It is said that the main function of graphic design is to communicate in a visual way a series of messages that are perfectly understandable and persuasive for the recipient they are directed to. And then there is the art: the ability to express complex and subtle issues in a distinctive way, and that also has a unique ability to thrill us.

But can graphic design work even if we don't fully understand the message? Or, to put it differently, can we get excited in the same way with design as with art? For me, the answer to both questions has a name: Kasper Ledet, Art Director and Graphic Designer at To Øl and BRUS.

Born in 1987 and resident in Copenhagen, Kasper studied architecture - although he did not finish his degree - and defines himself as a pseudo art historian and self-taught graphic designer.

In high school he shared a desk with the founders of To Øl, and already at that time, he designed - with a Xerox machine - some of the labels they used in their first experimental beers made in the school kitchen. In 2010, To Øl launched its first beer on the market and they thought of Kasper for the creation of the design. Since then, they continue working together.

Having Kasper Ledet in the series of Craft Beer and Design in C R A F T E D is a true privilege, because in addition to being a person of reference worldwide, I have been an admirer of his work for many years.

Ø: You are the art director of To Øl and Brus, and responsible for designing the labels of its bottles and cans. But you are also in charge of all the visual brand aspects, including the office decoration and the merch.

You have been working with To Øl since 2010, and you continue to surprise us each time you present a new design. Could you explain what inspires you when it comes to your creative process, and how do you manage to reinvent yourself again and again, without abandoning the strong brand identity that you have created? And also: do the different beer styles and/or the ingredients added to each beer influence when you create its designs?

Kasper: As you already pointed out the designs coming out of To Øl can be quite different. I don’t really think of it as reinvention but more as a continuous exploration. Elements from one design may find their way into another. Things are tried and tested in various ways.

Even though To Øl has no strict design system there is still a loose style running through everything. For instance I mainly work with photography and typography often inspired by abstract painting. The lack of a strict design system makes room for a great deal of experimentation but it also results in a somewhat incoherent output, that is the prize of such an approach, so to speak.

It is a bit like a musician making various songs and albums. Some are good and interesting others are bad and mediocre. I guess this can seem provocative to some: approaching visual communication as a somewhat personal playground and not only as a way of communicating clearly and efficiently.

This then raises the question if what I do for To Øl could be considered fine art instead of design? I really don’t think it is necessary to evoke the notion of fine art to understand the work. I like to think that the work operates firmly within the world of graphic design and visual communication. By saying that everything being the least bit experimental should be considered fine art, you are degrading graphic design to a second grade profession without the possibility of true creative expression and I really don’t believe that is true.

There has been made plenty of personal and idiosyncratic graphic design work through the times, just think of Peter Saville’s designs for Factory Records, Hipgnosis’ sleeves for Pinkfloyd or the work of Stefan Sagmeister or David Carson. I think that the work of the above mentioned designers would not have been that powerful if it was done within the world of fine art for instans.

To loosely cite dutch design group Experimental Jetset (who is also making some wonderful idiosyncratic design work) “fine art could be considered a sub branch of design”, but that is another discussion altogether...

I am often influenced by the style of beer, the ingredients or the name. Quite often much more so then what is apparent by seeing the final design. These things serves as a departing ground for trying out various ideas and associations. A super hazy beer could for instance provoke experimentation with abstract and blurry photography.

Ø: In your opinion, what qualities do you think a good graphic designer should have who is interested in working for the craft beer sector?
Kasper: I don’t know really. The only work i have done in the craft beer sector has been for To Øl. I did never actually apply for the job. I met the founders back when we were in high school together and gradually I was pulled into the company. I’m just an “architecture school dropout, pseudo art historian and self taught graphic designer” as my official bio puts it.

Ø: If you had to choose a project from your portfolio that you are most proud of, what would it be and why?
Kasper: I don’t have a single project that I always consider the best. It changes quite often, like my assessment of my own skills. Sometimes I feel like I’m the most brilliant designer on earth other times like I’m the biggest imposter ever. Curiously those two feelings often coexist. The friction between them could maybe be the drive that fuels creativity altogether or maybe I’m just completely of the rails with this pseudo Freudian rambling...

Ø: Do you prefer to face the creative process alone, or as a team?
Kasper: It depends on the challenge. I have nothing against either.

Ø: Which brands and / or graphic designers in the craft beer world do you admire?
Kasper: Oedipus Brewing is doing some nice stuff.

Ø: Finally, can or bottle?
Kasper: I really don’t have a favorite. I also don’t have a favorite colour or typeface. I’m just interested in the connections between things not the actual things themself.