Sebastian Curi is an illustrator, graphic designer, painter, and animator. But don’t let that overwhelm you—he’s a wonderful, down-to-earth person. In our conversation, he openly shares his career path, what he’s learned along the way, and the role of learning itself, a major theme in our discussion. Sebastian highlights not only the importance of …

Listen now on Apple Podcasts and Spotify Jess Gilliam is the Brand Creative Director at Giphy. She’s also an artist and maker, whose creative output is full of joy and play. In our conversation, Jess offers her thoughts on being an artist in the modern world, with the constant push and pull of having a 'grown-up' job versus making art that’s linked…

Tim Soar is the founder of Soar Running. His diverse professional journey spans collaboration with renowned designer Neville Brody, establishing his own fashion label, and over a decade in the music industry as a DJ. His discovery of running marked a pivotal shift in his life, particularly as he navigated the profound grief of losing a family membe…

Sachini Imbuldeniya is the co-founder of the creative agency House of Oddities. Sachini’s career has spanned multiple creative fields, from her editorial work at News UK to helping launch their illustration agency, Studio Pi. Our conversation delves into the challenges faced by those who break the mold in the advertising world and the pivotal role …

Jonny Tansley is the Global Design Lead at Durex. In our conversation Jonny opens up about how strategic design choices can significantly influence consumer behavior, sharing compelling examples like addressing the challenge of "shelf shame"—the hesitation consumers feel when purchasing personal products. We also explore the balance between maintai…

Charlene Prempeh is the founder of A Vibe Called Tech, a creative agency that approaches creativity through an intersectional lens. She’s also a writer - her first book Now You See Me: An Introduction to 100 Years of Black Design was published last year and she’s also a contributing editor at the Financial Times. In our conversation, we discuss Cha…

Amy Houston is a senior reporter at The Drum - a leading online platform covering marketing, advertising, and creativity. Amy is well known in the industry for her insightful analysis and reporting that understands the complex dynamics between consumer demands and brand innovation. In our conversation, Amy shares her insights into the advertising i…

Hiroki Asai is the head of creative and marketing at Airbnb, where he leads the company’s creative vision and brand strategy. In our conversation, we dive into his early career at Apple and explore the significance of in-house creative teams and their influence on maintaining brand integrity in fast-paced industries. Our conversation moves into the…

Wilfrid Wood is a London-based artist specializing in portraiture, most known for his drawings as well as clay and plasticine sculptures. He trained in graphics at Central Saint Martins and got into sculpture after building later heads for the satirical TV show Spitting Image. In our conversation we discuss Wilfrid’s influences, learn out about his…

Kat Irannejad is the founder of Totally, a New York-based visual artist representation and production agency. Before founding Totally this year, Kat was the co-founder of Snyder. She’s a prominent industry voice, having headed up an Illustration jury for D&AD and she’s also an artist in her own right, having studied painting at both - Boston Univer…

Murugiah is a multidisciplinary artist and illustrator, whose work explores identity with a vibrant colour palette, rich, detailed compositions, and influences of his Sri Lankan heritage. In our conversation, Murugiah shares his path to becoming the artist he is today, via seven years of architecture school, his love of film and music, and the impo…

Molly Park is Papier’s Chief Product Officer, having joined the brand three years ago, after a brilliant industry career with roles at Cath Kidston, Designers Guild, and Oliver Bonas. Molly is also a freelance creative director at her own Parc Studio. In our conversation, we discuss how to bring creativity and commercial acumen together and Molly e…

David Shrigley, is known for his bold, witty art, that provides observations on our daily lives through an ironic and somewhat dark lens. David’s paintings might be the most known, but his creative practice spans much more, with sculpture, films, photography, spoken word, writing, and poetry. He’s also the founder of the Sidmouth School of Art, a c…

Germane Barnes is an architect, researcher, and educator based in Miami, Florida. He is known for his work exploring the intersection of race, architecture, and urban design and has been recognized with numerous awards and fellowships. In our conversation, we discuss Germane’s philosophy and belief that architecture is not devoid of biases, and the…

Damian Bradfield is the chief creative officer at WeTransfer. In our conversation, he shares some super valuable insights into marketing, and how to design a successful brand that will stand the test of time, including Damian’s thoughts on oversharing versus creating a mystery when it comes to brands. We also discuss Damian’s mission to raise aware…

Hella Jongerius is a renowned Dutch designer known for her innovative and experimental approach to product design. She works across a range of materials and disciplines, including textiles, ceramics, furniture, and industrial design. Her work often explores the intersection of traditional craftsmanship and industrial production, and she is known fo…

Hans Ulrich Obrist is the director of Serpentine Gallery. In our conversation, we talk about the art of listening, learning from others, and how conversations and relationships are at the heart of Hans Ulrich’s work. We learn about his upbringing and early days of night train travels across Europe from one artist’s studio to another, and Hans Ulric…

