Creative Musing
Skull & Bones Iconography
Product
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Skull & Bones Iconography
I had some fun this week creating these scary Halloween icons. I’ve paired the icons with the typeface Metalista designed by Tomáš Brousil from Suitcase Type Foundry.
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Skull & Bones icon set is available for purchase, email me for licensing and cost. Some of these graphics are available on tees, check them out at Cotton Bureau.
Forestry Waterway Management Inc.
Creative Musing
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Forestry Waterway Management Inc.
Combining two elements, trees, and water creates this logo. Mark paired with the typeface ITC Avant Garde Gothic designed by Herb Lubalin and Tom Carnase from Monotype.
Atlas
Product
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Atlas
The Greek mythology god, Atlas holding up the heavens… or is he holding up his head? Altas logo was paired with the typeface Condor designed by David Jonathan Ross from DJR.
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This illustration of Atlas is available for purchase on various color tees on Cotton Bureau. All Cotton Bureau apparel comes in a variety of clothing types, styles, fits, sizes, materials, and colors.
Sonic Boom
Creative Musing
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Sonic Boom
Visual interpretation of the word, “Sonic Boom”, paired with the typeface Dic Sans designed by Luciano Perondi from CAST – Cooperativa Anonima Servizi Tipografici.
Conifer
Creative Musing
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Conifer
Pairing a simplified coniferous cone logo with the typeface Gimlet Display, designed by David Jonathan Ross, from DJR.
Yellow Jacket
Creative Musing
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Yellow Jacket
Pairing a simplified Yellow Jacket mark with the typeface Conglomerate, designed by Greg Shutters from Typetanic.
Olympia Book Publishing
Creative Musing
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Olympia Book Publishing
Combine the iconic elements of a book, torch, and flames to construct a cohesive mark. I paired this mark with the typeface FF Good Headline designed by Łukasz Dziedzic from FontFont.
Level
Creative Musing
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Level
Exploration on a combination mark for level. Mark paired with ITC Avant Garde Gothic, designed by Herb Lubalin and Tom Carnase from Monotype.
Bobbin & Thread
Product
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Bobbin & Thread
I thoroughly enjoyed developing and illustrating this intricate set of modern tailor iconography. The typeface used with this icon set is Louvette Banner designed by CJ Dunn from CJ Type.
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This icon set is available for purchase, email me for licensing and cost.
Wildlife Conservation Illustrations
Creative Musing
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Wildlife Conservation Illustrations
In August, I participated in the Souldoodles illustration challenge focused on wildlife conservation, where I illustrated three endangered animals. Information about each animal can be found under the accordion dropdown to the right.
African Bush Elephant
African Savanna Elephants are the largest species of elephant and the biggest terrestrial animal on Earth. They are easily distinguished by their very large ears and front legs which are noticeably longer than the hind legs. Each family unit usually consists of around 10 females and their calves, and the bulls associate with these herds only during mating. Several family units often join together to form a “clan” consisting of up to several hundred members led by a female matriarch.
White Rhino
White rhinos are the second largest land mammal and their name comes from the Afrikaan’s, As of March 2018, there are only two rhinos of the northern white rhino left, both of which are female. They live in the Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Kenya and are protected round-the-clock by armed guards. Their near extinction is due to decades of rampant poaching for rhino horn. White rhinos have complex social structures. Groups of sometimes 14 rhinos may form, notably females with calves.
Green Sea Turtle
The green turtle is one of the largest sea turtles and the only herbivore among the different species. Green turtles are found mainly in tropical and subtropical waters. Like other sea turtles, they migrate long distances between feeding grounds and the beaches from where they hatched. Classified as endangered, green turtles are threatened by over harvesting of their eggs, hunting of adults, being caught in fishing gear, and loss of nesting beach sites.
Home Assist
Creative Musing
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Home Assist
Design exploration for Home Assist by integrating the medical symbol with a house icon. The resulting mark is paired with the typeface Korolev designed by Rian Hughes from Device Fonts.
Hello
Creative Musing
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Hello
A very cramped hello wordmark featuring a custom typeface designed by me.
A Faithful Companion & Herzog
Creative Musing
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A Faithful Companion & Herzog
Our family adopted a Norwegian Elkhound from our nearby dog shelter. As one does when getting a dog, I was searching online for a sleek and durable dog collar + leash, Herzog dog gear caught my eye and it was an easy decision to purchase their products (I purchased the Terracotta Collar and Leash as a set). Their meticulously crafted items boast both waterproof and eco-friendly qualities, fitting seamlessly into our minimalist style and complementing our Elkhound perfectly. The silhouette illustration above represents the Leonberger dog breed.
