Born in the small town of Hastings, New Zealand, Derek grew up in a working-class family with limited financial means and modest aspirations. His unexpected passion for photography ignited when he was a young bank teller and noticed a wedding photographer's bank statement, revealing the potential to make a living from photography. This serendipitous moment set Derek on a journey that has taken him around the world, from Sydney to Los Angeles, London, and back to Sydney. Along the way, he has worked with high-profile names such as Stella McCartney, David Walsh (MONA) and Donald Trump (in his pre-President days).  Throughout his career, Derek has learned that mastering photography goes beyond understanding technical aspects like light, composition, and form. It's equally about communication, direction, and most importantly, honesty. “That’s kind of all you have – honesty. I think people appreciate you when you are honest with them”.  It’s this kind of transparency that helps him capture the best images and achieve the best results for his clients.  Listen in as Vince and Derek discuss the role of communication when working with individuals, agencies, magazines and fashion brands, and how photographing Stella McCartney unearthed a surprising connection to a Beatles parade he attended as a baby.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In some families, the parents’ DNA instructs so clearly the way their children think and work that it’s impossible to deny the familial impact. Jason Bruges is the product of just this. His dad was a software and computer engineer, and his mother a trained artist. Both influenced where and how he came to be a multidisciplinary artist and designer. His eponymous Jason Bruges Studio is internationally renowned for creating interactive spaces and surfaces that sit between the world of architecture, site specific installation art and interaction design. Considered a pioneer of this hybrid in-between space, Jason has subsequently paved the way for a new genre of design studios, artists and designer-makers. After graduating from Oxford Brookes University in London, Jason borrowed £1,000 from his dad for an airline ticket and flew to Hong Kong to meet his grandfather at the airport. He’d only met him a handful of times before. Within weeks he had a job offer from the famed architect Norman Foster. This later led to his role at the groundbreaking brand experience agency, Imagination back in London, where his work on the Millenium Dome was considered an early example of interaction design. It was soon after, in 2002, that Jason created his own studio. Listen in as Vince and Jason discuss how being noticed by Tom Dixon helped him start his studio, the influence of Jean Nouvel’s animated façades, and designing a hotel lobby in 2002 that changed colour based on the clothes of guests passing through. https://www.jasonbruges.com/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In today’s economy, people are more considerate about what they’ll spend money on, retailers have to fight to hold or grow their market share. If there’s one person who knows this better than most, and will be the first to step into the ring, it’s Felicity McGahan. McGahan is the Group CEO of STRAND, the Australian handbags and luggage retailer, where she is leading a transformational vision for growth by modernising, digitising and internationalising every aspect of the business. Backed up by 20 years at Gap, where she left as VP or North America Marketing, and key executive roles at Reebok, Sportsgirl, Esprit, Cotton On and Sussan, she’s been with amazing brands at the right time. And been mentored by best-in-class leaders, building a reputation for successfully evolving brands for growth.   Her career in retail isn’t a total surprise. Her Dad had a chain of footwear stores, and her mum was the original Sportsgirl, modelling for the iconic Australian retailer through the 70s and 80s before becoming their ever Wardrobe Consultant, “When I grew up, she was styling Kylie Minogue for Locomotion.” She was destined for it.  Listen in as Vince and Felicity discuss forging her birth certificate aged 14 to get a job, where she finds her enthusiasm and drive, and what it takes to turn a retail business around.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What does it mean to exist professionally as an artist? Does being business minded compromise an artist’s creativity? If it’s a frank discussion on the topic you’re after, Ramesh Mario Nithiyendran is the artist to have it with.  Nithiyendran is a Sri Lankan born contemporary artist whose work is often described as bold, hyperbolic, exaggerated and expressive. He’s achieved huge success in his decade-long career — his artwork has been presented in museums, festivals and the public domain, including significant presentations at the National Gallery of Australia, The Art Gallery of New South Wales, The Dhaka Art Summit and Art Basel Hong Kong. In 2019, he received a Sidney Myer Creative Fellowship recognising his outstanding talent and exceptional professional courage, and his 368-page monograph, titled RAMESH, was published by Thames & Hudson in 2022. Heavily influenced by his upbringing as a Tamil migrant in Sydney’s west, Nithiyendran was an incredibly high achiever academically, but it wasn’t until he arrived at the University of New South Wales to begin his BA in Fine Arts that he felt he existed outside a minority. Listen in as Vince and Ramesh discuss why no one in art wants to talk about business, how growing up as a migrant in Australia shaped him and the importance of respecting other people’s work and input.