Ain’t the new kid on the block: Ozon Studio is a young practice, backed by years of experience

Although they didn’t know it at the time, growing up, Tim Tijink and Brent van den Elshout were interested in the same things. Music had a great influence on both their lives – when Tijink was creating album covers while in primary school, van den Elshout was making his own compilations of electronic music and crafting custom artworks for them. These interests in music and design grew over time, and when they met in 2020 and began collaborating, they became common strands that brought both their creative worlds together. Having worked as freelancers for many years, they first joined forces to create an identity for Minimal Collective, a music, art, and technology-focused publication and events platform co-founded by van den Elshout. What followed was a slew of collaborations, until they decided to set up shop together. And so, they founded Ozon Studio in Amsterdam, where Tijink is the Designer & Art Director, while van den Elshout oversees creative direction, strategy and communication.

In a sense, the studio was long in the making. Launched in 2024, Ozon is where the duo showcase their recent projects, and also carve out a space for the kind of collaborations they’re looking for. Sifting through their work, it’s not hard to see that music and art – and culture at large – continue to inspire them, and the projects they shape. Together, they’ve created identities for many festivals, organisations and clubs, each dipped in the kind of clarity, grit and honesty that only comes with years of experience. We sat down for a conversation with the two Co-founders to learn why starting Ozon was the “logical next step” for them, how applying a “cultural lens” helps them to grasp deeper meanings behind brands, and what the future holds for the young, yet experienced studio.

RB Hello, Tim and Brent! How have things been lately at the Ozon Studio HQ?

TT Refreshing, exciting and energising. Although Brent and I have been working together on projects for years already, we are still in the start-up phase of our studio, and have been polishing up our identity and are rolling it out step by step.

BE Step by step, indeed. A brand entity can be compared to a human. It has its personality, character traits, and story – something that will grow over time as you nurture it with care. Since the day we launched, we’ve received so much positive feedback and support from our community and friends. We’re already working on some fresh projects from all over the world with people that inspire us. I guess being grateful and motivated is our main state!

RB Tell us a bit about your individual creative journeys, and what led you to each other.

TT I’ve been playing around with design and software to create simple things since my early teens. At the time, I didn’t even realise graphic design could be a profession, or that it would become my main job. It became more tangible a few years later when I was allowed to go to parties and festivals. I discovered this entire new world of (electronic) music and the art of design that often came with it. The visual aspect has always grabbed my attention. Artwork, posters, but also the aesthetics of club interiors, the re-use of dated buildings, lighting, installations, exhibitions, steaming club rooms and the shadows of people in the crowd. Ever since, it’s always been one of the biggest sources of inspiration for what I do. My first real design job followed after an internship at OOST, a small nightclub in Groningen where I still work today. More followed in the years after and while being patient, I built a portfolio that slowly but steadily brought me to where I am today. I’ve been lucky enough to work for a wide range of clients within the creative industry in the years since then.

Brent and I met back in 2020. He had discovered my work somehow and he reached out on Instagram to say that he was looking for a designer to work on his platform, Minimal Collective. We jumped on a phone call that same day to talk about the ideas and things started from there. Back then there were some thoughts on how to transform it into something new and more professional, which made the new identity one of the key pillars. This was the first project we worked on together, after which more followed. This gradually led us to where we are now – Ozon Studio. The umbrella under which all our work can co-exist.

BE Since I was a kid, I’ve been naturally attracted to storytelling with music as the main medium. In the early days of the internet, music wasn’t that easily accessible though. This led to years of watching alternative TV channels and sifting through the local record shops. I got intrigued by not only the sonic but also the visual aspect that would make up music and its culture. Naturally, I got involved in the Dutch electronic music scene as a young teenager – travelling the country every week to witness artists in full effect. But it was more than just music. The aesthetics of the venue, the freedom of the dancefloor, and the subcultures around cities or genres. It’s a world of interconnected creativity. When I got home after the weekend, I devoted my week to collecting, reading, and learning about these topics around music and arts. I started to put my perspective and ideas into words – leading to what today is Minimal Collective – a team of 30 creatives and writers worldwide that indeed brought me and Tim together in 2020. I will never forget that first call!

