In the grand scheme of questionable fashion decisions or perhaps choices, there’s always a special corner reserved for shirts that make you do a double take. One could find a shirt stating, “I can’t take ‘Benadryl’ because I owe the hat man money and I don’t want to see him.” And to be honest, It’s the perfect mix of absurdity and specificity, making everyone wonder about the backstory of such clothing items.
A lot more of such examples could be found on a particular Instagram page called “Shirts that go hard” as the page collects submissions of interesting and peculiar as well as funny shirts from all around the world. Don’t believe us? Check for yourself!
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Bored Panda reached out to Glenn Jones, an artist and a t-shirt designer, for a deep dive into his world of witty and thoughtful illustrations that end up on a piece of clothing later on.
When asked about the origin of his unique concepts, Glenn Jones explained to Bored Panda, “I like to take pop culture or easily recognizable stuff people interact with every day and try to put a unique twist on it or add some humor, or at least something that I find funny.”
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In response to how his style has evolved over two decades of designing t-shirts, he shared, “I’ve always tried to keep stuff simple and clean, so generally my style has stayed the same. It’s probably become more refined, plus Adobe Illustrator has added so many tools that help create over the years so utilizing those has helped the end result too.”
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On finding inspiration in the mundane and translating this into his illustrations, Glenn stated, “I think that’s the challenge that I enjoy, taking something that people know and presenting it in a different way.”
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When reflecting on how t-shirt designing as a hobby transformed his career, Glenn revealed, “Yes, it took my career down a totally different path. It created a new business for me and also gave me exposure which led to opportunities to work with great people and brands. I think now more than ever, social media allows anyone to showcase their talent to the world. It’s all about just constantly creating. You never know who’s going to see it.”
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Lastly, on the specifics of what he considers when creating illustrations for t-shirts, Jones emphasized to us that, “Simplicity for my work is key, and colors, but for me, I try to convey my idea in a clean, visually understandable way.”
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