The Playlist: Graphic Designer Timothy Goodman
We first spied the work of designer, illustrator, and art director Timothy Goodman when Ace Hotel asked him to create a hand-drawn mural in one of the rooms of its New York outpost (below).
Since then, the Cleveland-native has moved to San Francisco to set up shop with Apple Inc. Check out a few of the tunes he’s blasting through his earbuds in this week’s Playlist.
What do you listen to while you work? I love listening to TED talks and raunchy stand-up comedy while I work (I always need the ying and yang!). During basketball season, I like to have an NBA game on the background while I work at night. As for music, I listen to an array of stuff like indie rock, oldies, hip-hop, jazz, blues, classic rock, chillwave, and Latin—it just depends if it’s 2 AM or 2 PM!
Above: Goodman’s illustration for the May 11 Time cover.
How do you listen? When I’m working, I usually listen to my computer speakers or my iPhone with headphones. But my favorite time to listen to music is when I’m walking down the street, or while in a car on a road trip.
Do you have any favorite music websites/providers? I’m digging Spotify right now. And I actually use YouTube quite a bit. It’s much more fun finding my guilty pleasures—like awful 90’s alternative and cheesy 90’s R&B music—on YouTube.
Does music influence your work? I love listening to music while I work, but I’m not sure if it actually influences the outcome. I think the biographies of certain music artists—such as Bob Dylan, Miles Davis, Jay-Z, and Bon Iver—influence my journey as a creative person much more than my actual work.
Who influences your musical taste? Shout out to my dear friend, Greg Peterca, who always turns me on to tons of great music! I don’t know anyone more passionate about music, and we often get into tiffs about an artist or album. Most recently he said the new Fleet Foxes album would be the “friendship barometer” for us.
What song or artist best represents the work you create? I have two identities right now. By day, I work in a corporate atmosphere and contribute to carefully art-directed design and photography that is seen by millions of people globally. By night, I let my hair down, get my hands dirty, and express myself. So perhaps the song “Stairway to Heaven” by Led Zeppelin is most fitting. No song has ever housed two completely contrasting parts and married them together so perfectly.
TIMOTHY’S PLAYLIST
Talamak, Toro Y Moi
I Was A Lover, TV On The Radio
Back Up Train, Al Green
Norway, Beach House
Can I Kick It?, A Tribe Called Quest
Take Five, Dave Brubeck
I Put A Spell On You, Nina Simone
God, John Lennon
Girl From The North Country, Bob Dylan
Big Burned Hand, Iron & Wine
A Milli, Lil Wayne
Lover’s Spit, Broken Social Scene
Young Toes, Stars and Babies, 22 Cats
Images courtesy Timothy Goodman
as predictable as an urban outfitters display (the song list)