It’s no secret that Britain is buzzing right now with creative energy. From countless new music scenes to some of the best graphic design and illustration seen today, fashion, art and culture from the UK is setting a benchmark for quality and creativity worldwide. VICE, Volvo, The Independent and Yahoo! have teamed up on a project called Creative 30 which enlisted the help of icons such as Vivienne Westwood, Wiley, Jiro Bevis, Klaxon’s James Righton and Saam Farahmand to help choose thirty of Britain’s top young creatives.
We had the chance to talk to Jiro along with Jamie Eastman and Lulu Kennedy, two of the esteemed panel of judges that also includes NME journalist Jamie Hodgson, Andy Capper, UK Editor for Vice Magazine and Arts Editor for The Independent, David Lister.
A short video documentary of each candidate along with info and pictures on the Creative 30 website helps the public to choose one of the thirty creatives who will drive away in a Volvo C30 R-DESIGN, the judges will choose a further winner who will receive £10,000 and the relevant kudos of being the panels choice which should do no harm to their already blossoming career.
Jessica Pemberton (Illustrator and Designer) , Julian Mayor (Product Designer)
Sophie Kern (Illustrator)
Jiro Bevis
Illustrator
Jiro is one of the best young illustrators in the UK as of right now. He has worked for VICE, Merok Records, The Guardian, Fenchurch, Alphaville Records, Dazed & Confused many, many more as well as maintaining his impeccable Voodoo Village Blog.
Jiro, we’re massive fans of yours over here at We Heart Stuff, it seems from your illustrations that you like to have fun with your work, how important do you think it is for upcoming artists to not take themselves too seriously and just relax?
I think it’s really important, I do what I do because I enjoy it and it’s fun, and it’s for other people to enjoy. To be honest, being an illustrator isn’t that important in the grand scheme of things, if I were a doctor or actually did something that benefited the world then maybe I could be serious, but I draw hot dogs with shades.
How hard is it to balance doing something you believe in and not compromising your creativity with actually making a living in the industry?
It’s extremely hard especially if you do really believe in what you do. You can quite easily sell out and make big bucks and be comfortable but you’re very unlikely to be pushing yourself and striving to better what you do. The artists I admire, I admire because they don’t compromise, and you don’t see them do horrible advertising work, they’d much rather create something that means something to them, but at the same time they’re not stupid and they know they have to make a living. I guess you’ve just got to go about it in a way you’re happy with, and maybe sometimes compromise, but mostly do what you want to do.
What would be your one piece of advice to budding creatives?
Make sure you’re enjoying it, I’m sure that’s why you started doing it, and that should always be the main reason why you still do it, you’ve got to realise it’s not all about money. If you are talented and you are doing what you want to and work hard to do it then you should be fine.
Daniel Mort (Sculptor), Joanne Robertson (Artist and Musician)
Micachu (Musician), Scorcher (Musician)
Jamie Eastman
ICA Music Director
Jamie is the guy who has transformed a rather small room in the ICA into one of London’s most popular and respected venues, with acts like Broken Social Scene, UNKLE, Devendra Barnhart, Joanna Newsom, Derek Meins and Trencher.
Jamie, you’ve seen some pretty amazing acts pass through the doors of the ICA, what do you think are the outstanding qualities they have all had that you will be looking for in the Creative 30 competition?
A keen sense of appropriation with the addition of some very individual flair – sounds like I’m commentating on Olympic diving I Know, but essentially a fanbase tends to grow if a sense of familiarity is shared and engendered within any performance experienced. Musical heroes/heroines forge their originality from the new pieces they bring to the table beside their influences. There’s a heritage factor embedded in all music and musical performance that enabes us to draw a line from Stravinsky to My Bloody Valentine, Laurie Anderson to Joanna Newsome etc.. and recognising patterns of influence and similarity throughout……so I’ll be looking for someone that might remind me of Kate Nash for instance, but at the same time is unique. All of the aforementioned have played at the ICA.
With the way the music industry has changed in the last 10 years, live music is more important than ever, what elements do you think are needed to in an artist to stop you in your tracks the first time you see them live?
