About Rob L A big part of my ethos is taking what's around me and making something better from it - an idea that comes from Hip-Hop and is seen in various shapes and forms within that world. Based in Bristol, South West England, I've bee n involved in underground creative culture for almost 20 years. In these circles everyone loves their trainers - for me it was always Puma Suedes in particular, and over the years I sought out and collected more and more pairs. I was always look ing for something rare, exclusive and unique, so eventually I started to think about how I could take what was available on th e market and change it to make it my own. I began an intense period of creative exploration, testing different materials metho ds and finishes, all with the aim of making something new and original to wear. I take a very methodical approach to m y work, and I always have one essential rule in mind - it's got to look like a factory finish. To this end I developed my own techniques of working with leather paint and ink. Initially I produced painted graphic work on white leather shoes, but as I w as also collecting so many suede shoes it really intrigued me to find out how to master that material too. Early experiments t aught me that a solid-colour factory looking finish is quite hard to achieve on a ready-made suede shoe, so I began to experim ent with smaller areas of colour and pattern to fill areas in, and this is how my current pattern work was born. This work has become a mainstay of my style, and in particular my 'Archipelago' ink work on suede. I look for things in design wher e the regular can be repeated in an irregular way, which gives my work a kind of "factory organic" feel. Ultimately wha t I do comes from a love of trainers, their history and what they represent aesthetically and culturally to me and others. For me the lines between customising and designing are becoming much more blurred, and now some of my customs have been used as s amples for production shoes...