There you have it, an inspirational quote about inspiration from our main man in London, Paul Smith. I can’t argue with that. I think we can safely say he knows what he’s talking about.

That elusive and difficult-to-nail-down thing we call inspiration. What is it, where does it come from, and how can we get hold of some?

I like to take a leaf out of Sir Paul’s proverbial book of tips and tricks, and grab my inspiration from anywhere I can find it.

This could be anything from a simple walk around the city with a camera, a visit to a gallery, a new book on photography, some fresh new vinyl, a concert, or a trip to Southeast Asia. Anything goes.

Inspiration really can come from anywhere. It could be the cinematography in a new movie, an obscure documentary, an old novel, or a late-night discovery from a YouTube rabbit hole.

All sorts of experiences, visuals, and conceptual ideas can help solve a design challenge at a later date.

Music curated by my favourite DJ Gilles Peterson is a great source of inspiration for me, and funnily enough, Mr Peterson is a firm believer in the concept of ‘joining the dots’ between genres, styles and musical artists. I kid you not.

The point for me is to have as wide a range of interests and references to draw from as possible, and I can then allow these ideas to feed back into my design work.