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Swifty

Ian Swift AKA “Swifty”

From early beginnings at ‘The Face Magazine’ working under the expert guidance of Neville Brody and Robin Derrick, Art directing Arena magazine, design and art directing at Straight No Chaser’ (The Magazine of World Jazz Jive), to progressing on to founding SWIFTY TYPOGRAFIX.

Designing the world famous label identities for Talkin Loud, Mo Wax and Source 360,. And in 1993 publishing Command Z along with Swifty’s funky fonts.

We find out what the hugely prolific and talented Swifty is up to these days.

FMCS: Hey Swifty how’s things?

Swifty: I just got back from Tuscany with the fam - so I’m pretty relaxed enjoying time with my kids and trying to fit in a bit of work August is usually a dead month, but this year I’ve got loads of stuff happening. Generally things are really good, lots of good energy at the mo and I feeling that there’s something big gonna happen!

FMCS: Where are you right now? And what kinda mood are we finding you in?

Swifty: It’s been 20 years since I left college and started at the FACE magazine! In that time I’ve seen it all and nothing surprises me now. But I don’t keep coming back to the point that I am right up there at the head of the “sampling generation” of designers and image makers. A term I keep on coming back to and yet still has yet to be realised in terms of the impact on culture and creativity.

The graphic design industry has changed so much in that time, obviously computers and the digital revolution has had a profound impact on the industry and I was one of the first advocates of the Macintosh as a tool and Straight No Chaser magazine was the first mag in the country to be designed and output purely on Apple Mac computers.

But on the flipside graphics is not a mystery anymore and anyone can do it. So along side your trained professionals producing quality innovative work you have a whole heap of shit to wade thru, and for the untrained eye this can easily look like good design! But I’m still here producing my own brand of design and expanding into new areas all the time which keeps me happy most of the time!

Being a creative visionary of some kind I will never really be happy with my lot! But, my family of three kids constantly keep me busy with life stuff, and bring me back down to earth.

Dingwalls

FMCS: What do you dig about working in London that keeps you content?

Swifty: I couldn’t really do what I do anywhere else, except maybe New York.

I live on the edge of London, at the end of the central line and day to day I work alone in my offi-shed! I’m always in town at meetings and connecting with people of all walks of life. It’s the variety and accessibility that makes London unique.

Although I grew up in the country and had a very rural upbringing I have lived in London half my life so I am a converted urbanite!
I’m here to stay and feel I’ve got the right balance of work and life - indeed I brought my business home with me to educate my kids, there is a way forward to this and you don’t have to commute and you can balance creativity and a busy work life with your family. My kids see me design every day it’s not a mystery to them, and my influence has rubbed off they are very creative in many areas.

I’m still one of those very lucky people who amidst this rat race mentality who can have a lifestyle to be proud of!

FMCS: How is Swifty Typografix doing? Still going strong, or have you moved onto other projects?

Swifty: I’m still very prolific - maybe not as much as in my twenties but I still have a big output for one person. I guess the big difference now is the variety of work I do which most people don’t realise.

In the early days my work pretty much revolved around the music industry but now I do a lot of work for TV. I’ve been doing the titles and graphics for Darren Brown on channel 4 now for about 4 years and I also work for BBC and Channel 5.

And then other areas of work have kicked off like doing stuff for Addict and a couple of skate brands like Karma and Western Edition. I still do record sleeves for my main music client “Far Out Recordings” and “Especial Records” in Japan, and have just completed “Sunday Afternoon at Dingwalls” which will be out in October on Ether records, which I know is gonna be huge! Also in October I’ll be designing and painting my third nightclub in the Midlands - so yeah it’s been an interesting year so far!

FMCS: We love the Swift Camo Stuff that you did for ADDICT! Is this the first move into fashion for you? And will we see more?

Swifty: Yeah this is the first time I’ve done a camo pattern which was real fun and Addict make some quality gear! They have proved to be an important connection in the last few years - I always design an artist tee every year along with Mitchy Bwoy, Mr Jago, She One etc… In fact next year they are putting out a Swifty box set of three tees based on my “Typo Camo” designs.

Other than that I don’t have any real plans to go into fashion or anything like that! But I do love camo and would love to do some more patterns.

FMCS: Do you still get inspired by music? Is it a big part of your creativity?

Swifty: Music is a big part of my creative process - I always listen to music when I work and itunes has revolutionized that - I don’t have to get up anymore to change the record or worry about what I’m gonna put on next ! I just stick it on shuffle and let itunes do the work.

And of course I always have a selection of CDR’s stacked up from new music projects which need listening to and I always listen to them when I’m designing for that particular artist.

FMCS: The creative design scene has certainly hyper accelerated over the past few years in all aspects from avant-garde to corporate projects, with clients being more educated on the look they desire. How do you feel this has impacted the work you do for your clients? Do you experience certain ‘trade-offs’ over ideas, and the way your design should be presented?

Swifty: I pretty much work the same way I always have - alone and totally independently. These day’s people come to me to get the Swifty feel, so I don’t really have any problems pleasing people.

I have been lucky over the years to have worked with some very cool people and I hope that will continue.

FMCS: How is things going with Andrew and the ‘Thought’ project?

Swifty: We put out the ‘45 Spinna’ which was a cool idea - but very niche - it went well and we want to put out some more projects in the future. We have talked about furniture and more music related projects - but as ever with self funded projects budget and timing is all important and my head is just in a different zone at the moment .

FMCS: What can we expect from SWIFTY in the near future?

Swifty: Obviously more design work - I don’t intent to give up just yet - but I have been producing lots of ‘one off’ original art some of which will be seen in October as part of the Frieze Art week at a central London Gallery (check my website for more details in the next week or so).

That’s a big step for me, I kinda like the transition between commercial graphics and art and have always been inspired by Andy Warhol who pretty much did the same thing - watch out art world I’m on a mission!

FMCS: How’s the family?

Swifty: Good we have three kids now - my eldest Jake has just started high school, Maddi, my daughter is in her last year at primary school and Spike has just started talking! As you can imagine life at our house is one barrel of laughs.

Big respect to mummy (Janine) for holding it all together feeding us top food and generally sorting us out!

FMCS: Shout out’s?

Swifty: Yeah big respect to Bradders and all at Straight No Chaser magazine for continued support for nearly 20 years, Janine and the Fam for putting up with my strange ways, all the clients past, present and future who’ve believed in the Swifty style (you know who you are). The Babylon studio crew Mitchy, Robbie Bear, Fred Leicester, Kamski, Tyler (NYC) and of course Mode 2 - keep it real - I still have fond memories of tha Barlby Rd days! as we used to say LOVE, PEACE “N” HAIR GREASE - KEEP STYLIN IT BAD BWOY - OVER ‘N’ OUT – SWIFTY!