Logos and Identity
I’ve been creating logos for as long as I can remember. Restaurants, Scandinavian Design Shops, dog walkers, and wine bars, my logo clients have been vast and varied. With many of these clients the project is rarely limited to creating just a “mark”. Nine times out of ten, the work extends into other areas of branding including; naming, creating tag lines, color palettes, identity systems, advertising and even interior design suggestions as in the case of restaurant development. Some of the images below didn’t make it to prime time but I’ve included them because I believe they are graphically successful. Feel free to inquire with any questions.
Klassik Living
I’ve always had a fascination with all things Scandinavian — design, architecture, and most obsessively: furniture. Living in the Bay Area and collecting all things Danish, it wasn’t long before I met Lynn Jensen, a pioneer importer of vintage goods direct from Denmark. When she opened her second brick and mortar establishment, Klassik Living, I was quick to offer my design services.
What began as a logo project turned into an ever evolving body of work including signage, in-store, website, print, mailers, and much more. Since then my collection of Danish Modern has grown and Klassik Living has become a staple for thousands of other Mid Century Modern fans across town. The following are some favorite samples of my work on the brand. Being a subject close to my heart, I also enjoyed writing the copy for these projects.
Print advertising is still a passion for me. Here’s a few CMYK success stories. Working on the LA Original campaign at 72 and Sunny I explored a few print options that didn’t get produced but, I still love them. The project was done in tandem with the Mayor’s office and aimed to modernize the global impression of our city.
Hulu brought me in house to develop a campaign aimed at strengthening their brand visibility. With an interest in showcasing their programming, my favorite execution was a device that could elegantly house multiple key visuals while simultaneously reinforcing the logo.
At 72 And Sunny, I was the senior designer on the campaign that brought Coors Light into the 21st century, CLIMB ON. Click to see the rest of the campaign.
Working with School of Thought Agency, I designed the campaign that won them the North Lake Tahoe account. To see more of the campaign, just click the image below.
Not everything I develop gets produced. Such is the case with this campaign I created for Bose:
Another un-produced campaign I developed at Liquid Agency for Good Technology:
Below, a campaign I designed for a new drug that needed some help standing out in a category flooded with photography.
For Microsoft Dynamics, working within their revised brand grid and using existing imagery, I created an energetic campaign to work across a variety of media. To see more of the campaign, click the image below.
For Hayes and Vine Wine Bar, I developed print campaigns as well as built the brand itself. Click the ad to see the rest of the work.
Sometimes the right purchases can take you places… as is the case with Visa Mileage Plus.
Working at Foote Cone and Belding, I had great pro-bono clients. Firstly, The Marin Agricultural Land Trust whose efforts support Marin’s small local farms. With MALT on board, small farms are able to sustain themselves and avoid subdivision. In addition to print ads, I also developed a logo and a fitting tagline for the pitch.
Secondly, The National Campaign Against Youth Violence was a visceral assignment that prompted a great campaign.
For a small but not-so-average brand, AloeCadabra, I wrote and designed this campaign that also had an online component.
And here’s a little trip down memory lane, a campaign I created for Amazon during it’s early years. The size of the devices should give a clue as to its era.
Hayes & Vine
It’s difficult to live in Northern California and not work on a wine account at some point in your career. What’s even more difficult is not to work on more than one. My experience has taken me to Virtual Vineyards, Vinos & Gourmet, WineShopper.com, among others.
Below, advertisements that launched one of San Francisco’s favorite wine bars, Hayes & Vine. I was the art director and copywriter — Luckily, I got a little help from photographer, Robert Doisneau.
I also created the logo, branding and various collateral materials for Hayes & Vine.
Copywriter: Marguerite Lutton
Taco Bell
At FCB West, I was CD on the Taco Bell account before it transitioned to their in—house agency. While my tenure was short lived, I covered quite a bit of territory and definitely learned how to “Live Más”.
First up were designs and marketing materials for the launch of what hoped to match the success of the Doritos Loco Taco, The Fritos Taco. While it only rolled out in a few test markets, the work was fun and, um, tasty.
Role: Freelance Creative Director / Agency: FCB West / Client: Taco Bell / Media: In Store / CD Copywriter: Adam Nowak
Using imagery from Taco Bell’s awesome Instagram feed, I designed a nutritional brochure that focused on the healthy variations the restaurant had to offer. Additionally, I designed posters for a tapas menu that never got off the ground.
For The Steak Double Dilla, we were asked to showcase the phenomenon of “unboxing” that is sweeping the country while also highlighting the large amount of steak in the Quesadilla. Additionally, I created a mark for the product that didn’t live but I think it has merit, shown below the POP.
The Cantina Power Bowl is a favorite “healthy” bowl option. I developed a mark for it that played up the rustic and hearty nature of the product.
North Lake Tahoe
I created this campaign for “School of Thought” advertising agency when they were pitching the North Lake Tahoe business. The result: they won the account and became agency of record.
The strategy was simple, focus on SF and L.A. and draw travelers back to Lake Tahoe – reminding them that Tahoe is closer than they think. We had some obstacles to overcome, mostly working with no photo budget meant making use of what we had — finding new ways to crop and use existing imagery was essential. In addition, my idea was to play up the “N” from the brand’s logo and visually support it in the communications.
Elizabeth Falkner
Featured frequently on TV and in media like Iron and Top Chef, Elizabeth Falkner is arguably one of the most recognized food celebrities of the past decade. I’ve had the great fortune to partner with her on projects for over 20 years now from small to large. Here’s some tasty favorites I’m proud to share:
Citizen Cake, Elizabeth’s signature San Francisco restaurant and patisserie, was the largest project I’ve worked on with her to date. Starting with just a logo and business cards my designs graced signage, packaging, ads, online, menus and more.
Printing the posters above, the printer thought I was crazy when I said I didn’t care about the registration. I wanted them to look all wonky, and they did. In addition to design, I wrote the copy as well. Elizabeth loved them so much she used some of the lines in her cookbook, “Demolition Deserts”.
Budgets ran tight in the early days which required being smart with materials. A common solution was to use fun, branded stickers and stamps wherever possible. We even used extra posters and converted them into envelopes.
Featured below, a menu I designed and illustrated for one of Elizabeth’s restaurants in San Francisco.
Copywriter: Marguerite Lutton
Portrait Photography: Frankie Frankeny
Southern Nevada Water
R&R Partners hired me to design this campaign for the Southern Nevada Water Authority. Not much thrives without water and, in the desert that is Southern Nevada, we aimed to conserve this precious resource. Two years out, 90% of our media reached the target and 3.5 billion gallons of water have been saved.
My typography was brought to life through a combination of live props and post production work in the film and print.
Consumers Union
Consumers Union, which publishes Consumers Report magazine, has been running a campaign since 2012 urging Trader Joe’s to sell only antibiotic-free meat. This year, I jumped on board to help write and design a few ads for them to push the idea a bit further than they had in the past. I’m hoping this is the reason that we are suddenly seeing a spike in response and increased coverage in places like, The Los Angeles Times.
This is such an important issue, if you’d like to learn more please visit, notinmyfood.org
In addition to newspaper advertising, we ran some banners on local digital newspapers. Shown below are a few examples of what I presented — we ended up running the one on the far left in the Idaho Statesman. The Statesman also gave us some additional coverage that we hadn’t planned on within their editorial section.
We also ran a billboard in Denver that coincided with the opening of two Trader Joe’s markets. These were the first ones in Colorado to open so it was a perfect time to get the word out. The outdoor board featured a call to action via texting, to which we responded with a message indicating ways to help out.
