Erik Herrström on brands that move culture, David Bowie and working without mood boards

Designer Erik Herrström on his book The Echo, why his studio never shows clients a mood board, and designing identities for Whitney Houston and Elvis Presley.

"We never show mood boards to our clients, ever."

Erik Herrström grew up in a small village in the south of Sweden and built his first website at twelve. He interned at R/GA in New York on the redesign of Nike.com, later joined the team of a designer he had idolised as a teenager, and spent years at Spotify, where he worked on Spotify Wrapped. Six years ago he moved to Vienna, where he now runs STUDIO HERRSTRÖM.

He talks about the David Bowie exhibition his team built in a SoHo subway station, creating identities with the estates of Whitney Houston and Elvis Presley, and why mood boards keep work measured against other people's references. He explains why he wrote The Echo, how beta readers changed its whole structure, and why he self-published it. He also shares his view on AI and brand design, and his advice for young designers: stay curious, avoid shortcuts, and ask to shadow someone experienced.

Erik Herrström

STUDIO HERRSTRÖM: https://www.studioherrstrom.com/

The Echo: https://the-echo-book.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/herrstrom/

Studio Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/studioherrstrom/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/erikherrstrom/

Studio LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/studio-herrstrom/

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