Designing with Joni Marriott

I am thrilled to share that we are launching our first artist-in-residence collab project!

Join us to welcome Joni Marriott!

It all started last summer when we met with Beate of Roterfaden in Saarbrücken, Germany. Among many inspiring moments, the embossing designs to customize their Taschenbegleiter caught our eyes. These illustrations were minimalistic yet powerful. I loved how each of us could interpret the designs so that the meaning of the illustrations could meet us where we were on our journey. Through the conversation, Beate offered that she could introduce us to the artist Joni Marriott, who also lives and creates in Saarbrücken.

So, our back-and-forth email dialogue started with Joni. I knew we wanted to co-create new designs that felt true to BK and Joni. Our team brainstormed on the attributes and keywords that brought forth the BK’s everyday intentions. I believe these intentions are building blocks of what makes BK extra unique, and I hope they manifest in different layers of the BK experience. After a few weeks, Joni responded to my email with various designs that brought these BK intentions to life.

Here are six final designs that were born through our collaboration. Having these visuals that align with our intentions resonates deeply with me, and I am glad to say that I can stand behind all of the ethos every day at BK.

• Embrace: caring for ourselves with nourishment and tender care.

• Inspiration: being a source of gentle ripples to inspire the world around us.

• Harmony: living with the natural world and its mystery.

• Stillness: practicing to stay fully present in the moment.

• Growth: taking a step at a time to expand our horizon.

• Togetherness: honoring a gentle and respectful relationship with each other.

Since the design was complete, our team has been busy translating it into physical artifacts we can all hold and embrace. So far, we have created original postcards, rubber stamps, embossings, and beautifully designed washi tapes (coming soon)!

Oh, and let’s not forget the specially pre-inked stamps offered to our in-store customers on Sundays during our opening hours.

Holding the finished artifacts, these designs feel even more vibrant in their messages, maybe because of the colors we picked for each postcard or the slight earthiness the line picks up when embossed on an organic material like leather.

The team asked me which was my favorite once the designs were complete. Honestly, it is difficult for me to pick just one. They all feel like a part of me in some ways. The question is more like, “Which one do I resonate more with today?”

 

What I also love about these illustrations is that YOU might see a message that is just for you. Perhaps you see a beautiful crescent moon in the “Togetherness” design or a cozy scarf wrapping around your neck. You might be tending to a little one in your arm and reflecting on your inner child with the “Embrace” design. I felt exactly like the “Harmony” design when we started clearing up our fallen oak tree last month…

 

I hope you enjoy these designs and more to come from Baum-kuchen!