What led you into design?
Unknowingly probably an eagerness to capture and share the things & ideas I'm passionate about in a romanticized way.
Most activities seem mundane from the outside, but from within, they have timeless and singular qualities. The fun lies in making those hidden structures visible to the outside world.
When I was younger, I expressed this through filming friends skateboarding, making Counter-Strike edits (sorry mum), and photography. A big part of it was also creating physical things—building skate ramps (sorry dad), making molds, etc.
This naturally transitioned into joining a design studio and later studying design. It's a similar challenge—capturing a client’s point of view and making it visible to the world, except now you're doing it for others instead of yourself.
For the last 10+ years, I’ve been immersed in the graphic and brand design world, especially the last 3 years at Studio Koto have been super formative for my visual skillset. Much love to my friends at koto <3
I went on my own at the beginning of the year, returning to making things for myself and for people whose ideas get me excited — just like my time with Buildspace; such wonderful and talented people. They taught me so much about the product side of things.
It felt like the product aspect had been missing from my life for some time, so I'm super stoked to be able to bring together all these things I'm passionate about.
There’s something magical about applying branding to interactive products and watching historically static graphics come to life. The brand should be the product, the product should be the brand.
Feels like a small full-circle moment.
What does a typical day look like?
This year has been all over the place, so there isn’t really a typical day. I went freelance, moved from Berlin to Munich, spent a lot of time with friends and family, worked in the states for a bit and traveled for a big part of the year.
I also enjoy not having a super structured day, but most of my days include making a green smoothie (shoutout to Vitamix), working out and stretching throughout the day, going for walks, and having a big breakfast or brunch around 11 a.m. One cup of coffee before midday seems to work for me, so I don’t feel like I’m having a panic attack.
Work-wise, I often have short bursts of productivity, especially early in the morning or late at night. I don’t have a desk at the moment, so I’m mostly sitting on my couch (shoutout to my couch) or standing at the windowsill, trying not to let my MacBook fall onto the street.
The rest of my days are filled with reading, sketching, going down rabbit holes, and staring at the clouds. My number one goal every day is to keep a calm mind and stay present. It improves my work, myself, and the way I interact with the world around me.
I’m usually in bed around 10 p.m., reading or listening to audiobooks for another 30 minutes, and then I’m out. My days are pretty boring to be honest, but I love it—it gives me time to find peace and the energy to go on Twitter and have that peace destroyed again.
What's your workstation setup?
Where do you go to get inspired?
It’s ever-changing, but if I just want some interesting visual input, it’s Are.na. The great thing about Are.na is that it's full of ordinary things. I get more inspired by a paperclip than loud graphics, constraints are the best fuel for creativity.
Otherwise, you can’t go wrong with a good conversation, some weird niche videos on youtube, lying in a hammock for hours and doing nothing, or walking around with open eyes. Inspiration comes when you make space for it.
What product have you recently seen that made you think this is great design?
I'm always in love with car design. Also this life-size working Lego bike by Matt Denton makes me very happy.
What pieces of work are you most proud of?
I still like letters, just run & textOS. They showed me that you can remake already saturated and popular products in interesting and different ways.
Especially in the app world, there are just a couple of distinct styles, most of them aimed towards usability and function. But there is so much more we can come up with—not everything has to serve a mass market.
The things you make should also reflect parts of your personality, just like your clothes do.
What design challenges do you face at your company?
The biggest work-related question I am trying to answer for myself at the moment is how AI can have a positive and fun role in my life. It is already great as a tool, but I think there could be more single-use products that feel magical.
What I want is something that makes me create more and be an active participant in the things I do. Analog photography is a great example of a good balance of technology, creativity, and craft. So that's something I am looking into.
What music do you listen to while designing?
Any advice for ambitious designers?
Shoutout to all the unambitious designers out there.
Advice is tricky, but I can tell you that the quality of your work is 100% connected to how you develop as a person in all areas of life.
Very few parts of my recent work come from design inspiration or a desire to impress anyone other than myself. So follow anything that interests you—those are the things that make your work special. They will eventually show up in your designs in some shape or form. It's also the only way to keep having fun :)
Anything you want to promote or plug?
Look out of the window.
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