Liza Enebeis is the creative director of Studio Dumbar/DEPT®. In our conversation, we talk about all things motion design, type radio and Liza’s love of books. We also dive into Liza’s approach to life. She discusses the importance of embracing change and always testing yourself by stepping into uncomfortable and challenging situations, which can l…

In today's Green Edit, your host Justyna Green and co-host James Greenfield discuss neuroplasticity and how to stop worrying so much, share a breathing technique to help you manage stress and talk about the benefits of gratitude. They also share their learnings from receiving an Arts Council grant for a creative project and going viral on TikTok - …

Adam Rix is the creative director of NOT Wieden+Kennedy. In our conversation, we discuss the launch of NOT, the history of Wieden+Kennedy and the founders’ mission to create advertising that moves people. We also discuss client relationships, overcoming procrastination and the importance of company culture. Adam also reflects on the pros and cons o…

Simon Mottram founded Rapha back in 2004 and served as the CEO until 2021. In our conversation he reflects back on his time in luxury brand marketing, why and how Rapha was founded and how it evolved over the years. We also dive into the world of bike racing, Rapha’s involvement in it, and everything that’s wrong with how bike racing operates, from…

Mona Chalabi is a total inspiration. She’s a data journalist as well as a writer, artist, producer and presenter. In our conversation she shares how she started creating the data visualisations she’s so well known for, why making data pretty matters and how data can be used as a language. She also shares her thoughts on nepobabies and on not giving…

Micaiah Carter is a New-York based photographer, who portrayed Pharrell Williams, Naomi Osaka, Selena Gomez and others for the likes of Vanity Fair, Vogue, Vice, The New York Times and many more. Micaiah is a remarkable storyteller, and his ability to use photography to transport us into worlds filled with love and tenderness is spellbinding. In ou…

In today's Green Edit, your host Justyna Green and co-host James Greenfield discuss emerging AI tools and their use for creatives and Justyna spotlights inspiring women in design and shares her new illustration project. You're also invited into the self-help corner (!) as Justyna and James discuss top three books that have influenced their thinking…

Paola Antonelli is the senior curator at The Museum of Modern Art in the Department of Architecture & Design, as well as MoMA’s founding director of Research & Development. In our conversation Paola discusses her role at MoMA, the current exhibition Never Alone: Video Games and Other Interactive Design and digital collections. A lovely part of our …

Welcome to the last episode of Season 8 of the On Design podcast. For the final episode, we have for you a brand new format, which we called The Green Edit and hope to make it a monthly feature in 2023. In this episode, Justyna invites a very special co-host to share the podcast space with her and they have an informal chat about all things design.…

Anna Charity is a freelance creative director. She was also the first head of design at Headspace, who established the headspace brand we know and love, and for the past three years, she’s been heading up design at Kama - a sexual wellness business that sees pleasure as an important part of our health. In our conversation, we talk about branding an…

Matt Blease is a freelance illustrator. Before going into illustration full time he spent some years at branding agencies and also led the graphic design department at Liberty. In our conversation, we talk about Matt’s transition from branding and graphic design to illustration, how he discovered his illustration style in his 30s and how having kid…

Krista Kim is a contemporary digital artist, known for creating the Mars House, which was the first sold digital NFT home in the world. She's a pioneer of digital art and the founder of techism movement, a manifesto of which she published in 2014. At the heart of Krista's work is bringing well-being to people through Web3 and using the new technolo…

Sumayya Vally is the founder of Counterspace, an architecture and research practice. She’s also the youngest architect to have designed the Serpentine Pavilion and she was appointed as the artistic director of the first Islamic Arts Biennale that takes place this coming January in Jeddah in Saudi Arabia. In our conversation, we learn about Sumayya’…

Andres Reisinger, is a digital artist, and you might know him best for his Hortensia Chair, which was a digital design, then translated into a physical product by Moooi, or Winter House he designed. Our conversation though is one of those chats, that didn’t follow what I might have thought it will be. We start our conversation by discovering that A…

Suzie Hackney is the creative director and category lead for Gifts at Lush Cosmetics. But Suzie is also so much more… From her interests in primates, to studying dance, being a sculptor and a yogi, Suzie covers a whole spectrum of creative disciplines. Our discussion covers her role at LUSH, the importance of responsible gifting – which I believe i…

Ricardo Cavolo is an artist and illustrator whose work is surreal and colourful, mixing medieval influences with comic art. You’ll find in his works lots of familiar characters from popular culture – from Duffy Duck and Gollum to The Powerpuff girls. But if you look at the meaning of his works, you’ll discover that he covers topics linked to mental…

