Interview with the RedWolf

Tell us about how you got to where you are now?

We are an illustration brand and we come from Porto. We started The Red Wolf a year and a half ago, so the project is quite recent.  My (Felipe) area is Graphic Design and Joana works in Marketing. Joana is more connected to fashion, I am more active in Design and Teaching.

The Red Wolf came from the will to get away from services and create a body of work with free movement, without the pressure of clients. It grew and grew, and, at the moment, we are in a position which pleases us.

What are your illustrations about? What do you like to draw the most?

Developing our illustrations was very natural. The first ones were women with trees as heads – so it was about the feminine figure and nature, which are two areas we thought it would be interesting to join. After that, we started illustrating animals, a lot of feminine figures and focused on drawing lifestyle – that was our message. And when I say lifestyle, I mean that we try to make it about sending a positive message, above all. We don’t have a specific message, it’s more about exemplifying: a person riding a bicycle, a person who likes wearing a hat, who likes to ride on a Vespa, for example – a person who likes to take photographs… So, that is the kind of themes we are currently exploring.

What was your starting point and the inspiration behind the work you developed for Monarte?

The idea came from one of the illustrations we have which had a great acceptance from the public: a feminine figure taking a photograph. We also thought it could be a bit interactive for the person wearing the shirt. Even the detail of the brand of the camera being named “Smile”, which is a brand that obviously doesn’t exist, is simply to incite interaction. And it makes sense with our creative line, which focuses on very simple ideas, very brief, with a positive message. We can imagine a person on the street who suddenly sees someone with a camera and might even smile, because they feel like they are being photographed by the other person.

Make me Smile

The camera has the ability to make people smile, and that's exactly what The Red Wolf wants to transmit in this illustration:  to provoke a true smile from someone to the person who is wearing it, and who knows, trigger a nice conversation.