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Some people take a lifetime to find their true north, the thing they want to spend their days working on. That’s not the case for Sean Perkins. Growing up in South Yorkshire in the 70s, it wasn’t cool to get good grades. Even though he was smart, he flunked almost everything. Everything, but art. From a young age he was exposed to, “the future, all this incredible visual culture”, by way of Japanese mementos his dad would bring back from work trips to Tokyo. And the fashion his mum would wear after disappearing to the fashion shows in Paris to stock her boutique in Huddersfield. Today, he’s one of the most influential graphic designers of our time. He’s created visual identities for some of the world’s most recognisable brands with his London-based studio North Design. And the brands and clients relationships he builds — they stand the test of time. Some of his identity systems are still being used 20+ years after he and his partners Jeremy Coysten and Stephen Gilmore first created them. Think Tate Modern, Barbican Centre, West Kowloon Cultural District, ACMI. And perhaps most notably, the project that put his name on the map as a young designer, the UK’s most iconic roadside assistance company, the RAC. Listen in as Vince and Sean discuss, growing up buying albums for the covers, learning from Gert Dumbar, and the highs and lows of running their respective studios. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Not every path to success is a straight one. Mike Tosetto knows this firsthand. From growing up in Sydney’s Inner West as a skate kid who took photos with a disposable camera of the local street art — or, as her calls it, ‘mad graph’ — to living out back for two years at Ayres Rock Resort, to playing didgeridoo on stage at the Glastonbury music festival. His path has been anything but direct. After realising his job at a supermarket chain wasn’t going anywhere, he got a job at a publishing house, and started hanging around the graphic design department and tinkering with computers with the IT guys. But it was when he stumbled upon a University of Sydney open day that things really started to unfold in the right direction. He got into a digital media master’s degree, and his path was set. Today, Mike runs one of the foremost animation studios in Australia. Creating motion branding for businesses like Samsung, Adobe, Adidas, Microsoft, Google, Binge and Bugatti, translating strategic concepts into motion. Listen in as Vince and Mike discuss being burnt out and not being able to see the woods for the trees, the relentless pursuit of delivering great outcomes, and the future of motion design.   https://neversitstill.com/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hurricane Katrina and the Northern Rivers Floods may have happened over a decade apart and on opposite sides of the world. But the disasters have a lot in common. New Orleans and Lismore found themselves caught in the eye of the storm when the cities, both located for prosperity around a major waterway but on compromised ground, were inundated by water and devastated in the process.  The other thing these disasters have in common are Elizabeth Mossop and Dan Etheridge. The academics met in New Orleans at a two-day symposium called ‘Reinhabiting NOLA’ in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Mossop was instrumental in the creation of the Coastal Sustainability Studio at Louisiana State University, a multi-disciplinary research laboratory that has been profoundly influential in the direction of Louisiana’s efforts in resilience planning and design. Etheridge worked for Tulane University helping to establish applied research coastal restoration programs. The two clicked and stayed in close contact, but they could never have imagined they’d end up working together, using their research and experiences in New Orleans to help plan a thriving future for Lismore following the floods. Together, at Living Lab Northern Rivers, they’re doing just that. Listen in as Vince, Elizabeth and Dan discuss; how growing up with science-obsessed fathers shaped them, experiencing New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and why we need to do things fundamentally differently to thrive in our changing world.  https://www.llnr.com.au/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How much does your environment shape your life, and what can city-makers do to make our lives better? Michael Stott has spent over 25 years crafting narratives for cities around the world, considering how they can be made better for the people who inhabit them. As Head of Cities and Places, Masterplanning & Urban Design at DBI, one of Australia’s foremost multidisciplinary design practices, he’s at the forefront of Brisbane’s evolution as a global city in time for the 2032 Olympics. Stott grew up in the picturesque Vancouver seaside communities of White Rock and West Vancouver, and he credits his childhood exploring the vast landscapes of his home country with setting the tone for his life. And his fascination with balancing the scale of small and big when it comes to shaping cities.  He credits his journey from art into linguistics, architecture, design and finally planning with his interest in understanding the pattern language of cities and how they speak to us. Listen in as Vince and Michael discuss; how embracing local culture can help you feel at home, the influence of legendary architect Lord Richard Rogers and the UK’s Urban Renaissance and why Istanbul is one of his favourite cities in the world. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In life and in business, how big a part does luck play in our success? And are our good ideas really good at all? Professor Frederik Anseel is the newly appointed Dean of the University of New South Wales’ Business School and an expert in what works, and what doesn’t, in business. He’s spent his career researching organisational psychology, leadership, how to motivate people, how to treat colleagues with respect and how to be authentic. It’s this combination of the study of management and psychology that changed from a very niche field to one of wide-spread interest during the COVID pandemic. Anseel grew up in a small town 15 minutes from the French border in Belgium, where education, even university, is free for all. One side of his family are engineers, the other teachers. It’s clear how his upbringing has defined his view of life, value of education, and area of academia.  