You can’t beat raw talent, and the more acts one sees live the more one can distinguish that from mere keenness. However fearlessness and an unflinching will to communicate one’s art no matter the costs tend to manifest in what we the audience interpret as charisma. Charisma and real talent tend to ’stop me in my tracks’ when it’s presented/framed on stage with a modern sensibility. At the moment one needs charisma perhaps more than ever to succeed as celebrity culture is so prevalent, and although perhaps not such a signpost of celebrity in the past, charisma in the modern entertainment era now sure helps to get people thinking you got something special. What has changed in the last 10 years is that via the notion of self-publication, we see the DIY ethic and the exchanging of ideas at high speed via modern digital interactivity, so charisma plays a strong role in differentiating and distinguishing a key artist from anybody and everybody else especially when it is witnessed in the flesh. Most young people are being encouraged or inspired to be engaged in creativity at present – so something needs to stand out for everyone to recognise who’s top of the pops.
There’s a certain air of the bohemian about a lot of young artists today, introducing multimedia elements into their work along with some great graphic and fashion designers working alongside musicians, do you think we could be in the midst of a cultural revolution similar to that of the 60’s? How does the scene in London feel to you these days?
Ok let’s be real, the cultural revolution of our generation is the enablement via the internet of everyone to publicize themselves, which is a far cry from the power of artistic culture to politicize populations. In the 60s people marched en masse and used their artistic talents in an attempt to bring about social change to achieve a better reality. In 2008 this is not possible because we are all now living that problem free reality and have become a nation of desperate attention seekers attempting to make meaning out of our lives. However this modern motivation does lead people to join forces more readily, co-depending their talents so that they are taken notice of faster. And what’s great about today is that people are more willing to accept multi-disciplinarism on a mass scale and consume it by return. If anything London is defined by the speed at which it has been digesting culture in recent times, we have all become experts at sifting out the unwanted bits of the culture placed in front of us, and seeking to re-define it all over again…..so the combined forces of musicians (working) with graphic designers, film-makers (working) with fashion designers etc..is always more likely to stick. Of course this is nothing new, and as you allude to in your question, happened a lot in the 60s – but one can only draw similarities concerning creatives working together in terms of pop culture to the 60s with today, not in terms of counter culture, which is entirely different.
Anyway I digress…. essentially the more we do as individuals creatively, the more likely we are to make our mark in the limited time we have here on earth. New bohemia is about hunger, and a drive to succeed knowing very well that the consumer attention span is limited. The scene in London feels like a very hungry place at the moment. I like London though, where else in the world would a 24 year old fine art or fashion student be riding a fixed gear bike with flouro-coloured wheels to his/her band’s 4pm soundcheck? Mick Jagger went to art school, Bryan Ferry did too, but I can’t imagine either of them having time to obsess over bicycle courierism at the same time. Come to think of it, I will be looking at the eco-side of all the artist’s work in the Creative 30 campaign, riding bikes is important in this day and age.
How important is the fusion of other creative fields in today’s music scene?
Very very important if you want to get ahead fast, see previous or see The Klaxons and Saam Farahmand for instance. At each end of the style, content and charisma intersection one will find the cornerstones of more singular talents so fuse these together for a larger impact. And furthermore it’s not just about fame and success with such fusions… the progression of humanity through art is more likely to occur when conviction fuses with the clarity of numerous converging creative visionaries. If you are good at what you do, and you work with someone else who is good in their field at what they do – that’s a mega-me. “Supersized”, “braining up” – it’s always better to roll deep when it suits the moment.
Joe Wilson (Illustrator), Jonnie Craig (Photographer)
Chrissie Abbott (Illustrator) , Rebecca Torres (Fashion Designer)
Lulu Kennedy
Founder and Director of Fashion East
Lulu set up ‘Fashion East’ in 2000, the project supports young designers who are trying to establish themselves in London. It has already pushed through the likes of Jonathan Saunders, Henry Holland, Emma Cook, Roksanda Ilincic and NOKI, a radical recycler.
Lulu, you’ve helped launch the careers of some hugely promising young designers, how important is it for those starting out to have help from mentors and projects like ‘Creative 30′?
Most of the people I know who are successful have had ‘lucky breaks’, sponsorship and mentorship, so I guess it seems pretty crucial to have support from projects and individuals, although you have to have the talent in the first place and be prepared to put the hours in.
How hard is it to be original these days, and what qualities do you see in those who go on to success?
The designers I work with have no trouble being original; they are always full of ideas and trying new stuff out. The more ’successful’ understand the power of the media, and are able to manipulate it to their advantage – a recognisable signature in your design and getting your face about does wonders for a new designer’s profile.
What are you looking for in the winner of ‘Creative 30′?
Strength and freshness.
PMH (Fine Arts)
Don’t forget, voting commences on October 20th and runs until November 16th, be part of nurturing Britain’s exciting creative talent and take part. www.creative30.net
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