Keepsake
Creative Musing
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Keepsake
Design exploration to match the word "Keepsake" with a typeface. I settled on the typeface URW Antiqua designed by URW Type Foundry for its balanced combination of thick and thin strokes, giving it an elegant and approachable feel.
Square Knot
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Square Knot
Fun little exercise this morning in Adobe Illustrator.
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Square Knot is available for purchase. Check out more graphic tee’s on my Cotton Bureau profile page. All Cotton Bureau apparel comes in a variety of clothing types, styles, fits, sizes, materials, and colors.
Unite & Vote – Poster
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Unite & Vote – Poster
In addition to offering strategic design communication solutions for my clients, I also create illustrations, design posters, and sell them on my shop page. A poster from my collection is currently en route to a fortunate recipient. If you're seeking distinctive illustrative posters to adorn your empty walls, explore my shop page. Every poster is carefully curated, illustrated, and designed by me, then printed locally at Mercury Head Gallery in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Each piece is meticulously printed on 100% cotton rag fine art paper using archival inks for lasting quality.
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Unite & Vote poster is available for purchase in my shop. Explore more posters in my shop.
Become – Brand Strategy & Brand Identity
Phase I: Understand + Discovery
Phase II: Ideate + Define + Develop
Phase III: Execute + Deliver
Client Project
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Become – Brand Strategy & Brand Identity
Become engaged us to develop its brand foundation, including research, naming, messaging, and visual identity. With a mission to connect individuals, schools, and businesses through data-driven insights, the platform needed a brand that could communicate both clarity and purpose. I gathered a team of independent collaborators and partnered with stakeholders to develop and craft a complete brand design system across messaging, naming, and visual identity.
Leading my team through the planning, development, and design of the Become brand identity, I guided a comprehensive process that distilled insights from audience and stakeholder interviews to establish the foundation of the brand. This foundation defined the brand’s tone, voice, and visual direction. As the work progressed, additional research, journey mapping, exploration, brand architecture, and iterative design refined the system into a simple, meaningful, and approachable brand. The process culminated in a comprehensive set of brand guidelines.
The ‘Become’ wordmark was developed as a bespoke display typeface. Its rounded letterforms and considered spacing were intentionally designed to convey approachability and create a clean, open visual rhythm. Additionally, the ‘m’—with its stem gently nudging the ‘e’—introduces a quiet gesture of encouragement and momentum.
This simple alteration embodies the concept of 'Become' as a companion throughout one's professional journey. Additionally, this modification transforms the tense of the word from future to present, implying that individuals can embrace their current selves or evolve into something new.
“MKN Design served as a patient and adept navigator during our brand discovery expedition. His guidance enabled us to gain profound insights into our company's identity. Although the outcome was unexpected, it perfectly aligned with our aspirations. None of this would have happened without him and for that, we are very grateful.”
Ryan Montgomery
Chief Executive Officer, Union Media
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Become
Educational Tech & Test Preparation -
+ Brand Advisor
+ Brand Strategy
+ Concept Development
+ Creative Assets
+ Creative Strategy
+ Design Direction
+ Naming
+ Qualitative Research
+ Visual Identity -
MKN Design Team:
+ Michael Nÿkamp, Design Director & Strategist
+ Rob Monacelli, Strategist
+ Nate Netti, Brand Copywriter
Union Media Stakeholders:
+ Ryan Montgomery, Chief Executive Officer
+ Andrea Montgomery, Managing Editor
+ David Schofield, Designer
Fast Company – Portraits
Client Project
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Fast Company – Portraits
Fast Company commissioned me to create a series of illustrative portraits for its Define Your Purpose Special Edition. The work focused on capturing each subject’s character and perspective through a restrained, graphic style that aligned with the magazine’s bold editorial voice.
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Fast Company
Business Media & Publishing -
+ Design Direction
+ Illustration
+ Sketching & Ideation
+ Qualitative Research -
MKN Design Team:
+ Michael Nÿkamp, Design DirectorFast Company Stakeholder:
+ Chelsea Schiff, Associate Art Director -
Recycle & Die
Creative Musing