Listen in as Vince and Frederik discuss; how the 2008 GFC shifted the narrative for the hero CEO paradigm, the art of getting office politics right and the surprising origins of the Type A personality. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In the 80s, Stiff Records, the British independent Punk Rock and New Wave record label, had an open-door policy. You could walk in and pick up posters, stickers and pin badges most days of the week. Jeremy Leslie was one of the kids doing just that. He’d catch the bus over to Notting Hill from the London College of Design to visit the shop. Originally, he was there for the music, but it was the storytelling in the design that made a lasting impression. Leslie is an internationally recognised creative who’s been making magazines for over four decades. He’s also the founder of magCulture, the iconic London magazine shop. After having his eyes opened to the world of design by a thoughtful art teacher, he’s gone on to art direct quarterlies, monthlies and weeklies, and spent the noughties developing award-winning magazines at John Brown Publishing. He’s written four books about editorial design, and in 2018 was awarded the Mark Boxer Award by the British Society of Magazine Editors for services to the magazine industry. Listen in as Vince and Jeremy discuss the legendary English graphic artist Barney Bubbles, their favourite magazines of the 90s (The Face and i-D), and how the independent print scene has been empowered by digital and the internet.  https://magculture.com/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

You could argue a lot of kids grow up with a love of drawing. This one knew he wanted to be an architect in high school. When his older brother brought home some Rotring pens, it all clicked. Domenic Alvaro is the Director and Global Design Leader at Woods Bagot, one of the world’s leading architecture firms. Drawing is a huge part of his professional practice to this day. He’s a long-term collaborator of Frost*collective and someone the studio is immensely proud to have worked with over the years. Dedicated to agitating traditional typologies, he is an architect who breaks from convention to unlock spatial potential. He’s led projects all over the world, ranging from mixed use developments that redefine the way nature can be woven into a city, experiential large-scale transportation links, landmark commercial precincts, holistic masterplans and residential that defines the way we will live tomorrow.  Listen in as Vince and Domenic discuss why micro projects like his globally award-winning Small House have relevance at the larger scale, bringing back laneway culture for Sydney with the massive Ivy project, and the singular beauty of Peter Zumthors The Therme Vals in Switzerland.  https://www.woodsbagot.com/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Having a knock-out creative career five decades long is one thing. Setting up a charity to inspire the same creativity in the next generations is another. But the iconic British design duo, who are also husband and wife - Sir John Sorrell CBE and Lady Frances Sorrell CBE - have done just that. Frances and John started their lives in design both aged of 14 when, in different parts of London, they attended free Saturday morning classes at their local colleges of art and design. Neither were from well-off families. John had never been to an art gallery and most of his peers were dropping out of school aged 15 to get jobs. The experience was a revelation that paved the way for full-time study and their careers in design. It was also the prime motivation for the formation of the Sorrell Foundation in 1999 with the aim of inspiring creativity in young people to change their lives and make the world a better place. After meeting through work, the Sorrell’s launched their now legendary design studio, Newell and Sorrell, in 1976. They’ve redesigned some of the UKs most high-profile organisations, including British Airways, The BBC and the Royal Mail. After 25 years in business, they sold to Omnicom, and have spent the past 25 working to give young people pathways to higher education in the creative industries. Their achievements and accolades are too long to list. John is co-founder and chairman of London Design Festival and co-founder of London Design Biennale and is a UK Business Ambassador, appointed by successive prime ministers to help promote Britain’s creative industries abroad. John was appointed CBE in 1996, was awarded the Royal Society of Arts Bicentenary Medal in 1998 and holds numerous honorary fellowships and degrees. John was awarded a knighthood in the 2008 New Year Honours List for services to the creative industries. Frances is a tour de force in her own right. She is Chancellor of the University of Westminster, London, has Honorary Fellowships from the Royal Institute of British Architects, Falmouth University, Hereford College of Arts and Plymouth College of Art. She holds Honorary Doctorates from the Open University, Coventry University and University for the Creative Arts, and has been a visiting Professor at University of the Arts London. As Creative Director at Newell and Sorrell she won over a hundred awards for creativity and effectiveness. Listen in as Vince, Sir John and Lady Frances Sorrell discuss; cold calling BP fresh out of art school and designing their exhibition stand at the Paris Air Show six weeks later, growing up on the same working-class council estate as Rod Stewart, and why you have to put your money where your mouth is if you really believe in something. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

