The Art of the T-shirt, Bull In A China Shop, and Working with Kanye

This time, I sit down with Colm Dillane, the founder of the creative collective KidSuper. Colm truly thinks unlike anyone else I’ve had on the podcast and I’m beyond grateful that he stopped by the Auxoro studio which isn’t too far from Kid Super’s home base in Brooklyn. In this episode, Colm discusses the early days of Kid Super, the inspiration behind his most recent collection Bull In A China Shop, having his parents walk in a fashion show, getting kicked out of his NYU dorm, the come up with Russ, and more. Without further ado, please enjoy this deep dive with Colm Dillane.

Here are a few highlights from the conversation:

“I was watching an old video of me as a child where I kept focusing on the scenery rather than the people...and I realized that that told no story. All experiences and places are dependent on the people that you’re with.” (3:40)

“The cool thing about painting is that there are so many layers. Sometimes I start with a sketch in mind of something I want to do, and sometimes you just go at it...figure it out along the way and that’s a beautiful thing too.” (6:30)

Running out of canvases at an art show (8:00)

“A great painting might not translate well as a great t-shirt design.” (9:30)

The relationship between the art world and clothing (13:00)

“A lot of iconic brands are built on repetition. If you have a logo, it might be okay. But if you see that logo a million times it starts to resonate on the bigger picture. When you look at the McDonald’s arches, you don’t think ‘Wow, that’s iconic’ when you first draw it. Now, when you see an ‘M’ on a t-shirt it means so much more.” (14:30)

“Be original to eliminate your competition.” (18:00)

The KidSuper Spirit (19:30)

The genius of Hot Ones with Sean Evans (22:00)

“When I was a sophomore in college, I spraypainted my dorm room and turned it into a store. You could come into my dorm room and buy Kid Super stuff. I had racks of clothing. My dean of housing found out and threatened to kick me out...I spent the summer between sophomore and junior year trying to find a space that I could live in like I was doing before, and I randomly stumbled upon this place on Craigslist with a bathtub...that became the KidSuper space.” (24:00)

“The best thing about KidSuper is the people that it’s introduced me to...As you get more and more successful, more doors open up and your definition of success changes.” (28:00)

“I worked for Kanye for 2 weeks. He would say the craziest things and you’d sit back and think ‘There’s no way that’s possible.’ Then you pause and think, ‘He’s Kanye West, he could do that.’ It was so cool to see someone that was thinking limitless.” (30:30)

The KidSuper commercials for Jagermeister (35:00)

“It’s important to be excited about the small things. I didn’t start making t-shirts because I thought I would become a famous designer. I started because that was a lane for me to express my art when I was young. It slowly snowballed after that. Start something, go full-on, and that will open doors. People will be inspired by your enthusiasm.” (39:00)

“A fashion show isn’t so much about showing off the clothes. If you want to see a great picture of clothes it’s going to be the product shots. The fashion show is about making something that resonates with the crowd and tells a story.” (42:00)

The inspiration behind the ‘Bull In A China Shop’ line and the fashion show in Paris (43:00)

Colm’s parents walking in his fashion show and the viral picture in Vogue (46:00)

Action Bronson walking the KidSuper fashion show to ‘La bohème’ in a trench coat (49:00)

“After every fashion show, there’s a moment where I walk out and give my speech. It’s a crazy feeling.” (52:30)

‘Running As Fast As You Can’ KidSuper Paris fashion show (53:00)

Getting treated like shit at Supreme (59:00)

The meeting of Russ and KidSuper (1:02:00)

“I directed two music videos, and me and Russ just clicked. Fast forward 6 months and he’s still at KidSuper living in the basement and making music in the studio. We bounced creative energies off of each other.” (1:03:00)

The claymation video for Cherry Hill by Russ (1:04:00)

Some Things and People Mentioned In The Conversation:

Listen and Learn:

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