Before this, I managed the design team at
Redink (now
HyperRedink), where I worked with clients like
Santander,
DNB,
Oslo Municipality,
and Elkjøp.
Before that, I co-founded and worked as creative director at
Primate, where we did
projects for clients like
Airbnb,
Waterstons,
Scottish Book Trust, and
Bulbapedia.
Before that, I designed websites for
Heehaw Digital, where I
first started working with pixels and at some point made a photoshop
action to create 1px rounded corners on my bitmap shapes. What a
timesaver!
Before that, I had a brief stint at
Taste Design,
where I forgot what I learned at my preceding job and subsequently got
fired. Ouch.
Before that, I designed magazines for
White Light Media, where I learned that caring about what you do and putting in the hours
is the only way to do decent work.
Before that, I studied graphic design at
Falmouth University, where they told us that ideas and concepts are more important to learn
than implementation. I still believe they were right.
Before that, I studied graphic design in Oslo. We weren't allowed to use
computers, so I learned how to sketch with pencils and marker pens. I once
drew the cover for an imaginary book called "Plastic Fantastic", because
dildos were easy to draw realistically.
Before that, I served 11 months national service in the north of Norway. I
hated every minute of it, but I learned to cope with weather and boredom
and I'm glad to have had the experience.
Before that, I did arts and crafts at the local high school. For my final
exam I spent five days painting a mural for a train station. (On paper,
not actually in a train station.)
Before that, I went to secondary school. One day we had a guest lecturer
from the advertising industry, who sold me on a career in the creative
industry.
Before that, primary school. I drew fake tattoos of guns and roses on my
friends' arms because, well, Guns N' Roses.
Before that, at the age of two, I spent a year in Japan because of my
dad's work. My earliest memory is sucking on a giant twirly lollipop at
Disneyland Tokyo.
Before that, I was born in Drammen, Norway.
Before that, my parents met at Club 7, Oslo.
Before that, in 1905, Norway voted to dissolve its union with Sweden, by
368208 votes to 184.
Before that, more than half of Norway's population was wiped out by the
Black Death between the years 1348 and 1350.
Before that, in 1030, King Olav Haraldsson was killed in the battle of
Stiklestad. A brutal opportunist, he helped kidnap and murder the
Archbishop of Canterbury in 1011. Three years later he fought alongside
King Æthelred The Unready to defend England against the invading forces
of the Sweyn Forkbeard of Denmark and his son Cnut (soon to be Cnut the
Great). In 1015, however, he changed sides again, and helped Cnut
conquer Wessex, before returning to Norway and declaring himself King.
Once King, legend has it Olav introduced – likely with the help of death
threats – his fellow Norsemen to Christianity, to which he had converted
during his many "holidays" to Europe (being Christian may have been a
prerequisite to make alliances with the European elites).
Later on, Olav teamed up with the king of Sweden to conquer his former
ally Denmark, but was forced to hide in the Swedish fjords, before being
defeated in the battle of Helgeå and chased back to Norway on foot. In
1928, as a consequence of his failed invasion, Norway was in turn
invaded by – you guessed it – Cnut the fucking Great, and Olav finally
met his fate. After his death, he was named a saint and he became known
as Olav the Holy, allegedly because his nails, hair and beard continued
to grow posthumously.
(Ish.)
Game of Thrones can take a hike.
Before that, you know, dinosaurs and stuff.
Before that? Darkness, I suppose.
And before that?
How should I know?