I've Got Your Back
Linus Lohoff & Alex Foxley
Barcelona-based designers and creative directors Linus Lohoff and Alex Foxley discuss their latest collaboration project for Everpress to support creatives during these uncertain times.
Describe your experience collaborating from start to finish while social distancing. Did you two face any obstacles?
Alex: The process was pretty straightforward for us as we are used to working together from our time as Vasava. We exchanged emails and arranged video calls when we could to get feedback from each other and push the project forward.
Linus: We worked together at the design studio Vasava so we know each other´s skills and work flow. It was pretty easy to work with Alex then. It is true that we collaborate the first time through video calls but there wasn´t any obstacles in communication.
What made you guys choose to collaborate on a t-shirt?
Alex: We were approached by Everpress as part of their collaboration collection. Linus approached me to see if I wanted to be his collaborative partner and I jumped on the opportunity.
Linus: Yes, Nick from Everpress send me this mail asking me if I want to be part of their collaboration collection. My first thought with whom I wanna create a t-shirt design was Alex. He is such a good illustrator with an unique style!
Alex Foxley
“We tried different colours but this bright electric blue looked just right for the artwork.” -Linus
Is there a symbolic meaning to the toaster? We love the playful design and cheery toast!
Alex: After deciding on the phrase “I’ve got your back” we were exploring different character concepts to illustrate the idea. We settled for the toaster we thought it was a fun little quirky character and had a literal reference to the phrase.
Linus: We had different characters like beer bottles and hands but the toaster with the toast was the most funny and dynamic one. It gave you also the opportunity to animate it easily and we did it.
Linus Lohoff
The color blue is known to represent calmness, relaxation, and peace. Does any of this play a role in your color choice for the design?
Alex: We wanted to go for a single colour for the design and we felt that black or red would be too harsh and aggressive for the message we wanted to convey. A bright blue, in this case, was calm, approachable and fun.
Linus: We tried different colours but this bright electric blue looked just right for the artwork. You could go with a warmer colour regarding the happiness of the illustration but we agreed just on that one. It is a cool but also vibrant colour.
“Use this time to practice self-care and do things that are going to keep you and others around you happy and uplifted.” -Alex
Can we expect any future projects from you two after this?
Alex: We have nothing planned as of yet but I am sure there will be some great projects in the making soon!
Linus: Like Alex said, there is nothing on the table but I am sure that sooner or later we will work together again.
Do you have any words of encouragement for independent artists navigating these uncertain times?
Alex: First and foremost, don’t put pressure on yourself. Whether it is being productive, upbeat or knowing what to do with your creative career. Things are very challenging and uncertain right now and it is completely fine to live life at a slower pace and tune in to how we are feeling.
Use this time to practice self-care and do things that are going to keep you and others around you happy and uplifted.
Linus: I underline everything what Alex just said. In my case a lot of clients just paused all the projects at one moment. Budgets have been cutted and a lot of things have been shifted to later. I concetrated to fine-tune my portfolio/website and posted a lot on instagram which brought me new clients. The forced remote working during quarantine in all indutries created a new awareness. A lot of workgivers are more open minded to give jobs to freelancers since now it is clear that with the technical support it is possible to work remotely. I really see a big chance of change to something better than before throughout these times.
Featured Artists:
Linus Lohoff
Alex Foxley