The Value of ‘Off-Clock-Creativity’ with Rick Robinson

Rick Robinson has worked in various areas of creative development throughout his career. Starting out in retail and ‘retailtainment’ before segueing into experiential almost 20 years ago, Rick now specialises in conceptualisation, ideation and visualisation.

During his nearly 30 years in the industry, he has worked on loads of leading brands. Here, he sits down with LBB to discuss his lifelong love for illustration, his most recent work with family brands, and why creative should always be fun.

Person

Illustrations and visualisations are my first loves, because I grew up with a mum who was amazing at drawing. I read a lot of comic books and used to copy the art from their pages. This process shaped my personality and helped me to appreciate how things appear visually.

Creativity is largely innate to certain people. Anyone can technically learn to draw or design, but I do believe in the idea of people having a creative brain or a practical brain. It seems that some people are just naturally wired better for creative roles. I wouldn’t really consider myself an extrovert or an introvert, depending on the situation I find myself in, I will usually shape my behaviour in the moment.

Generally, I’m a great believer in ‘the greater good’ (try saying that not in a ‘Hot Fuzz’ style), which has always led me to adopt a ‘credit where it's due’ approach to working, especially in team situations.

As a large part of my day-to-day work is illustration and visualisation-based, whether I’m putting pen to paper or working digitally, I don’t do a whole lot of drawing or painting in my spare time anymore – which is one of the biggest drawbacks to making your hobby your career.

This has led me to explore other areas for off-the-clock creativity and I’ve discovered a love for writing stories and poetry.

Product

Creativity is subjective. Obviously, when you have a brief and the parameters are narrow, the areas of ‘right and wrong’ come more into play, but there’s a reason that there is never just one great idea when responding to a brief.

Personally, I have always felt that a great piece of creative is something that grabs you visually, hits a nerve emotionally or is just super clever. The kind of ideas that make you smile and make you think, ‘Wow! I wish I thought of that!’

It’s hard to look at my own work and pick something I’m really proud of, as I tend to be my own worst critic. The last few years I’ve gravitated towards working on a lot of kids and family brands such as SEA LIFE, Blippi, Haribo and Barbie and lots of cool IP brands like, ‘Sonic The Hedgehog’, ‘Octonauts’, ‘Angry Birds’, ‘Peppa Pig’ and ‘Cocomelon’. Maybe it’s my immature mindset and sense of humour that works in my favour.

I do love working on these types of brands. It makes me buzz when I see kids and families interacting with and enjoying an experience I have been involved in creating. Generally, the industry is embracing more playful activations, as these tend to grab the headlines –which is a good thing imo!

Creative should be fun. If it starts to become painful then something is off-kilter. Obviously, some brands require taking a more respectful approach, but if you’re asking the public to engage in a live brand experience, then it has to capture their imagination. Otherwise, why bother?

Process

For me, every project should start with a clear, well-written and succinct brief.

I will drown in too much info, and I glaze over at spreadsheets and lists. What really starts my engine running is a nugget. Something that sparks a thought or direction. This opens the floodgates for ideas to flow, then it’s a case of funnelling them back through the brief and seeing which works best.

While I am happy working alone, it’s great to get creative colleagues involved for feedback, input and comments, as fresh eyes bring fresh ideas that take my initial thoughts in directions I wouldn’t have considered.

Working collaboratively is rewarding and productive. Whether that’s in-person and side-by-side from start to finish or just having regular check-ins. I’m a big believer in actually sitting together IRL to discuss ideas. It’s super essential when working in a supportive role too.

If I’m visualising for someone else’s project, being able to chat ideas through, scribble together and agree on the spot at any stage, is a much quicker way to achieve more aligned results.

On the flip side, there’s moments when the ideas don’t come and I find it’s best to walk away for a while. Often a change of scene (sometimes the train home!) will spur the brain back into action when you least expect it, but again, talking to colleagues is a great way to shake the creativity loose.

Getting ideas rolling is one part of it but knowing when to stop is just as key. I’ve never consciously think ‘that idea is done!’ A natural end will always come and the idea, concept or design will just reach a stage where it feels right or you’ve had enough. It’s usually people around me that indicate when we're there. Their response and a firm deadline will dictate when a project is complete!.

Press

I grew up in Oldham, near Manchester. I mentioned my mum. My Grandma was also good at art but neither of them did anything with it, because they had to work in the mills as soon as they left school. My mum is 86 now and I encourage her to draw still, which she does. I rode BMX, and got into all sorts of music and fashions.

I’m really embracing what I love and building them into my life and wardrobe. I was called a ‘baby-goth’ at 17 by my best mate’s older brother. Coming from a fairly conservative northern family, my ‘excessive’ clothes, music and vehicle – I drove a bright yellow boy-racer mini that I painted – made me stand out.

I went to art college at 16 and proceeded to live my dream life. I did a mural project, which led me to meet the design lead at Barnet College. He offered me a place and I found myself in London. A work placement turned into my first job and the rest is history. All this has created the ‘me’ of today, but doing creative work within the confines of a real job is very different to doing it for fun, while dressed all in black and riding a BMX.

Not addressing stress levels can be problematic because stress can push you forward or hold you back. I tend to respond relatively well to stressy situations. If I was a client and wanted to get the best out of a creative, my advice would be to trust them. We know you’re paying for our time but you’re also paying for us, and our creative minds. What we do is unique and sometimes hard to fathom. But the best way to get creativity out of us is to nurture us and just let us do what we do best. Don’t worry, we got you.