A For Adventure

12/19/2023

I met a woman who saw the bumper sticker “Mean People Suck” and felt there might be a better message to impart. She had a print shop design and print a small run of bumper stickers, and they were sold until gone at a gift store in Santa Fe. She kept only one sticker for herself, which she put on her own car until someone tore it off, at which point she had a friend print one on laser paper which she taped to her bumper with packing tape.

Nothing to gain, no larger agenda, just a chance to maybe pass along that not everything is as it seems, not everything is black and white, and maybe if you can, take a second to have empathy for those who you might otherwise write off.

It’s one of my favorite stories of graphic design, and I’ve never even seen the piece – for all I know they used Papyrus font (which would not be a bad guess for a 90s bumper sticker in New Mexico), but like a lot of great design, it’s less about the vehicle than it is the message it carries. –

12/08/2023

We were worried that it didn’t look like much out of context with the source – the magazine. “You got to prove the mark, the masthead, with the magazine design,” we would often say on this assignment. Easier said than done when the magazine now only comes out every four months.

As it can often be with us, it’s all about color pairings and typography sets. Vibe. The thing that can be so frustrating and elusive on a project that requires a design “system” is how to quantify and make space – if even just conceptually – for vibe.

, Richmond’s pulp news and arts weekly since 1982, was overdue for a spiff-up on a lot of things, vibe included. One thing led to another, meetings were had, most notably the one where inadvertently wore two pairs of glasses the whole time (one on his face, one atop his hat), and was chosen for the revibe.

Jon began his design career in weeklies waaaay back in the day – most notably Seattle’s and then a three-year stint at Richmond’s Punchline magazine as art director – so newsprint and ink are in his blood, likely literally.

Thanks in no small part to wonderful partners – , , and , the right vibes fell into place in a process that felt inclusive and natural. We love it when good people and good planning come together.

We’re excited for Richmond to watch the rollout of Style’s new look as it happens, but we’re also stoked to reveal some spec design that helped establish the look and vibe – there’s more to Style’s new clean mark than meets the eye when it begins to interact with the rest of the system.

Welcome back, Style, and thanks for letting us impart some good vibes.

12/01/2023

A short behind-the-scenes on our quest to find a great brand aesthetic for Westray’s Finest Ice Cream.

03/05/2019

For anyone who hasn't seen it, bravo, Mother London.

Discover the story of Rang-Tan, a young Indonesian orangutan that has been forced out of her home by humans... Turn the sound on to hear Emma Thompson narrat...

09/13/2018

So many emails...

Just a handful out of the hundreds of marketing emails we've created for Shockoe Atelier over the years...

09/12/2018

The return of lamp.
https://buff.ly/2QnDZuv

08/01/2018

We love this beer as much as we love this label design.
🍺❌🍺

05/07/2018

We've added a few new projects to our website and rejiggered it a little bit to reflect our revamped branding. Who doesn't need a good rejiggering every now and again? :-)

We are brave brands who sing and shout. We stand out.

05/03/2018

Working on our fresh new kit just in time for the warm weather.