People are considered lucky when they find something they’re skilled at and love, then make it their vocation. Growing up with a parent they’ve inherited that skill and passion from helps, especially when they’re exceptionally talented. Both Louise Olsen and Stephen Ormandy have parents who helped them on their path to a life shaped by creativity. Olsen’s father, John Olsen, who passed away aged 95 in 2023, is arguably Australia’s most famous artist. Her mother was a painter, too. Ormandy’s mother was a sculptor, who tirelessly championed his creative pursuits. He knew he wanted to be an artist from age five. After meeting on the first day of art school in Sydney — it was love at first sight, depending on who you ask — the two became best friends. After graduation, they set about creating a tangible product people would want to buy. By the late 80s they were making jewellery for Kylie Minogue and INXS and opening a tiny shop in Sydney’s Strand Arcade. Dinosaur Designs, their jewellery and homewares business, is 40 years old next year. They have seven stores in Australia and one each in New York and London, with stockists globally.  They’re also both successful artists in their own right. Not to mention their daughter Camille. The trio are preparing a group show to be held in Paris later this year.  Listen in as Vince, Louise and Stephen discuss; being born into the art world, how they’ve made their marriage and business work and how children have a natural ability to get inside a subject when it comes to art.  https://www.dinosaurdesigns.com.au/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Being driven is one thing. But being driven by trauma is another. It’s a special kind of motivation, and when combined with a competitive nature and natural feel for what an audience wants, great things can be achieved. Aidan Anderson is the Founder and CEO of The Local Project — the fastest growing design platform in the Asia-Pacific region. The platform is followed by design and architecture lovers worldwide, and champions authentic design, showcasing and supporting architects, designers, makers and suppliers. Incredibly, he started it by profiling his friends and local makers on an Instagram account run from his dusty furniture workshop. The Local Project now has an audience of over 4 million across print, video, digital and social media. Anderson has no formal training, and has always just made the content he wants to see. He first fell in love with design and architecture working on building sites to make extra money in the summers of his teenage years. The furniture workshop opened when he dropped out of an architecture degree at university just three months in. He credits the agility that comes with youth as one of the keys to his success — he was 21 when he started the business in 2016. Listen in as Vince and Aidan discuss; how Australian architecture is perceived internationally, the powerfully addictive nature of social media, and how the hand you’re dealt defines you.  https://thelocalproject.com.au/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There’s an art to bringing history into modern creativity as more than a reference.  Sibella Court is adept at it. The creative director, author and interior and product designer has made a career out of creating with her love of history at the forefront. When you learn she grew up with two incredibly creative parents — a builder father skilled in transforming spaces and a mother who specialised in Central Asian textiles — her multifaceted creative career comes as no surprise.  After studying history at university in Sydney, and getting a start at Australian Vogue, she spent a decade shooting editorial in New York. Since returning to Australia in 2006, she’s written and published six books, hosted a TV series, and designed the interiors for some of Sydney’s best-known restaurants and bars, including Mr Wong's and Palmer & Co.  Listen in as Vince and Sibella Court discuss her lifelong love of history, working at Australian Vogue in the early 90s and the seismic impact the death of a parent can have.  https://thesocietyinc.com.au/  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For a small country with a small population, the Danes are incredibly well-known on the global stage as highly skilled when it comes to design. In Viggo Haremst’s case, he knew he wanted to be an architect, like his father, very early in life. But he credits his Swedish mother for his commitment to process and detail. As a Design Director and Partner at the prominent Danish architecture firm Henning Larsen he steered the winning proposal for the Canberra Theatre Centre and is leading the city-shaping Lighthouse at Darling Park in Sydney. The practice believes good design begins with curiosity, and is leading the world when it comes to evidence-based building design with a focus on investigating and prototyping innovation in sustainability. Viggo is a sought-after keynote speaker who delivers insights into Henning Larsen’s design method and projects, and the future of workspaces.  Listen in as Vince and Viggo discuss learning about limits from Zaha Hadid, how to create a longer life cycle for a building and why Danes are so good at design.  https://henninglarsen.com/en See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How much do the environments we inhabit impact our health and wellbeing? And does our emotional state impact our physical health? Dr. Esther Sternberg is internationally recognised for her discoveries in the science of the mind-body interaction in illness and healing, and the role of place in wellbeing. She is a pioneer and major force in collaborative initiatives on mind-body-stress-wellness and environment interrelationships.  