citylikeyou — Stafford / Ben Anslow

Ben Anslow is a designer and illustrator working mainly with print, specifically in book design. Since graduating from Staffordshire University last year he has gained recognition from a variety of design publications, including Wallpaper*, Digital Arts and the London Design Festival. In 2011 Ben was awarded a D&AD Best New Blood and an ISTD membership for his typography. He is currently doing illustration work for Penguin Books.

http://benanslow.com

Designer Illustrator

Current city: Stafford

benanslow.com

Stafford / Museum

The Shire Hall Gallery is in the central area of Stafford town and is an exhibition space, library and cafe rolled into one. Recent exhibitions have included paper-cutting artist, Rob Ryan.

Stafford / Architecture

The village of Brocton is well known for having a number of timber-frame houses, but this house just stands out to me in particular. It was built in 1911 and is one of the most atmospheric and characterful houses you could possibly come across, in what is otherwise a quintessential English village.

Stafford / Lake

In 1936 George Orwell described Rudyard Lake in one of his diary entries as ‘very depressing’. Today though, I can confirm that it really is a lovely place, with a fascinating display of lakeside cabins and boathouses—more reminiscent of something you’d see in New England than the Midlands. The most popular thing visitors do is set themselves the goal of walking full circle around the lake, which is about 4-5 miles and takes around 2 hours.

Stafford / Place

Well known as being J.R.R. Tolkien’s inspiration for ‘Middle Earth’ in the Lord of the Rings books, Cannock Chase (colloquially ‘The Chase’) is somewhere that friends and I have frequented for many years. If you go to a part called Broc Hill at just the right time, you can literally just sit there and watch the sun disappear behind the horizon, and witness some stunning gradients in the sky. Also a great place for running and photography—you even get to see the odd few deer just bounding around. Cannock Chase is officially listed as one of England’s ‘Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty’ (AONB).

Stockholm / Designer

Julia Kalthoff is an axe maker living in Stockholm.

Barcelona / Designer

La relación de Lola Giardino con la cerámica empezó en 2011, como medida para alejarse un poco del ordenador y encontrar en otros formatos una oportunidad para dar forma a sus creaciones. Después de probar distintas opciones, se enamoró de los materiales y la técnica, tanto que, un año más tarde, creó su propia marca: NonaBruna, gracias a la cual, disfruta de la imperfección haciendo piezas únicas con sus propias manos. Sus piezas se venden online en su página web y han salido en publicaciones internacionales como Vogue, Time Out, Freunde von Freunden y Kinfolk, entre otras. Además del espacio que le sirve para crear, NonaBruna también es el lugar desde el que Lola invita a todos a ‘Jugar con barro’, un taller para explorar la creatividad y materializarla. Lola se define como multifacética porque le resulta imposible quedarse con una sola etiqueta: es diseñadora, ceramista, fotógrafa, directora de arte, web designer, cocinera, coach y emprendedora. Y como parte de este concepto, es también es fundadora del Laboratorio Creativo.

Brussels / Architect

Collectors Cabinet in the city of Brussels Vintage * art * design * furniture

Rotterdam / Designer

Making is Thinking. Creative Director WOAU! BengBeng! Meme-Lord

Neede / Designer

Jos Buivenga can be passionate about a lot of things. He loves to paint, listen to music, brew an almost perfect espresso... but nothing challenges and rewards him more than designing type. If ever he was stranded on a desert island he would still draw alphabets in the sand, even if there was no one else to see them. He is the founder of exljbris, the one-man Dutch font foundry through which he releases and offers his typefaces. For 15 years, his online friends and fans could follow the development of his typefaces and download the results at no cost. In 2008, while still working as an art director at an advertising agency, he released his first commercial typeface Museo with several weights offered for free. That strategy paid off and Museo became a huge bestseller. Partly thanks to that success he now calls himself a full time type designer. All photos by Jos van Roij

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