Q.01: Please tell us your brief profile.
I've been designing in Manhattan for about 15 years. I do mostly music and entertainment related projects―CDs, books, posters, advertising, branding, merchandise, etc.

Q.02: How do you describe your style?
I'd say it's retro-modern if there is such a thing.

Q.03: How do you develop your design idea and concept?
That's a tough question actually. Almost all of my designs just come to me naturally―intuitively. I get ideas and inspiration while I'm working so I > pretty much just sit down and start a project and it evolves as the process goes. Not that it's always easy but it usually works out.

Q.04: Where do you get inspirations from?
Anywhere and everywhere. Artists, designers, bands, clients, the streets of New York City.

Q.05: Who and what are your influences?
My biggest influences are definitely the original Swiss-Modern graphic designers―Josef Mueller-Brockman, Armin Hoffman, Max Bill, and Fred Troller to name a few. Although I've ripped off Reid Miles way too much to not list him here.

Q.06: How did you come up with your design company name, Stereotype?
I think I was about 25 when I came up with that name. At the time I was doing only album covers so I thought “stereo” for music and “type” for typography. I never planned on keeping it actually but it just stuck―kind of like a bad band name.

Q.07: What does typography mean to you? Which font do you like the most and why?
As far as graphic design goes, typography means everything. It’s the foundation of graphic design. Without it, we’d just be decorators. I honestly don’t have a favorite font but if I had to choose just one I guess I’d go with Akzidenz Grotesk.

Q.08: Between irony and humor, which is more important for your design work?
I think humor definitely plays a more important role in my work than irony.

Q.09: Where is your favorite spot in NYC? and why?
I’d have to say Jane Street in the West Village because that’s where my home and office are. It’s a great historic little street that starts at Greenwich Avenue and ends at the Hudson River. Plus, Corner Bistro is on Jane and damn do they make a tasty cheeseburger.

Q.10: Living in New York City, what is good to be a designer, and what is bad?
Working in NYC is amazing because there are so many outlets for design. So many studios, agencies, publishers, record labels, corporations, etc. It seems like every day there is potential to meet a new client on the street. I can’t really think of many negative aspects of it except that maybe there are too many of us―too many nerdy design conversations in bars about fonts and paper.

Q.11: Can you tell us about your experience designing for 2K by Gingham?
Honestly, designing shirts for 2K has been the coolest experience. It’s a great outlet to get designs to the public that otherwise wouldn’t have seen the light of day. I think the people at 2K and their customer base have a sensibility that’s outside of the mainstream, which is a dream for any designer looking to do interesting, creative work. They’re super artist-friendly and always open to any ideas or designs I might have. They also really care about what they do, so everything from the quality of the shirt to the artist bios on the tags are taken seriously. Plus, getting a royalty check every few months isn’t so bad either.

Q.12: What do you think is possible to describe through T-shirts design?
What can’t you say on a t-shirt? You can say “Have a Nice Day” or “Assassinate Bush”. You can say that on a poster or a website but I think it takes it to another level when you’re wearing it.

Q.13: What kind of T-shirts especially make you happy?
It’s funny because I’m a designer and I design a lot of t-shirts but the shirts that I wear are kind of anti-design. I have a ton of old punk t-shirts from bands like Agent Orange, Bad Religion, D.I., the Dead Kennedys and so on. Almost all of them are designs that were done by teenagers in the seventies and early eighties who knew nothing about graphic design so they have this immediacy and anti-art feel to them.

Q.14: You have a cute pet rabbit. What do you like about them?
Oh yeah, Iggy is the greatest. I got him the day after I finished an album for Iggy Pop. I’ve always liked rabbits and had about five of them when I was growing up in upstate New York. I think they’re an underrated animal―aesthetically nicer than cats and more individualistic than dogs.

Q.15: What is your dream project?
I would kill to do film titles for a good, gritty, ’70’s era horror film.