JB. Magazine Blog : From My Brain to Paper

The doodling, type designing, writing and publishing Rob Lowe aka Supermundane has some valuable knowledge about London pubs to share. www.supermundane.com

Hello Rob! Please give us an insight into a few things you do. Five best things about Anorak Magazine. Best things about Anorak?
well… 1 – It's for Children, which means it has no place for cynicism or negativity and means all things are possible. 2 – Working with illustrators. I love being able to work with illustrators all over the world and commissioning them to 
do something that isn't selling stuff that people generally don't need. 3 – Working with Cathy, the publisher and editor, who gives me the freedom to create a magazine that I am proud of. 4 – Learning stuff. Each Anorak is themed and there isn't a issue that goes by that I don't learn something new! 5 – Making kids happy. I remember comics and magazines I liked when I was a child with a great fondness, the idea that in the future some children maybe talking about Anorak in the same way fills me with great pride.

Things you do most while producing an issue of Anorak.
I draw a lot, drink tea a lot and design a lot. Five things about drawing. 1 – It's the most direct way I can go from my brain to paper. 2 – You can legitimately sharpen a pencil with a knife. 3 – If I do it for too long my wrists hurt. 4 – Everyone is capable of doing it. 5 – Everyone should draw.

Greatest thing about being an illustrator.
Well, I don't really see myself as an illustrator, but the best bit about doing what I do is partly the freedom and partly being paid to draw and colour-in.

Worst thing that can happen to an illustrator.
Being asked to draw things I can't or don't want to draw.

Best thing about being a publisher.
I love books and words and printed matter, so publishing little books satisfies this love.

Five favourite food places in London.
I don't really go out to many restaurants and those that I do would come as no revelation to anyone. So, if I may, I'd like to change this to my top five pubs, something I know much more about. 1 – The Balham Bowling Club (B.B.C). This is the closest I have to a local and my favourite pub in my area. As the name suggests it's an old bowling club, inside the walls are all wood panelled and the furniture mismatched. 2 – The Harp. This is a pub near Trafalgar Square that is the closest to a local you will get in the centre of London. The bar staff are great and the ales are always served and kept very well. If you happen to be in London and like ales I suggest a visit. If you go there on a Thursday or Friday, there is a chance I will be in the alley at the back of the pub with a pint! 3 – The Seven Stars. It's just behind the Royal Courts of Justices and is a real gem! The landlady is a gregarious antipodean called Roxy Beaujolais and they have a resident cat called Tom Paine that wears a white ruff. What more can you ask for. 4 – The Town of Ramsgate. I haven't been here in a while, I used to have a studio near by, but it's a lovely pub on the Thames in Wapping. Very friendly and the landlord & lady are from the West Midlands, where I come from, so that got to 
be a good thing! It has a lovely sun-trap patio that over looks the Thames. 5 – The Champion. A great Saturday afternoon pub if you want to get away from the craziness of nearby Oxford Street. It usually looks closed, as you can't see in, due to all the windows being stained glass. The pub is a traditional victorian type and, if it's sunny outside, the stained glass gives the pub a feeling of a church. A church to beer. It's a Samuel Smith pub so they don't serve any recognised brands, my favourite is a bottle of Oatmeal Stout decanted into a half pint glass and a good book.

Favourite complaint about London …
I love London so I have little to complain about. One thing though is public transport, the way everything gets ridiculously packed, that is the only thing that I truly dislike about London.

Last five books/magazines you bought
1 – White by Kenya Hara 2 – A Girl in Winter by Philip Larkin 3 – The Observer Book of Birds 4 – Love is a Dog from Hell by 
Charles Bukowski 5 – The Observer Book of Trees

Interview: Jenne Grabowski JB. Magazine