Nev is a skater and designer from Manchester

 

In my eyes skateboarding and design are at one. They go hand in hand. It’s the same process.

 

For example, when I design a logo, I draw a load of rough ones, pick one and digitalise it.

 

When I skate I tend to mess around at a skate spot, then pick a solid thing to do especially if I am going to film or shoot a photo. I tend to come up with ideas for design and skating when I’m walking around Manchester or listening to music on the bus.

 

I get inspired by a lot of things, music, art and film always. A big influence to me was Joe Gavin.

 

I used to get bullied in school for skateboarding and as my mates kinda slowed down on it and found other avenues, Joe kinda took me under his wing. Joe paints, films, shoots photos and is obviously an incredible skateboarder.

 

Other than that growing up in Manchester around Percy Dean whilst he was making Document was rad. I always loved the layout and typeface he used.

 

Percy always picked great fonts and the photos were always like laid out rad, on double page spreads.

 

At the moment I love Jim Philips and have bought all his books.

 

Jacob Ovgren is brilliant and I wish I could take photos like Leo Sharp and Fred Mortagne.

 

Music plays a big influence for me when I’m designing, I made a Blueprint Skateboard’s ‘Lost and Found’ playlist the other day and I always send Joe lists of tunes for his edits.

 

The No Comply Network is brilliant.

 

I think the world needs more skateboarders doing creative stuff, we get stifled by no skateboarding signs and we need an outlet like this.

 

Plus everyone sometimes needs help, I’ve learnt this from when me and Joe work together a lot. He’s good in final cut and I’m good in Illustrator and Photoshop so we collab.

 

At the moment I’ve been doing more stuff for Landscape Skateboards. It’s always good to give back to a company that visually gave me so much growing up.

 

I’ve been working on titling and art for a new film by Sean Lomax but I’m not gonna leak the name or style as he will kill me. I think I’m gonna do some titles for Joe too and I normally camera assist him when he gets work too.