Creative.
“The little angel and devil on your shoulders each make their own excellent point.”
A comic for Tom Hanks…
Actor Tom Hanks published his second book last spring in May of 2023. It’s called The Making of Another Major Motion Picture Masterpiece and it’s his first novel. I was asked by him and his team to do some illustrative marketing for his social media page. They wanted a comic strip. How could I have possibly said no to something like that?
Company Branding: Buck
During my time at Buck Mason, I worked closely with the designers and artists responsible for the company’s clothing, store experience, and overall aesthetic and tone. In addition to writing some copy for the official website, I decided to design and write this Product Knowledge Bible—an aesthetically beautiful and tonally company-accurate branding guide—as a fun side project. The photographs were taken by the incredible and kind Nicholas Maggio, and belong to Buck Mason.
Company Branding: Light
Light Phone globally shattered minds with this groundbreaking phone concept: Regress.
So, how do you sell a phone that does so much less than its competition? You highlight the hell out of just that.
Product Branding: Nike AF1
There’s a huge percentage of the population that hear the words Air Force 1 and think of Nike instead of the presidential plane, which is, in and of itself, a masterstroke of branding. The AF1 is as classic as it gets, but I wondered what it might look like to embrace the product’s namesake in some product-specific branding tests.
This was the result…
Product Marketing: Nike ‘Hand-Made’
This one is more of a thought experiment. I’ve always been fascinated by guerilla marketing. Taking inspiration from the golden age of sneaker ads, I thought of designing the kind of poster you might’ve seen glued up to a construction site wall in the 90’s, or hung up above a college dorm bed.
Most importantly, I wanted to go for a touched-by-hands feel, drawing each and every Nike swoosh individually, so it looks just a little different in each poster.
Undeniably of a certain time, and timeless in its reach. Always ahead of its time, yet classic in its very essence.
Product Marketing: Patagonia
Been there. Done that. What’s next? Let’s go… Patagonia has always had the adventurers’ backs. To every corner of the planet, from the highest peak to the deepest valley, Patagonia’s been there. Patagonia’s done that. Patagonia is ready to go, but always lets the landscape take center stage. No matter where you go, Patagonia can handle the journey.
Logos & Illustration
A picture’s worth a thousand words, right? The right image for your brand can tell your story at a glance and cement a spot in the viewer’s memory forever.
Posters & Title Cards
Below are some samples of title cards for personal projects, as well as some posters for fake movies that I would go see in theaters if they were real.
Need more branding? I do web copy as well as social media and brand storytelling.
Social Media
Solid Gold’s social media aesthetic, voice, and tone were created from a desire to be as emotionally impactful as the historical stories it advertised, but to do so at a glance. Plus, it had to look really damn good.
Check out more content on Instagram, @solidgold_podcast.