Her inspirational and popular books — there are three, the latest ‘WELL at WORK: Creating Wellbeing in Any Workspace’ has just been released — are backed by science and are changing the way we design public and private places for people. Dr. Sternberg’s list of achievements is extensive. She’s advised the World Health Organization and the Vatican, and briefed high level U.S. Federal Government officials. She’s also moderated a panel with the Dalai Lama and been recognized by the National Library of Medicine as one of the women who ‘Changed the Face of Medicine’. She has authored over 240 scholarly articles and edited 10 technical books on the topic of brain-immune connections and design and health.  Her two decades-long research with the U.S. General Services Administration, using wearable devices to track health and wellbeing in the built office environment, is informing healthy design standards for workplaces in the public and private sectors around the world.  Listen in as Vince and Dr. Sternberg discuss immersive reality nature recharge rooms, being one of only ten girls in a class of 110 at medical school and the best prescription for a healthy building. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When we think of life on earth in the context of the universe, being human can seem absurd. That’s what British artist and illustrator Paul Davis thinks. When he was 17, growing up in Somerset in England, his father died suddenly. But he’d already taught him everything he needed to know about space, time and human existence.  Davis’ sometimes controversial work has been widely published and exhibited. He’s regularly commissioned by international broadsheets and magazines, has created animated idents for BBC Radio 4, and his handwriting has been used in animated adverts for American Express.  The artist’s craft is born from a deep curiosity about the idiocy and beauty of being alive. And a compulsion to make art as a form of therapy. He doesn’t just want to make art. He has to. And he’s not shy about being satirical. Despite a long battle with alcoholism (he’s been sober for over six years), his work has made him a London icon.  Listen in as Vince and Paul discuss his experience of alcoholism and thoughts on AA, drawing Trump giving himself a blow job, and how to know when you’ve pushed it too far.  https://www.instagram.com/paulcopyrightdavis/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The craft of graphic design has changed dramatically since the 80s. Computers. The popularisation of branding. Over the past four plus decades John Rushworth, the design behemoth Pentagram’s longest serving partner, has seen it all. Despite these seismic shifts, he believes the thinking and innate human ability it takes to do truly impactful work hasn’t changed.  Rushworth has had a huge impact on the world of design. He’s delivered graphic solutions to clients across almost every industry from Polaroid to Great Western Railway with his in-dept approach to design. Working closely with his clients, he works to draw out what it is that truly makes them who they are. Then turns them into strategically focused and visually compelling brands. He’s also had a huge impact on Vince Frost – he was his boss at Pentagram and the person who has influenced his career and design philosophy more than any other creative.  Growing up in working class Yorkshire, he’d never heard the word design. It was a student teacher at his, “if I’m honest, pretty bad school,” who’d studied the craft that set a task to design an album cover that his eyes were opened. At age 14, he was good. At his Preston College of Art graduation show he was picked up by Conran Design Group. A year later he moved to Pentagram, just in time for their 10th birthday party. In 1987 he became the studio’s first associate and two years later was the first employee to be invited to become a partner.  The creative has been member of the Alliance Graphique Internationale (AGI) since 1994 and a Director of the Outset Contemporary Art Fund since 2012. His work has been exhibited worldwide and has received many international awards including a gold medal at the Lahti Poster Biennale and multiple D&AD silver pencils.   Listen in as Vince and John discuss the business of design, the impact of computers and AI on the design process, and what Vince learned working under him at Pentagram in the 90s.    https://www.pentagram.com/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In the past decade, the debate about the role of books in our increasingly digital world has been a hot one. This devotee of the printed form is unequivocal. She believes content online has simply pushed publishers to make better books.   Emilia Terragni is Associate Publisher at Phaidon Press, the world’s leading publisher of books on art, design and culture. Phaidon turns 100 this year. Terragni has been there for 22, specialising in books on architecture, design, food, fashion and art, and is considered one of the most influential editors working in the field today.  Born and raised in Como, Italy, by a creative family where books were incredibly important, she ran away aged 19 to study in Venice. A PHD in fine art set her on the path to a career as a curator or art critic. But it was during her time in the archives of the Vitra Design Museum cataloguing the work of architect Mexican architect and engineer Luis Barragán that she met with Phaidon, and the rest is history.  Listen in as Vince and Emilia discuss working together on Nan Goldin’s iconic photography book The Devil’s Playground in 2003, the privilege of working with the prolific British graphic designer Alan Fletcher to his dying day, and being named The Queen of Cookbooks by the Wall Street Journal.  https://www.phaidon.com/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.