Joining The Dots

Craig & Karl ’s hugely successful transatlantic collaboration has attracted a roll call of dream clients including Google, Nike, Apple, Vogue and The New York Times. They reveal how the par tnership works in practice...

- Nick Carson

Creative collaboration is one of the hottest topics in design at the moment, and when you hit that perfect sweet spot of complementary skills and ideas the results can be awe-inspiring. Ever since Craig Redman and Karl Maier discovered that two heads are better than one, they haven’t looked back.

From their twin bases in New York (Redman) and London (Maier), Craig & Karl have exhibited their work in Paris, Athens, Mexico and New York, while commercial clients such as Google, Nike, Apple, Vogue, Vanity Fair, The Washington Post and The New York Times have all fallen in love with their distinctive use of vibrant, bold colour and pattern – a signature style that has been carried effortlessly across everything from traditional illustration right through to murals, sculptures, products and physical installations too.

Ahead of their talk at OFFF By Night in Antwerp this September, the transatlantic duo reveal the secrets of their considerable success, and how their creative collaboration works in practice...

Would you describe Craig & Karl as a creative studio, or an illustration duo? And what would you say is the difference, if any?

Karl: Ha, that’s a good question. We can never make our mind up about how to best describe ourselves either. The projects we do seem to straddle some sort of amorphous space that encompasses design, illustration and art, occasionally all at the same time. So the answer is both, depending on the day. In practical terms, at least to us, there isn’t really any difference.

Your style is distinctive and instantly recognisable. How did it develop? And to what extent is the aesthetic and approach influenced by one or the other of you?