Crispin Finn’s Studio
Crispin Finn have designed a series of t-shirts for The Fableists’ launch. These t-shirts will not be mass produced, so you will have to be quick once they become available! You will be able to buy them from The Fableists by July 2013.
Crispin Finn are a design duo that produces everything in red, white and blue. To see more of their work, check out their web site.
TheFableists > Tell us a bit about your background. Where did you start? Where do you come from?
CF > Crispin Finn is actually two people – Anna and Roger. Although we came from different creative backgrounds (Anna from Graphic design, Roger from Fine Art), we had many crossovers of interests and influences – vernacular design, functional but elegant ephemera, hand painted sign writing…that sort of thing. So, on evenings and weekends we started making things together. This was around 2008, and the first thing we made was our screen printed 2009 year planner, which was born out of a lack of functional but attractive ones for our own use.
The pseudonym Crispin Finn came from combining Roger’s middle name (Crispin) with Anna’s then nickname, Finn (long story). We liked the way they sounded together and the idea of an autonomous identity. Anna is originally from Salford, Roger from Leicestershire, and we both live and work in London.
TheFableists > What, or who, inspires your day-to-day work?
CF > This is a long, and probably endless list but to name a few constants: David Gentleman, Tom Eckersley, Eduaordo Paolozzi, A.M. Cassandre, Steve Powers/ ESPO, Eric Ravilious, Alex Steinweiss, Charles Burns, Milton Glaser, Bob Gill, Paul Rand, Alan Fletcher, Herb Lubalin, Sophie Calle, Matthew Brannon, Gerd Arntz, Lee (Alexander) McQueen, Margaret Calvert, Chris Ware, Stanley Kubrick & Phyllis Pearsall.
TheFableists > Would you say you draw every day?
CF > In some form or another – yes, either on the computer or sketching out ideas. Roger tends to work with a pen and paper, Anna directly on the computer.
TheFableists > Where are we most likely to find your work? Is it mostly in the medium of advertising, magazine, print work, online, or other?
CF > We started making things for ourselves, either in screen print or physical form and then started commercial work just over a year ago. So we guess it’s found across the two. We’ve not done so much editorial work but we love magazines and publishing so hopefully we’ll build on this area too.
TheFableists > What was the inspiration behind the designs you created for us?
CF > We loved the ethos behind The Fableists’ [idea] of creating a small but really good strong classic range of clothes for kids almost like an all seasons uniform, and felt it rung true with that of old denim work wear. We started to look at some of the older labels and liked how rhyming descriptions were often used to reiterate the qualities and connect with the customer. The idea that a phrase could be read more than one way also felt like a nice fit with a range that could be worn in summer or winter, and be handed on to different owners.
TheFableists > What are your thoughts on The Fableists? Do you think there should be more people doing what we are doing?
CF > We really love the fact that The Fableists are encouraging and communicating to both kids and parents about the ethos and manufacturing processes behind the clothes they are producing. Not sure about more people, but rather getting existing companies to look at the way their current lines are made. Less is definitely more.
TheFableists > If you could work for anyone, who would it be? Do you have a dream client?
CF > So many, but to name a couple off the tops of our heads: Royal Mail and The London Underground. We love British institutions that have a history of supporting the arts, and a long line of exceptional artists that they have worked with and promoted.
TheFableists > Do you have a particular client that keeps coming back?
CF > Hopefully, The Fableists!
TheFableists > Are there any places in the world that make you feel creative?
CF > Rather than just one place, we find travel in general very inspirational. We don’t think there has been a place we’ve visited that hasn’t encouraged new ideas and isn’t full of unique cultural surprises and identities. Also, we tend to get itchy feet and a desire to get back to work if we are away for too long which is always a good thing – to try to bring back that energy to the studio.
TheFableists > If you could change one thing about the world, what would it be?
CF > One of the reasons we were excited to work with The Fableists was the way in which you’re not only carefully sourcing a good, sustainable, ethical range of products, but also communicating and demonstrating that it is possible to your audience. That the journey of the item is as important as the desirability of the item. To make it such a visible part of the process and “message” is so important, and maybe highlights that we could all do with spending a little more time considering not only if we “want” something, but how that thing came to be, who made it, where, and what will happen to it once we’ve finished with it.
The first view of the Crispin Finn designed t-shirts will be posted later today. Here is a sneak peek:
‘Made to Wear Well’ by Crispin Finn for The Fableists
TheFableists 