Ever seen a design and thought, "man, that'd make an awesome poster"? Then chances are it was done by freelance graphic artist and illustrator Steven Thomas. His signature mix of mid 20th century retro-futurism and vintage propaganda art has landed him gigs for Star Wars, Marvel, 20th Century Fox, and more. Though not necessarily the biggest car guy, Steven is always happy to use his skills to create fantastic designs like "Rota Whirl", "Race in the Now", and "Fear and Clothing".
Steven took a breath to answer a few questions:
How did your interest in cars start?
Not sure when it clicked, but perhaps it was when I got my license to drive - of which I had to take a second driver's test for as I failed the first one for turning left on a red. I swear the light was green or yellow when I entered the intersection, then waited for oncoming traffic to pass so I could turn...
How does your interest show itself?
Nothing too crazy, I'll turn my head as a nicely restored vintage car drives by and ooh and ahh as it does.
What's at the top of your automotive bucket list?
I'd like to own a vintage muscle car at some point like a 70s Charger or even the modern revamped versions.
What's in your driveway, and what makes them special?
Minivan. Nothing to see here.
What was your first car? Do you have any sort of brand loyalty?
First car was a Dodge Neon. It was bottom of the line, 1998, green, 2 door, no power windows or anything. It didn't even have a tape deck or cd player, just a radio. The only saving grace was the manual transmission.
Both my father and father-in-law are tied closely to Chrysler so that's where my loyalty lies. My father worked for Chrysler/Jeep/Dodge for almost 30 years, starting with vans and moving up to head the Jeep/Truck division out of Detroit. My father-in-law owned a Chrysler dealership that my brother-in-law now runs.
What is your dream car?
Not sure what it would be now, but for some reason when I was younger (10'ish) I wanted a Pontiac Fiero. I think it was because it's a smaller car, kind of the size for a kid.
What do you do besides designing awesome shirts?
I design awesome posters! I've done artwork for Clif Bar, Camelbak, 20th Century Fox (Martian Movie), Virgin Atlantic and Pearl Jam to name a few. I'm especially proud of the National Park bottles I worked on with Camelbak.
What are some of your non-car hobbies?
Golf, although that's about once a year these days.
What have the funds from blipshift helped you accomplish?
To be able to do what I love (illustration) full-time.
What are you influenced by as a designer?
Old, vintage poster and logo designs from the early 20th and retro-futuristic from the mid 20th Century.
What's your favorite blipshift shirt?
"Rota Whirl", but I also like "Revolutionary". It's a clever design.
Any advice for fellow artists? How did you find the process overall?
No advice except to keep churning out killer designs. Blipshift definitely holds it's own among other t-shirt a day sites.
Thanks for your time Steven! You can see more art to make your wall jealous on his website. Apex Everything!
