The Way I See It: Erik Vervroegen

Erik Vervroegen, 47, is international creative director for Publicis Worldwide, based in Paris – the city where he previously headed up TBWA. The Belgian-born creative joined Publicis in 2011 after moving from Goodby Silverstein and Partners in San Francisco. His award-winning work includes campaigns for Nissan, McDonald’s, PlayStation and the New York Times. In this excerpt from the new issue of shots, Vervroegen talks to Diana Goodman about boxing, creative inspiration and why he’s not afraid of dying.

Subscribers to shots.net can read the full interview here.

I live at the moment in a rented, furnished place in Paris because I’m travelling so much. I want to see as many Publicis people in as many countries as possible, to build a relationship with these guys and prove that it’s no bullshit – Publicis really does want to help them get better work.

I grew up in Belgium, in the centre of Brussels. My mother was a teacher and my father was a professional bike racer in his early days before he became a professional drinker. As you can imagine, with alcohol, violence and abuse, we were a very happy and harmonious family.

My first memory is the smell of gasoline and oil on the race tracks. The sound of the drag pipes. This is still my favorite smell and the sound I prefer. But, of course, I wasn’t happy as a child. It was not nice at all.

I left home when I was 14 and I felt much better from that day. I’d started boxing at 11 or 12 and I stayed for a while with my trainer. Then I quit school at the age of 16 because I really wanted to live life as an independent person and see what life would bring. So I found a job in a supermarket and had a little apartment and trained all day.

At the age of 18, I was very, very lucky to find advertising. By chance, I saw an old-school layout at a friend’s house. You know, the ones they used to do with markers. That friend was working as a layout man in some Belgian agency. To me, that layout looked like art. I asked him what it was and he explained everything I needed to know about advertising. A couple of months later, I was studying at an advertising school in Brussels.

There’s not one ad that I’m proud of in particular, because – like most creative people – I still see mistakes. That’s a disease we’ve all got, I think. But if that ad helped a cause in any way, or a client to sell more clothes, or someone to improve, then I’m proud.

My worst experience in advertising has been working with cowards. In general, fear and ego are the most dangerous things in life and that’s what we’re fighting against most of the time. If a great idea is not produced, 90 per cent of the time it’s because of fear. When people are hiding or not fighting for the work, it falls apart. You have to be brave or it doesn’t happen.

As a consumer, I guess I react to advertising like everybody else. It has to be elegant, sophisticated, simple, beautiful or striking or super-clever or hilarious or so fresh. Or all of these qualities at the same time.

The people I most admire are those who are true to themselves. True to other people. It’s better to be hated for who you really are than to be loved for someone you aren’t.

How would my enemies describe me? Hum... about enemies, let me say this: fame brings fake friends and true enemies.

When you start judging, you are generally very excited; you give each piece of work lots of attention. But after 30 minutes, you are bored of that crap and start judging like a consumer. From 15 to 20 seconds of attention, you are moving down to two or three maximum. Like flipping through a magazine. I’m looking for the kind of work that takes me by the hand for a longer journey – that will make me laugh or cry or think that I should go back to advertising school.

I honestly don’t care if people like me or not. I consider myself a trainer. My job is to make you better. My job is to make you an enduring creative. A marathonian of the idea. And, to get you there, I might ask you a lot. I might make you sweat. But in return, I will give you a lot.

I absolutely do not regard advertising as an art form. Art does not have time or money constraints. You don’t have a client briefing when you are making art, or a list of dos and don’ts. You don’t have to test your piece to see what consumers or potential buyers will think.

I’m still totally into sports training, four or five times a week in the morning. I need that in my life to keep my balance right. But I’m from Belgium, so when I drink, I drink a lot. I don’t drink for two months, then I have 15 beers in a night and I’m very happy. The next morning I’m in the gym, sweating that alcohol out of my body.

What is the appeal of motorcycles? As you know, my father was a motorcycle racer, so I guess it helps. I was born in a garage full of bikes: Triumphs, Saroléa (Belgian), Motobi (Italian)... If you don’t like bikes or girls (or men), check your pulse, you might be dead. I think everything about motorcycles is sexy, just like rock’n’roll.

My interests outside work are fighting, running, sweating, painting, riding, kissing, loving.

My greatest weakness is that I’m a stupid, naïve romantic. It’s also my greatest strength. Sometimes it’s put me in terrible situations, but other times it’s been fantastic.

I last cried... on Saturday. It’s a very good example of my being stupid, naïve and romantic. I was at work, listening to Bruce Springsteen’s Incident On 57th Street, and I started to cry because it was so beautiful. I was laughing at myself, but I listened to it 10 times in a row.

Do I believe in God? Absolutely, the higher power.

I’m not afraid of dying anymore. When I was younger, I was very concerned about that. I was obsessed about achieving some goals before I died. Then I realised that death is on a more spiritual level and I accepted the idea that you can be gone tomorrow. I’m totally at peace with that now and not afraid of it.

If I could relive my life, I would try something different, like a career in mechanics, art or sport.

In the end, what really matters... is that you tell all of your demons to go fuck themselves, and live your life with pride. That’s what I really believe.

Subscribers to shots.net can read the full interview here.