India Mahdavi is an architect and designer, renowned for her love of colour and joy, and her original pink design of Sketch in London. In our conversation, we discuss India’s love affair with colour, her international upbringing, the meaning of home and rediscovering her Iranian and Egyptian roots. We also talk about how to be original in the age o…

Natsai Audrey Chieza is a designer and the founder of Faber Futures. This R&D studio creates biologically inspired materials and works with businesses and organisations on shaping their biodesign and material work to be sustainable, regenerative and more thoughtful. In our conversation, we discuss Natsai’s upbringing and how she was introduced to c…

Steve Green is the Senior Global Creative Director and Nike. And oh my god, Steve has done everything at Nike in his almost 12 years – from having a blank slate to reimagine its Skateboarding department, to infusing the Running department with his vision, to heading up the Global Tee Studio. In our conversation he shares his early love for skateboa…

Yoko Choy is a journalist and many of you will know her as the China Editor for Wallpaper* magazine. She’s also the co-founder of a creative consultancy Collective Contemporist. Yoko has dedicated her career to design, to the Chinese design scene and to building the east-west connections and enabling international dialogue, idea exchange and collab…

Stephen Mai is the founder of Woo – a new media brand and a marketplace with a mission to champion wellness for Gen Z. Before Stephen created Woo, he drove award-winning content and marketing campaigns at LADBible, Vice and Boiler Room, and before that, he actually started his career at MTV Australia. In our chat, we discuss his career and the awar…

Veronica Fuerte is a designer and founder and creative directress of Barcelona-based Hey Studio. The studio works on design and illustration projects with clients across the globe. What makes Hey’s work stand out is its disciplined creativity, bold, geometric forms, and harmonious designs. The studio also runs a popular Hey Shop, in which it sells …

Stefan Sagmeister is a designer whose work over the years delighted and surprised people across the world. He started his studio in 1993 and worked predominantly in the music industry, creating album covers for the likes of The Rolling Stones, David Byrne and Brian Eno. For his work with the latter two, he received two Grammies. He’s worked across …

Bethan Laura Wood is a multidisciplinary designer, easily recognised for her design aesthetic, as well as her playful and eye-catching dress sense. Bethan’s works range from furniture to decorative objects, lighting to installations and they all share Bethan’s love of materials, colours and cultures. In our conversation, we dive deep into materials…

Alex Valdman is the head of creative at AllBirds, a company that makes planet-friendly shoes made with premium natural materials. Prior to joining AllBirds Alex was also a chief creative officer at Rapha and we discuss both of those roles, as well as one of his first breaks in the creative industry, which came when he worked with Kanye West. In our…

Refik Anadol is a Turkish-American new media artist and designer. His works are just incredible – at first sight, they’re abstract and dream-like video works, constantly shapeshifting. What’s the most fascinating about these works, is how they come to be – through data-driven machine learning AI algorithms. In our conversation, Refik explains the i…

Nadja Lossgott is the chief creative officer at AMV BBDO. In our conversation, Nadja shares how her upbringing shaped her early interests in creativity and how she fell in love with graphic design and art direction. She also sheds light on her early career in her native South Africa and her move to London to join the AMV BBDO team. We also dive int…

Marina Willer is a graphic designer, filmmaker, and partner at Pentagram. Marina is renowned for her design work, which includes branding work for Tate, the Southbank Centre, Rolls Royce as well as the Battersea animal rescue centre. Over time, her work has centred on reimagining identities of brands that contribute good to the world – whether that…

It’s episode 100 of the podcast! To celebrate our episode 100, we have a very special guest – Alex Bec, who’s the co-founder of It’s Nice That, which celebrates its 15th birthday this week. In our conversation, Alex discusses the beginnings of It’s Nice That, how the media brand grew over the years, and how it enabled a whole group of creative busi…

Ella Ritchie, is the co-founder of Intoart – an art and design studio in South London working inclusively with people with learning disabilities. In our conversation, Ella shares how Intoart started over 20 years ago now and she explains its mission - Intoart truly is an alternative art school, as the current education system doesn’t provide creati…

Anab Jain is the co-founder of design studio Superflux. Superflux specialises in designing possible future scenarios – sometimes utopian, often distopian, based on the world we currently live in, with its trends and social, economic and political shifts. Their work is heavily involved with environmental issues, technological advancements, and the d…

Fredrik Hellberg is the co-founder of Spacepopular, a research-driven art, design and media studio. Fredrik runs the practice together with Lara Lesmes, and the two met when studying architecture at London’s Architectural Association. In our conversation, we discuss Spacepopular's research into the possibilities of Web3 and metaverses and Fredrik s…

Yuri Suzuki is a sound designer and partner at Pentagram. Yuri’s artistic installations often aim to bring people together, use AI machine learning and crowdsourced data, whilst his commercial work, looks at creating innovative solutions to problems such as the introduction of sound in electric cars. In our conversation we talk about the use of phy…