COLLECTED PLACES
2024Photography, book design
Personal Project
This first volume will set the tone for what I anticipate to be many more. As of writing in July 2024 I have multiple drafts out to multiple printers, having noticed that small-batch photo book printing gets expensive quickly. My end goal is to distribute these amongst family and friends, those who have seen my work on Instagram, etc. so cost is a decisive factor. Once the details are sorted out I’ll have copies available for anyone who wants them.
IBM INSTITUTE FOR BUSINESS VALUE
2024Ai prompt engineering, report/cover design, visual design, branding
Created while at IBM
For the 2024 edition, the CD wanted to explore the hype around AI image generators, utilizing things like Stable Diffusion and Control Nets to replicate the tricky images nestled deep in Reddit threads (the living pulse of this world). Together we spent months exploring the capabilities of the tech, alternating between attempts to get very specific results and opting for a roll-the-dice approach. In many ways this project became more of a research opportunity for the both of us to explore what things like Midjourney and Dall-E mean for designers at big tech. We made ourselves in-house experts on the subject, which truly was at the forefront of digital culture at the time. Ultimately our experiments didn’t make it past a wary brand department and even if they had, the internal politics around the issue were dangerously tight. The team pivoted at the last minute to a safer, arguably completely unnoticable alternative. Knowing this was the likely outcome from the beginning, I had always planned to post the half-baked reject covers here.
Tiliani
2024
Branding, web, logo, photography
Client: tiliani restaurant
Although the food is broadly termed “Italian,” the term feels completely arbitrary when you the plates arrive at your table. To lean on an equally arbitrary term, this is “artisan” food, and the meals are truly unexpected. Interestingly, the cooks have decided to produce a menu that is 100% Halal certified, an approach that makes more sense when you situate the restaurant in the heart of the largest Muslim diaspora in the United States (Dearborn, MI).
Brand details are simple, with a high contrast lightweight wedge-serif logotype drawn up bespoke in Glyphs. We teamed up with another of our friends for the food illustrations. Beyond the logo, the meat of the project was the menu design, with 4-5 in active use on any given night. We figured out a handoff strategy so the Tiliani team could make their own updates, which given their exigency and high standards ends up being every single day. Lastly, a light splash page was created on Squarespace as a placeholder. The page has since been taken over by well meaning chefs and so I will not post the link to it here.
Pivot Plant Jerky
2020
Branding, snack packaging, logo
Client: Pivot/Mindwell
The Art of Wine
2018
Illustrated typography, branding
Client: College for Creative Studies
Danee Co.
2017
Branding, stationery, logo
Client: Danee