We recently caught up with SPIN Creative Director Tony Brook for a quick Q&A about his studies, first jobs, graduate skills and folios, plus he tells us about a big disaster in the studio and his love for Leonardo Da Vinci.
Any hilarious stories about you as a kid being creative?
I’m not sure if it is hilarious (deluded more like) but I had serious ambitions to follow in Leonardo Da Vinci’s footsteps at one point (I would have been about 12 years old), I became obsessed by his drawings and sketches and would try to copy his drawing style. I was quite fanatical about it in my ignorance.
Where did you study and what were some of your first jobs?
Percival Whitely College of Further Education (as was) and Somerset College of Arts and Technology.
Job 1. Decorating a factory and moving large blocks of foam around in the same factory.
Job 2. Carrying a hammer for a handyman in a cotton mill, and hitting things with it every now and again.
Job 3. Junior designer.
Did you have a plan for graduation and what actually happened?
I had no clue, move to London was my plan. Then get a job. It was pretty grim and I had to tough it out, after a year I got lucky.
Whats your take on internships? (do you take interns now?)
We have a paid internship programme
Good, talented, emotionally honest people that’s what we all need.
What do you look for in a great portfolio?
Fantastic work and no spelling mistakes.
What do you look for in a great client?
Collaboration and engagement
What qualities and skills to you look for in a graduate?
Fabulous work, awesome technical skills, no ego, and very hard working.
Who’s on the team, what are their roles and why do you love them?
Claudia Klat and Jonathan Nielsen, we complement each others skills and are a fantastic, tight team who push each other on.
What have been some of your biggest disasters and how have you learnt from it?
Disaster isn’t too strong a word for this - taking on individuals who turned out to be toxic. It is the worst thing you can do in a creative studio, they can hold you back and slow you down for years. I’ve learnt that you have to actively look for the signs, because in retrospect they have been there, and the person has given themselves away. I guess I’m an optimist and have always hoped that they will improve over time but the truth is they don’t. So now I’m hyper sensitive to this. Good, talented, emotionally honest people that’s what we all need.
What advice would you give students graduating in 2018/19?
Be open and flexible but don’t ever lose sight of your dream.
2018 for you in a sentence.
Push on, push harder, make more, make new, experiment, have fun.
