked or something). For that I WILL write a book. Because it’s like something just wanted me to have the worst 2 days of my life, just to know that on the third it’d be some of my best days.

How did you like the party? Was it your kind of music?
Well, mainly I’m into Rock’n'roll. But right now I’m into Reggae/Ska. I do listen to some House, but it’s very limited. Without music I’m nothing… It makes me create, it makes me breathe…

Do you also play an instrument?
Hehe, no… I sing in the shower though.

 I also do but i wouldn’t recommend listening… What else do you do in your free time?
Good question…. every day is a new adventure. I like to do alot of stuff. I’m into sports, hockey, football and such. And I’m into martial arts… I like UFC/Pride and such. I have also trained some Submission Wrestling, even though I’m the thinnest man in Northern Europe.

What is UFC/Pride?
Ultimate Fighting Championchips (American), Pride are much like UFC, but with a few changes to the rules (Japanese). It’s full contact fighting

Oh… probably not my thing… Did you take part in contests like OLP before?
No I haven’t… I never competed in creativity before.

And will you do it again?
Hm… why destroy my peak now? ;-) Yeah, sure… I’ll maybe go for LaFraise or something.

What does winning the Open Logo Project mean to you and how will it help you?
It’s always very honorable to be a part of the visual face of a company. Especially in a case like Spreadshirt which, itself, is a very creative and fresh thinking organisation. It sure is a great deal to me as the competition in this business is very hard. Very few have the opportunity to reach out to this big audience. How it will help me is left to see but I am very thankful. (Almost forgot, the Macbook Pro I got is like a never-ending sugarrush.)

Ok, I  think I’m done. Thanks for the interview!
Peace!