Abstracted Calligraphy

Designing 12 tabletops for this super hip coffee place in Rotterdam is more than creating 12 images. It is creating visual impact for the online marketing, done by the company itself plus all the visitors who are joining the culture of sharing your lifestyle through social media. The artwork becomes the background for the photos, made at Lilith coffee. The strong recognizable imagery creates marketing in a smart way. Within the use of black and white it works for every single image.

For this assignment I succeed in applying the results of my autonomous art into applied work. This created a series of unique multi-functional artworks. Innovative for the craft of calligraphy, in where no one made abstractions of the craft like this before. And inspiring for graphic design, showing the importance of personality and autonomy for unique outcomes.

The recognizable imagery is part of Lilith's identity since it's integrated in their menus, stickers and other graphic outcomes, all designed by me.

INSIGHTS

As mentioned above, the outcome of this assignment shows the influence of my autonomous practice through applied work.

As a professional calligrapher I'm trained to master my tools and use them for the purpose of creating scripts. With my academic background (Willem de Kooning Academy, Graphic Design, graduated in the Autonomous practice of Digital Craft) I've learned to push boundaries and create unique imagery.
So what I did, and still doing, is revealing the possibilities within the clear framework of my calligraphic profession: Strokes created by a flat brush and black ink. Putting a lot of effort in these experiments now gives me the option to create recognizable and unique imagery, as accomplished in this assignment. It shows the added value of craft in contemporary graphic design.

Paint 12 tabletops for the terrace of Lilith coffee, Rotterdam.
Size; 70cm x 70cm each
Series of 12.