Throughout the years, my work found its way into the corridors of the freelance field somewhat organically. What started as writing for brands and individuals grew into creative direction and brand development for a broad spectrum of clients within different industries. Since then, I’ve thrived on the duality between working for others versus running my own organisation. It’s fascinating to learn about the set of beliefs that move a brand or person. The more you keep working, the more you’re able to combine the learnings from multiple angles, which allows you to zoom out or zoom in as far as is desirable for the specific project.

RB How and when did the idea of Ozon Studio take shape? Was there a particular moment where the penny dropped, and you went “Why don’t we start a studio together?” or did the idea brew over time?

BE Although the idea slid in organically, it definitely brewed over time. Starting a studio together is a lifelong commitment. We both were in a good place with our individual work, but we also felt an overarching entity would allow us to tell a stronger story together. After some years of working together, we realised our long-term vision aligned, so we began envisioning a utopic studio space. We were also asking ourselves what our goals look like – artistically, intellectually, and collectively. What do we want to share with the world? How do we want to contribute? What is our aim? This process took more than a year for sure. So it was somewhat of a brewing process with multiple penny-drop moments!

RB I wanted to talk a bit about the branding of your studio itself – how difficult or easy was it to create your own identity?

TT Purely from a graphic designer perspective, I feel like working on a project for yourself is one of the most difficult tasks. While you could say that it takes out a few steps compared to client work, I think it’s actually a lot harder. You’re in constant conflict with yourself, trying to figure out what direction to go in as you essentially give feedback to your own work. But that also results in being able to create exactly what you have in mind in the end.

BE Although intuition is key, we aren’t the type of people who make decisions like these in the blink of an eye. Getting to a clear philosophy for the studio was a smooth process, but translating it into a visual identity took quite a while. As I said, starting a studio is a lifelong commitment – you better create something timeless and flexible. But I must admit, aesthetically, we knew which direction it had to go in before we even started. Nothing can be as ‘you’ as your own studio.

RB What defines the collaborative synergy between the two of you?

BE Freedom, trust, and an open mind.

RB Tell us about the hybrid nature of your studio. Why do you choose to stay small while bringing in collaborators, depending on the demands of a project?

TT We understand where you are coming from with this question, but we are not staying ‘small,’ we stay ‘close to ourselves.’ Staying close to yourself is essential for authenticity, and only authenticity breeds true success. This is why Ozon aims to foster the individual. We are a collective of creative professionals and artists from various backgrounds, brought together by a set of shared beliefs. We are like a task force getting into action in different formations based on the needs of the hour. We can become as big as a project demands. However, at our core, we are individuals honing our craft, driven by a passion for that specific field.

BE Exactly, and staying close to yourself is not only desirable for us, but also for the clients we collaborate with. In our data-driven age, ‘Blanding’ is becoming increasingly more present in the brand landscape. Operating from the inside out (read – close to yourself) is the only way to create an authentic brand and escape the trap of homogeneity. So, when collaborating with Ozon Studio, you’ll be working with people just like you. Instead of entering a standard funnel of processes, we provide tailor-made solutions based on our vision and experience, but above all, based on your story. You join the ecosystem of individuals and therefore create authentic and purposeful solutions together with us.

RB A lot of your work deals with events and organisations that involve music, art and theatre. Are you particularly drawn to these nodes of culture and these projects?

BE For the same reason I was drawn to it as a kid, I’m still drawn to it today. The only difference is that today I have a better understanding of ‘why’. Think about it – it’s a place where creativity comes to life for the sake of it, not for merely commercialised gains. It’s the purest and most free form of artistry and human creation. It’s a vacuum away from society where coincidence, the illogical, and the experimental are embraced. In some cases, it can even break free from the parameters that make up ‘success’ within our capitalist society. It allows us to linger in time, to be in the moment. This is where innovative ideas and fresh perspectives come to life. It’s where trends come to life and die first – it’s where thought and dialogue are provoked.

