As CARBON 2014 approaches, we’ll be sharing our interviews with the speakers appearing at the creative culture festival. March 29 and 30 will see a whole host of mavericks and trailblazers converge on Melbourne to share insights from the worlds of art, photography, design, style, music and more. The next cab off the rank in our interview series is Brent Rollins, The Editorial Creative Director at Complex, the talent behind a heap of your favourite album covers and a whole lot more.
CARBON festival 2014 is on March 29 and 30 at RMIT’s Storey Hall in Melbourne. You can get tickets from the ACCLAIM online store.
As an artist, graphic designer and creative director, Brent Rollins has amassed an impressive visual catalogue spanning 20 years, through the creation of “design-related things” in the realms of music, pop culture and streetwear. Boasting a client list that includes brands such as Nike, UNDFTD and Supreme, as well as a slew of music artists, Rollins’ current position is with publishing mainstay Complex magazine. As Editorial Creative Director, Rollins continues to influence our visual experiences through the magazine’s cover concepts, editorial shoots and online video content.
How would you describe what you do?
I have a pretty cool life. It’s difficult to describe what I do because I can’t just do “one” thing! I do art and design related things, in the areas of music, pop culture, and streetwear, I guess. I get to collaborate with famous people, which is interesting. My current “job” is Editorial Creative Director for Complex. It encompasses everything from working with awesome photographers and illustrators to conceptualizing our covers to working with our web developers to create exciting online editorial experiences, to directing the redesign of the website, to working with animators and set designers for our video content. I like design. I like art. I have a feel for what I think is right. I get to tell other people how to make things. What’s better than telling people what you want to do?
What inspired you to enter this profession?
I grew up inspired and trained by my father who is an artist and accomplished creative person. I got into art direction because I loved music and I wanted to be a part of it — specifically hip-hop. And this was at a time when it was still figuring itself out visually. Actually, it still is, right? I wanted to be a part of it and challenge it at the same time. Anyway, that was my formulative world view at a time when it was rebellious and “new” to be into hip-hop. It was exciting! I had no choice. As I’ve gotten older my worldview has expanded, but that part is still in me. I have worked at various times as an independent, as a member within a collective, and only recently within a “professional” environment. My current role isn’t something that I consciously worked towards. It’s a culmination of my history as an artist/designer/critic within the growing sort of hip-hop/streetwear centric field.
What does creativity mean to you?
Man, it’s like the closest thing to being God, or maybe giving birth! Which is to say, not close at all, but the closest thing as a man that I will ever get. I’m not really religious but there is something about channeling energy – ‘divine inspiration’ or however you want to call itv– that is in the air and you’re working to a point where you tap into it. There is nothing like getting into a zone and just being really into whatever you are working on. All of a sudden, it just flows through you. You can’t sleep. Me, I’ll start dancing around whle I’m working. It’s like a power-up in a video game. It’s like, for that period, you cannot tell me that I am not unstoppable.
What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learned in your career so far?
This is real specific to me. Take some time to smell the roses. Force yourself to take time off. It’s better for everyone in your life. I don’t want to sound like I’m bragging but in my case it was a combination of being a workaholic and also being in demand. I couldn’t say “No.” I was afraid to say “No.” For people in a similar fortunate position, remember that new opportunities will present themselves. There are a lot of moments in my life that I probably worked too hard. Now I’d rather look back on great experiences than purchase a new stereo, or the buy the latest this or that.
What do you love most about what you do?
Two things. Whether it’s a covershoot for Complex or a project for a Nike, people want me for me and trust my direction, my taste, my creative authority. And they trust me because I understand their needs at the same time. It’s a conversation, which I enjoy.
Secondly, I love that I get to try new things, that I get to keep learning. And someone else gets to pay the bill! But really, I’m terrified of finding myself in a box, coming up with the same solutions and approaches. I have my “style” I guess, and my POV, but I want to keep expanding. I want to keep my mind active and challenged. It’s like being a little kid where everything in the world is new.
What advice would you give to aspiring artists and designers?
Be realistic. Unless patrons or clients are beating down your door, you’re probably not that good yet, despite what your peers on social media tell you. I see a lot of constant praise heaped upon people regularly, regardless of the actual quality of their work. To me, accolades among your peers on social media is practically meaningless. What do people outside of your homies say?
Every single person that I know who has made a name for themselves is their own toughest critic. If you aren’t hard on yourself, if you aren’t neurotically obsessed with improving, then I personally can’t take you serious. I didn’t even want people to discuss my work til I turned 30!
What mantra do you live and/or work by?
Don’t do it if it doesn’t sound fun.
If you had to choose one favourite piece of work from your own portfolio, which would it be and why?
While you are in the process of creating, you fall in love with that one. But I think there are two that stand out for me. One is the Blackalicious LP cover for Nia. I had been doing this kind of collage work while working on ego trip, but this album was a defining moment for me creatively. I was encouraged to try something I hadn’t done before, to do something a client might not typically encourage me to do, and that was empowering. There was a lot of “ah-ha” moments in figuring things out. For many years I would always go back to that artwork for inspiration. Because my second favorite piece of work, a 43 ft. long mural called Brawl Wall, that I did for one of UNDFTD’s retail stores, was directly influenced by that Blackalicious cover…