Interview: Is your T-shirt Profound?

Sara Elghobashy
November 25, 2009

Since the ’80s, T-shirts have been a popular form of self-expression, often embedded with irony and sarcasm. But Faraz Zaidi, the 24-year-old founder and designer of Profound Aesthetic, wants to transform the T-shirt with positive messages and aesthetically-pleasing designs. HEEBA steals a moment from this up-and-coming artist to find out exactly how he plans on doing that.

Q:How did you first get started with design?
Faraz Zaidi: I started out making websites to make some side cash freshman year of high school and began a business, which I called “FZ Designs.” I recall printing hundreds of flyers and business cards and heavily marketed it all around the community. Although I didn’t have the technical expertise to create something dynamic, I somehow got by with creating simple, clean websites that people seemed to like. I think that planted a seed and was somewhat the birth to my interest in design.

Q: Did you go to design school or were you self-taught?
FZ: I attended Rutgers University, Mason Gross School of the Arts. Although I did go to school for design I’m certain I learned most of what I know outside of school grounds, simply experimenting with various mediums of art on my own.

Q: Do you work with other forms of art as well (photography, painting, etc.)? Or are you solely focused on designing?
FZ: Art is very vague. I like experimenting with all forms of art, whether it is photography, illustration, design, architecture, fashion, music, etc. Each medium serves its own purpose. For example, a photographer typically captures something that already exists and the beauty is brought about through the perspective in which they choose to represent it. A design is born from scratch—an empty canvas, a blank piece of paper. It’s a product of one’s imagination that’s truly unique.

Q: What part of your work and your creative process do you enjoy the most?
FZ: The feeling of creating designs with substance, which not only are visually appealing to the public eye, but also carry weight with tremendous metaphoric connotation. Also, knowing that people all around the world are wearing my designs is an incredible feeling.

Q: How do you come up with the idea of Profound Aesthetic?
FZ: We are a team of designers, musicians, philosophers, photographers, and thinkers who are driven by the idea that every individual, regardless of race or creed, status or disposition, should be able to pick up a shirt and wear it with pride and appreciate it for its message. A great deal of thought is put into each and every design to ensure that it is purely unique. We take an enormous amount of pride in creating the most creative and penetrating designs that exceed anything else that is out in today’s market. We were simply sick and tired of designs with absolutely no substance or meaning and a t-shirt in recent years has become a great method of expression and art. It was our perfect opportunity to make a difference.

Q: Where do the concepts for the designs come from? Are they planned ahead of time in your head or is it something you improvise?
FZ: The concepts are a collaborative effort between my team and me. It is in the most unexpected places that a design can be born and brought to fruition.

Q: How are you looking to expand your brand?
FZ: We are looking forward to releasing many more designs in the upcoming months for our Spring 2010 Collection. In addition to that, we are working on introducing a premium denim line, winter attire such as cardigans, sweatshirts, jackets and accessories, as well as an expanded women’s line. We want to continue to expand as quickly as we have in the past year. We are also in the midst of talking to several retailers that will soon be carrying our clothing line. Lastly, as an ode to our love for the Big Apple, NYC, we aspire to open our very first Profound Aesthetic Clothing Store in the heart of Manhattan. Aside from that, we are continuing to expand our online network by introducing our new “I AM PROFOUND” Magazine Blog with daily updates along with an ever-expanding Facebook network and most recently, Twitter.

Q: What are you currently working on?
FZ: We are currently in the process of releasing a new line of designs. We are also in communication with some retailers who are potentially interested in selling the Profound Aesthetic Brand in their stores.

Q: The message of Profound Aesthetics seems to be very positive and uplifting. Where does that come from?
FZ: Our goal is simple, we want to make an impact on people. At Profound Aesthetic our foundation lies in spreading a positive message. We want to change society’s mode of thinking by bringing about a positive attitude that encourages people to think for themselves and to find the greatest beauty in the simplest of concepts. We believe that the world is a beautiful place, and that should never be forgotten, and our goal is to help remind you of that every time you look in to your wardrobe. We promote a strong powerful outlook toward life, and the notion that anything is possible with a feel good attitude.

Date: November 25, 2009