That being said, the cultural realm can be seen as a playground and research field. It’s like a boundless mirror of society. I extract so much learning from it. It allows me to connect broader philosophical topics to the reasoning of communication and design. The knowledge and inspiration drawn from the cultural field will always be felt in our studio work – our soul is here. Having over a decade of experience in the field allows us to grasp a deeper meaning behind brands, and how this could be translated into something understandable yet distinctive for the world. No matter the industry a brand is operating in, we’re able to apply our cultural lens to it. And where culture is created, a loyal following will come to life. Although I do not agree with the whole read, the book ‘The Culting of Brands’ by Douglas Atkin strongly emphasises the power of these dynamics.

TT Culture and the creative industry are where my roots are. And as I said earlier, these roots started growing even before I realised that the job I have these days could even be a job in the first place. Culture, and the music industry specifically, has been a guide for me since my first years, and it has not only shaped my taste in design but also me as a person.

Cultural institutions are often places where people operate out of different drivers and values than, for instance, commercial organisations or public spaces. As the goal often transcends delivering simply a product or service, mindsets within this field alter. Like Brent also said, these are places for experimentation in whatever it is they do, meaning that experimentation within your work is often appreciated. That’s something we crave.

No matter the industry a brand is operating in, we’re able to apply our cultural lens to it.

RB If you were introducing Ozon Studio to someone and could only show them one project from your portfolio, which one would you pick? 

BE That’s a hard question, but if I had to name one, it would be our ever-evolving work for Minimal Collective, as here all our skills come together – journalism, design, artistic curation, storytelling, and talent development. It’s a place where we’re able to combine research with personal and third-party visions on a professional level, both digitally and physically.

TT It’s the same one for me. We have put our skills and creativity into every aspect of the project, and it still evolves into something better with each piece of content today.

RB With a fresh new studio to shape and run, what’s the most exciting thing about working in the design industry at this moment in time?

TT My main source of inspiration within the design industry is the most primal form of verbal communication – language. We invented language, and with language, we can translate the abstract into meaning by perceiving shapes and symbols in a specific way. This is what we as designers constantly do in our line of work. We give meaning to abstract ideas. It’s an ancient method that we still use daily.

When you think about the fact that these techniques took thousands of years to be shaped and the world we live in today moves at the speed of light, digitalisation and globalisation are undeniable sources of inspiration and a constant learning curve. Technological developments today have industries at the edge of their seat, and so is ours. Our work is becoming more and more digitally focused. With the rise of intelligent technologies and spatial computing, it’s fascinating to see where this is going to take us. How will we perceive the digital vs. the physical in 10 years? What will this mean for design? Questions we ask ourselves daily.

BE Pff, so many things are exciting! There is endless inspiration around us. Whether it be in the work of architects, graphic designers, or spatial designers. You can learn a lot by simply walking around and observing other people operate. It’s crazy to realise that everything that is not created by nature is ‘design.’ As Tim mentioned, even our language is designed. This ultimately makes ‘nature’ the most fascinating creator of all time. So yes – the world around us is the most exciting thing for me. I’ve been late to meetings as I got distracted by absorbing the most simple things outside that inspire me visually. Pictures of this will often end up on a mood board when working on a new brand with Tim.

Besides these fundamental sources of inspiration, you have technology and human minds becoming more intelligent by the day. Our perceived reality is slowly but increasingly morphing with technology. This goes beyond the practical use of AI in your day-to-day job, it alters the way we as humans are going to experience communication and life in general. We are working on our craft in one of the most transformative times ever in the industry. It’s like being part of a new industrial revolution.

These ideas show up in our work quite notably – we always seem to combine the two outer ends of the spectrum. Combining the ‘fundamental’ or ‘simple’ with the ‘complex’ or ‘abstract’. Throughout the years, multiple publications have described our work as ‘maximal minimalism.’ I guess that describes our desire within our work – to approach everything from two opposing perspectives and find the sweet spot within.

RB What can we expect to see from you soon? Where do you want to take the studio?

TT Some cool projects are coming up in continents around the world. Besides this, we will gradually move into different industries, aiming to apply our cultural scope to the spheres of architecture, fashion, and technology. We see so many brands out there with stories worth telling through a perspective that starts from the inside out, connecting all there is to one narrative.

Ozon Studio