John Karlsson
Please give us a brief bio of yourselves ?
My name is John Karlsson, a 24 year old digital designer from Sweden, specializing in web, product and mobile design. I’m a Hyper Island alumni with five years of professional experience. Also, a big fan of cat gifs and shining shoes.
What are some of the qualities needed to be a successful designer ?
Honestly I don’t know. Maybe every designer has a different set of qualities, and the successful designers are the ones who figure out how to make the most out of theirs.
What are your initial set of questions, when starting a new project ?
The most important question will always be ”Why are we doing this project?”. What is the purpose and how do we achieve that? If you ask yourself these questions throughout the project, it will help guide you to the right decisions.
Your favourite blogs, web apps or mob apps you refer frequently ?
I really like usepanda.com, as it is a collection of many inspiration sources and blogs that I like. I also spend some time at designernews.co, it’s a great place to discuss design, give/get feedback and to stay updated on the latest news.
How do you keep your skills up to date ?
Basically, by putting in the hours. I spend my evenings with different design and code experiments to come up with new techniques that I can use in projects later on.
Which is your favorite work(s) ?
Get The Glass (2007) by North Kingdom. I remember the first time I stumbled upon that site and got stuck for hours, it was so smooth and the design was spot on.
What do you do for inspirations ?
I tend to find inspiration when I learn new things, it can be anything. I have this thing where I completely lose myself into different subjects for a couple of weeks before moving on to the next thing. It can be everything from shoe shining to horse betting, formula 1, pasta, classic movies and so on.
Which city you live in ? Is it a good place for designers ?
I currently live in Stockholm, Sweden. I would say it’s a nice place to be a designer, it’s a beautiful city with a lot of great agencies around. Over the last years there has been a fast growing startup scene as well, probably in the wake of success stories like Spotify, Skype and King.
How many hours do you work each day ?
It is very different, there are some late nights every now and then but it’s hard to complain when you do what you love!
Your biggest achievement ?
Definitely when I got accepted to Hyper Island back in 2009 (education focusing on digital media). It was a big confidence boost when I was right out of high school, and I gained so much knowledge and so many connections.
Mac or PC?
Personally I prefer Mac, it looks good on my desk and I feel comfortable with the UI. My advice is to just use whatever you feel like and slide tackle haters.
You are very much alive in which social networking website ?
I try to be as active as I can on Twitter, where I post inspiring design stuff I come across but also a lot of cat gifs. My handle is @hellotherejohn, feel free to follow!
Thank You John , Thanks for your time
Thanks :)
Hi John, thanks for sharing your thoughts and your inspirations, I too am a designer and like to develop mobile app specially, I found your interview quite interesting and knowledgeable, thanks.