Working with Solid Branding for their client McAfee, the Bureau created a set of 20 cybersecurity related icons and a timeline infographic that was used for both McAfee’s involvement in cybersecurity and a generic version of general cybersecurity history, all done to match McAfee’s brand guidelines. Not being particularly techy or aware of the nefarious side of technology, working on this project made me a bit paranoid every time I opened up a device…are they watching?
Drum roll please…for the opening of OP Wurst Division! Olympia Provisions’ offshoot restaurant series, Wurst, now has a new location on 3384 SE Division street. A renovation of the old Honky Tonk Taco building turned a teal & red taco joint into a high end sausage bar. You heard it – a high end sausage bar. The Bureau assisted by providing brand & signage suggestions including establishing a simple white, black and gold palette that takes advantage of the interior’s natural wood accents and a restrained use of signage combined with custom composed old-time woodcut illustrations.
On the front facade two large backlit gold signs can be seen through the windows boasting BEER and SAUSAGE. What more do you need to know? Inspired by a hut on the top of Mount Hood that has no logo or branding other than BBQ written in 15-foot-tall letters on the roof, OP Wurst Division uses a minimal approach to great effect. The signage works double-time as cozy lighting while the bar is open and all-night-long advertising to passerby. Inside, the main impressions include a giant bar, gleaming rafters, and a newly installed fireplace in the west wing (otherwise known as the “wurst room”). When seen from outside the singular message makes sure you know what to expect. BEER. AND. SAUSAGE. (photos by Dina Avila)
An outside patio mural boldly shouts a simple message to people near and far: It could always be wurst. Speaking of which, the menu has a plethora of hot dog options from traditional to way-out-in-left-field (there are even a few menu options for veggie lovers). In conjunction with the opening, Olympia Provisions is also expanding their sausage options from the standard pork to include both chicken and beef sausages. So hustle on over to Wurst Division and try a traditional dog or an experimental twist on the classic wurst.
Here is the sixth and last card in a series postcards I illustrated for Umpqua Bank. They were used at the Portland Business Journal Luncheon and Seattle Design Series, mixed and matched in sets of 3 and delivered in a custom envelope. This card features NW-inspired foliage in shades of Umpqua’s lesser-used green palette.
I’ve had the pleasure of working on many projects with the Happiest Company in Portland*, Ruby Receptionists, and the last project was no exception. This project focused on creating illustration assets for their member services, or internal member-facing interface. Whether it is keeping track of calls, making custom availability settings, or managing contacts and data, Ruby and her accomplices are there to help every step of the way. Working from wireframes, I fleshed out the visuals needed to “Rubify” the web interface. Here are just a few outtakes from the project:
*title awarded by me, but I’m sure many would agree
A series of large circular icons were created in a consistent style for reinforcing the tools being used. Mixing old visuals such as adding machines, retro clocks, will return signs and real live calendars adds a fun twist to using the online functions. The project scope included everything from tiny navigational icons to almost full screen illustrations, with over 30 assets created in total.
Even virtual receptionists need their beauty sleep, so a bonus round of icons for indicating it was “after hours” was made. A cocktail glass option didn’t make the cut, but I believe that Ruby might just have a little fun on Fridays after answering your phones all week.
“Wonderland” is one of six postcards illustrated for Umpqua Bank with a Pacific Northwest theme. Derived from the old blue and yellow Oregon license plates that carried the slogan “Pacific Wonderland”, this interpretation came straight from the many childhood hours I spent with my dad in his 1979 red Dodge, traversing the roads of Central Oregon’s sunshiny plains.
Feel free to grab and ice pack and sprain your tongue on that mouthful. I was once told that speaking Danish (my second language) was like talking with your mouth full of marbles, and that if it didn’t hurt just a little then you weren’t doing it right. The Swiss must have been visiting Scandinavia when they came up with this moniker for Swiss Country Ham. Good thing you can order meat from the internet in complete silence, so if you like a cured pig loin soaked in burnt sugar and flavored with juniper and rosemary delivered straight to your doorstep with no intervention by the pronunciation police, then you’re in luck.
Oh, here’s the little promo image I put together for Olympia Provisions social channels to promote their new product.
Say it with me…LOND – RAUK – SHEEN – KIN.
Here is the fourth card in a series of six postcards I illustrated for Umpqua Bank. They were used at the Portland Business Journal Luncheon and Seattle Design Series, mixed and matched in sets of 3 and delivered in a custom envelope.
Olympia Provisions, of famed salamis and several restaurants in Portland, has several meat-of-the-month clubs. You heard it right! Salamis, sausages, pâté and pickles* all get the white glove treatment and can be delivered straight to your doorstep or gullet, whichever is closest to the mailman.
For each club the Bureau was tasked with designing informational brochures so members knew (for example) exactly what was in their salami, how best to serve it, what kind of romantic dates salami likes best, and revealing once and for all what that white stuff on the outside of a salami is (protective edible house flora that has a reputation that precedes it).
Unsure of what to get your sweetie for Valentines to tell them they are that special someone? Say it with meat.
*Not technically a meat.
Here is the first half of six postcard illustrations I created for Umpqua Bank. A total of six cards were designed so smaller sets could be mixed and matched and handed out at events including the Portland Business Journal Luncheon and the Seattle Design Series. A sponsor-focused envelope was paired with them to emphasize that the cards were created specifically for the young and forward moving audiences they would be distributed in.
Here is the second in a series of postcard illustrations I created for Umpqua Bank. A total of six cards were designed so smaller sets could be mixed and matched and handed out at events including the Portland Business Journal Luncheon and the Seattle Design Series. A sponsor-focused envelope was paired with them to emphasize that the cards were created specifically for the young and forward moving audiences they would be distributed in.
This one was particularly fun because I tapped into my roots growing up in rural Central Oregon for a cornucopia of western style lettering. Yes, I rode horses. Yes, most radio stations played country music. Yes, I imagined I might have been Laura Ingalls Wilder in another life. Onward you intrepid pioneer!
