How Graphic Designer Ken Tanabe Rules Over All Halloweens. Ever.

We followed up with the graphic designer to figure out how we can up our game for next year

We’re back with another Member Spotlight, because our members are FRIGGIN’ AWESOME and always worth bragging about!

Some of you more dedicated members may recall this piece that we published earlier on in the week, featuring Ken Tanabe’s wonderfully surreal Halloween costumes. Needless to say, the dude loves the holiday. Having put together a relatively lackluster outfit myself, Ken helped me realize that this was the last time I scoured my closet and showed up to a party dressed as a “stereotypical Frenchman”. Next year, I’m going to take a page out of his Halloween rulebook and take more than an afternoon to come up with something real cool.

In the meantime, I followed up with Ken to get the inside scoop on his creative process and talk about another project of his. Check out our conversation below:

Can you elaborate on your love for Halloween and the eventual creation of your rules for the holiday?

I love Halloween because society’s fashion rules are suspended for a day. Suddenly, we’re all free to wear any outrageous thing. But somehow, a different set of rules crept in: dressing as recognizable characters, being dead and/or sexy, spending too much on a pre-made costume, etc. My Halloween rules reverse those rules: no recognizable characters, no being dead and/or sexy, make it yourself, etc. They’re designed to protect our one day of fashion freedom, and to keep you creative.

What inspired you to start the Halloween costume project?

My professional work is in creative direction across brand, experience, product, digital, etc. I’ve done work for Google, Lincoln Center, and many others. And while I enjoy crafting human-centric design solutions for real challenges, I realized that I missed making art for its own sake. It’s fun to be your own client and make your own rules.

Tell us more about this year’s costume — Shining Circles. What inspired you to design it and what was the process like?

I believe in making prototypes. Making helps you think. This year, that process included standing in the aisle of a craft store and holding embroidery rings up to various parts of my body for an hour or so. I get inspired in any place that sells inexpensive raw materials. Hardware stores are the best.

How has your creative process changed in the years since you started?

I try to devise new variations on my rules every year, which makes it progressively more difficult. The beauty is that it forces you to consider new things. Also, the photography has gotten more serious. The first year, I used an old one-megapixel digital camera that was held together with a rubber band. Fortunately, some talented professional photographer friends helped me to step that up.

How do you decide on what theme to pursue each year?

Every year when I start off, I don’t know exactly what the results will be. I know the end result should follow my Halloween rules. I try not to repeat myself so the results can be new and surprising. It’s a process of experimentation and discovery. And though the details change every time, I believe that artists develop the ability to know when their work is done.

Is there anything you are working on now that you would like to talk about and promote?

Speaking of holidays, I invented one. It’s called Loving Day. The name comes from Loving v. Virginia, the Supreme Court decision that struck down all laws against interracial marriage and relationships in 1967. The plaintiffs were a couple with the perfect last name: Richard and Mildred Loving. Every year, people now celebrate the June 12th anniversary of that decision as Loving Day. It’s grown into the world’s largest network of multiethnic community celebrations. This year, people hosted Loving Day celebrations in over 50 cities around the world including Mew York, Los Angeles, Amsterdam, Paris, Tokyo, Copenhagen, and more. The #lovingday hashtag was trending #3 for the U.S. on Twitter. Find out more here!

That’s it for this week’s Member Spotlight. Make sure you follow Ken via his website for updates on all his amazing post-halloween graphic design work.