Trevor Naud
Copywriter at a web agency, in the band Zoos of Berlin
Can you remember the first flier you made?
I made my first flier in high school. It was for a theater party (with bands).
Why did you start making fliers or posters?
During my sophomore year of high school, I worked as a receptionist at the St. Clare of Montefalco rectory. Since none of my friends had office-like jobs at the time, I became the de facto flier maker. There was a Xerox machine down the hall from my desk and I put it to good use while the priests ate supper. I was extra careful about hiding these fliers, since a majority of the visuals were "punk" influenced. Very collage-based. I had a 1960s chemistry book filled with photos of well-dressed students, interesting contraptions and odd charts. And that became the resource for a lot of the imagery.
Do you consider this an art form?
Absolutely.
What's your signature?
I'm still interested in the capabilities — and shortcomings — of Xerox machines. I like to construct things, first, by hand. The primary tools are pen, scalpel and cut-up photography. I can't call it a "signature," per se, since this technique is very common, but it is my way.
Name an artist, contemporary or not, you identify with.
German artist Max Ernst (especially his "Une Semaine de Bonte" work), Polish graphic artist Wojciech Zamecznik, American designer Paul Rand and Detroit-based artist Michael Segal.
What's your style like?
A celebration of errors.
Who's your hero, in real life or fiction?
Real life: David Lynch; fiction: Ellen Ripley.
If you could create the flier for any band or gig in history, what would you choose? Damo Suzuki's first show with CAN.
What trait do you hate in others?
Jealousy. And I'm full of it too.
Where do you feel most at home?
The woods. Or record stores.
What's Detroit's most amazing spot for inspiration?
The Boston-Edison district, the Detroit Institute of Arts.
What do you waste money on?
Indian food, music and the Criterion Collection. But I can hardly call any of these a "waste" of money.
Gotten any good news lately?
Inclusion in this article?
Lastly, more philosophically: Who do you think you are?
Most of the time, I feel like a human being in La Planet Sauvage.
What do you think you're doing?
Establishing a work ethic.
Who do you think you're talking to?
An artist who also likes to write about art.
