“How would you design Vanity Fair?” Mario Lombardo replied tersely : “Not at all.”

White on white—from abstract painters Kasimir Malevich and Robert Ryman to the humble tennis shoe, pale monochrome on top of pale monochrome has always proven a classic style. No one knows this dictum better than Mario Lombardo, who has created a distinct aesthetic under the nom de design Bureau.

That’s clear in his poster concept for K-Swiss’ You Gotta Know Your Classics poster campaign, Blond On Blond, where the words and colors (or lack thereof) literally deconstruct off the page. It’s a witty homage to the all-white tennis style epitomized by the K-Swiss Classic shoe, a look that has dominated tennis fashion since… well, the K-Swiss Classic (see history of).

The Berlin-based Lombardo is one of the leading design forces in Europe, re-energizing print media spanning fashion to photography, magazines to corporate design and record labels, garnering numerous awards  with his haunting, unexpected imagery and groundbreaking typography. KSPACE discussed all this and more with the designer who puts “icon” into iconoclasm.

KSPACE: Where are you located? How does your home base influence your sensibility?
Lombardo: Recently I live in Berlin-Mitte; a few years ago I was based in Cologne, Hamburg and Buenos Aires.  When I achingly realized that I really work a lot, I decided to create an environment that keeps me really happy. Now I have a combination of everything I really love. I designed my own furniture out of blackboards and have a lot of lovely people working in my office: we drink good coffee, and as often as I can I cook for us all. . .

KSPACE: How did you start designing? What inspired you? What have been your greatest achievements?
Lombardo: I started designing in the mid-‘90s, always with the goal to design magazines or to make stuff for the music industry. I never thought of making a music magazine, but i did – and I think I’ve done it well. I got over 50 awards for it. Afterwards, I’ve made some fashion, music and politic ones – this was also fun. Now my goal is to combine everything. But I don’t know how to do it yet.

KSPACE: What do you think you bring to the design process? If you had to explain your aesthetic to your grandmother (or mine), how would you do it?
Lombardo: I create poetic pictures with a meta layer, and combine them with a classic typography. I’m not really modern; I never was.

KSPACE: What are your classic influences? What makes a design classic and truly timeless?
Lombardo: My most important influence in my life is music. I also love my family, friends and colleagues, the news and gossip! That all keeps me on the ground. What I also need is stress, but mum’s the word! Don’t tell my other clients!

KSPACE: How did you get involved with this K-Swiss initiative? What were you trying to say about the Classic’s history with your contribution?
Lombardo: I love the thin strokes on the classics. So I made a handmade type out of it. I love to do things with my hands. I wanted to create a camouflage ornament for this poster: white on white, blond on blond.

KSPACE: Lastly, if you could be the all-mighty design guru for humanity, what would you change and instigate globally to make the world a better place?
Lombardo: What? If I would be something like that (If i had the power), my mission would be something like combining all religions into one. I think it’s really silly to fight about something like religion. Do you know moslbuddjewchristhindao? It’s a fragrance a friend of mine, Daniel Josefsohn, created. “Unifaith” – I love this idea.