DESIGN: HAUKØYE IDENTITY & LOGO DESIGN

New logo and identity work I completed for Haukøye - a PR, music management and communication agency based in Oslo, Norway. 'Haukøye' means hawk eye translated into English, I tried to use a clean and bold typeface with the character coming through on the Norwegian Ø.

'Haukøye' logo design & business cards by Alexander Horne, 2013

DESIGN: Leslie David

A lot can be made of a name, sometimes. After first catching a glimpse of her creative talent on the Its Nice That site, Leslie David had me conjuring up the image of a witty veteran New York illustrator with years of wisdom and life behind them (possibly more to do with the proximity in name to a certain comedian) - how wrong could I be. As dashing in physical presence in front of the camera as much of her oeuvre of work, David is graphic designer and illustrator originally from the South of France and now based in Paris collaborating with clients such as Surface to Air, Nike and Colette - when not exhibiting her own personal projects. Her patchwork of elegant styles, often intertwining a strong sense of colour and hand illustrated elements catches the eye immediately. There is a great depth in the variation of output as well - digital and  analogue realities are mixed with cheeky psychedelic, amazonian or even Futurist overtures. Watch out for her work in the years to come.

Photo of Leslie David © Carol Burri / All other images © Leslie David 2011

PRESS: DPI MAGAZINE

A few months ago Taiwanese graphic design and illustration magazine DPI featured my work and an interview as part of the 'Keen Creative Generation' issue. They were particularly interested in my collaborative work using graphics and music in events such as the DO IT! night I have been running with friends since 2008. Was an honor to get so many pages and be asked about my projects. Thanks DPI, be sure to pick up the mag online or a physical copy if you are visiting or live in Taiwan.

Images from DPI magazine issue 141

DESIGN: UNIVERSITAT DE BARCELONA

Following on from my graphic work for the Universitat de Barcelona last year, I have been working on some more logo designs and taking these further by integrating them into web banner layouts.  The new logo, and team banner, was for the TEAM bureau. TEAM represents Trade Unions, Economic Change and Active Inclusion of Migrant Workers so a humanistic essence was at the core of the design. The final design incorporates a group of different sized people shapes huddled around each other with a wave like arrow flowing to the opposite end where the same icons exist in the reverse colour. You can see a glimpse of the final design below or in greater detail on the Universitat De Barcelona website.

My first project with Universitat De Barcelona was a logo design for ESRU, European Social Research Unit, so it was interesting to go back to that design and have the opportunity to develop the surrounding context via a web banner design. The design remains true to the abstract cubist forms of the original logo but, adds dynamism and depth to the banner.
TEAM logo and TEAM and ESRU web banner designs by Alexander Horne

ROJO affiliated film: Nova

On the rare occasion when I had more than 20 crumpled Euro notes nestling in my pockets while living in Barcelona, the lure of ROJO magazine was often too hard to sway from. From the reassuring Mook (magazine/book) weight of the publication to the inviting documentation of journeys, processes and finished works from artists synonymous to the streets of cities like Barcelona, Buenos Aires or Berlin. Alongside other Spanish publications such as Serie B, Neo 2 and Pasajes Diseno - ROJO played a formative part to my years in Barcelona, inspiring and introducing artists who did not define themselves as solely a product designer, a graphic designer or an architect. Some great news then that they are about to release a film introducing some of these artists. Check the Nova trailer above, directed by Isaac Niemand and featuring music by the excellent Bradien.

Above: Vimeo trailer of Nova. Film directed by Isaac Niemand 2010.

press: Think issue 7 'Future'

Think have been looking ahead with their timely 'Future' issue coming out at the turn of a decade. For this issue I supplied the cover design and an article on the burgeoning Bucharest scene, featuring fashion designer This Is Lü and graphic talent MihaMiha. It was a pleasure to be given the opportunity to design the cover so I set to work on a unique piece. The result; a 3d pixel amazon-scape alluding to how a digital future can alter our vision of the natural environment. View it here.

image: front cover by Alexander Horne, Think magazine issue 7 'Future', 2010

Logo Design: ESRU, Universitat de Barcelona

Considered to be the best university in Spain, The Universitat de Barcelona has over 30 specialist research units focusing on expertise in subjects ranging from mathematics to sociology. One of these academic and research organisations, The European Social Research Unit, contacted me with the request of a new identity design to be used for an upcoming international conference and thereafter as their continuous brand image. The brief requested something similar to the existing Universitat de Barcelona logo. The result was simple and bold with the social quirk of a slanted main image and highlighting of key words in the logo text.
ESRU logo design by Alexander Horne

New Ink in 3D

New Ink is going 3D! None of that 90s 3D cereal box giveaway nonsense though. In fact, we are working on some fresh ropa (clothes) straight outta Oslo. This Summer, New Ink will unveil three fresh t-shirt designs and the Uraki pattern tote bag (check out Uraki Riddim myspace for the design). Uraki pattern was inspired by the discovery that the first ever city in the world was from Iraq, Uruk. Uraki represents the terminology for a citizen of this first city. The other designs will be inspired by the contents of the blog - architecture, beats, illustration, landscapes and abstraction. Check out some of the early sketches and be sure to get in touch if you are interested in picking up one of these hot cakes pre-release.

Illustrations by Alexander Horne (me) 2010.

Breaking the ice

Street culture, urban expressionism, creative jams - these exist to a minor extent in Oslo but, it's just there does not seem to be any visible showcase or cross field collaboration going on with them. If a tiny paint shop at the back of a night club and one store dedicated to street-affiliated threds and pleasures, Hunting Lodge, is pretty much all there is to show - it cannot be a healthy thing! Or is it going to change.....just recently Oslo based trio Ole, Lars and Martin brought some life and well needed urbaine vigour to the cities artscape with their 'All Bottled Up' exhibition, held in the cavernous confines of a student bar with free beers (near impossible in Norway!) and a live show by synthy new wave Bergen talent Leif. It was a welcome addition to whats (not) going on here and thankfully like the kind of event you would find in cities such as Barcelona or San Francisco. Check out some pics from the exhibition below or read the write up they got on Superfuture.

'All Bottled Up' photos by Alexander Horne, 2010

Polka Odd font

'Polka Odd' - my first font! A couple of weeks ago I was asked by a web designer friend from Aberdeen to come up with an alphabet he could use for a new logo font. James Daniel goes under the alias of Robin Egg Blue in the web design game. When not serving people with an eye for good food at one of Aberdeen's finest eateries, Moonfish Cafe; R.E.B is completing web designs for clients such as film producers, furniture designers and restaurants. Robin Egg Blue has a contemporary style in a city which rarely does; he completes projects that have serious value with a smile. I aim to represent this serious but, approachable and fun image with some small playful creature details on big, bold and abstract forms. The animal features sometimes look like little feet, eyes and bites.

'Polka Odd' font design: by Alexander Horne (me)