FNG Feature: Interview with Rob-L
maggio 4th, 2009, 19:10 | Posted in: AESTHETICS, Daily news, SNEAKERS | by Nick
Tutti gli appassionati di Puma e di costumizzazione delle sneakers non possono non conoscerlo.
Stiamo parlando dell’inglese Rob-L, uno tra i più importanti “sneaker-customizer” degli ultimi anni.
Abbiamo fatto una bella chiaccherata insieme a lui, parlando di sneakers, di customs, delle “sue” Puma – che potete ammirare nella nostra gallery – e ovviamente del futuro.
Cliccate sul ‘more’ per leggere l’intervista e per guardare nel dettaglio le sue opere. Enjoy!
FNG Feature: Interview with Rob-L
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Good evening Rob! Although you are a big name between the sneakerheads, tell us something more about you..your name, age, where are you based..
Well, I really am called Rob L! I’m 32 and live and work in Bristol, South West England. I work in the screen print industry as a graphic designer, as well as doing various other art/design work, and I’m a graffiti writer too.
How did your passion for the sneakers start?
It came from doing graffiti, which I got involved with from the age of 12. I always saw the pics in old books like Spraycan Art et.c with the dudes rocking Pumas, and to me it was a way to identify with that scene.
That was back at the end of ‘88, so by the time I was like ‘I need these shoes’ they had gone out of availability again when I grew up. I guess from the outset I was in a frame of mind that I had to hunt for the right shoes, and that has stuck with me for years. Old friends laugh about the stories of me visiting London and making them trail round all the sneaker stores as I looked out for the Pumas!
And how did you get involved in the custom of the sneakers?
It was the idea that I could combine the skills I had as an artist/designer with my need to have a fresh pair that nobody else had. I guess I just started experimenting in about 2004/05 with materials and techniques, and I realised there was a lot to learn. I just stuck with it, aiming to get something that looked like it was a ‘real’ shoe from a factory. That’s still my ethos now really.
What kind of shoes do you customize? Do you have a favourite brand or a fav base shoes?
Now it’s almost exclusively Puma stuff. I started working closely with the guys at Puma in the last year or so, so I get to see what they have coming up and get some product from them to test out and stuff, as well as access to base shoes too. I think the Clyde is a great shoe to work with too as it’s an icon to start with, then I get to make a unique pair from it! The current Clyde Lux is awesome to work with as the leather strips off really well, and the quality of the shoe is immense!
So let’s talk about Pumas.. You made a great collaboration with them last year..how was it? I mean, tell us something about the various steps of that collabo..
Well, that was an interesting thing. I’m really used to being in control of my work and doing things on my terms, so doing this project was very different to start with.
The initial process was a result of a meeting with one of the people who worked for Puma in Entertainment. They liked what they saw of my pattern work with suede Clydes, and took a pair to show some other people. Next thing I know there’s a dude from the US calling me up and telling me how people had seen my pics of the shoes and wanted to know when they were due out – people thought they were real! I was blown away, because for me this was the exact impression I was aiming for with my work.
The actual process then took almost 2 years for the shoes to come out, with several sample stages leading to the final thing. The best part really was when we came to doing the launch party because I met up with the Puma PR team for the UK and from that minute I was able to have the input directly into everything. I think we turned a lot of heads with that party, and really showed that a lot could be achieved with a small budget.
Coming from a graffiti background, I’m used to just pulling things off and knowing the right people to help me, so that also made it pretty easy. I always wanted some giant Clydes, so a friend from my crew who works for Aardman carved a pair for my show. It was crazy!!!
Talking about custom kicks again what is your last and next project?
Well, right now I’m working on some Clydes for a new Hollywood movie, believe it or not! I got asked by a stylist to make a shoe for a character to wear in the new film “Hot Tub Time Machine” so that’s what I’m doing this week. Before that, I did a pair for a guy in Portugal “TIME” which you can see on my site.
Where can we buy your custom kicks?
Well, direct from me at www.ROB-L.com is the place right now! I do commissions for people to order, although a lot of people ask, but can’t always justify the cost when they find out how much it is for a pair. But you know, if I use a pair of Clyde Lux as a base shoe, then spend 2-3 days of my time working on them, the prices I charge are actually pretty cheap.
Do you have anything else in mind for the next future?
Yeah, I have quite a few things in the pipeline, but I can’t say much at this stage! I also have my T-Shirt label, called FROM, which is bubbling away too: www.FROMSTORE.com so you can hook up a fresh Rob-L tee from there!!
Thanks a lot Rob! We have really appreciated!
Thanks to you! Cheers.
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NICK | freshngood.com
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Rob-L Gallery
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