From 2 to 8 March 2024 the students of the Graphic Design bachelor’s programme flied to Amsterdam to experience new creative dimensions, guided by teachers and designers Agnese Angelini, Emanuele Cappelli and Antonio Pace. A unique training experience, which is being repeated after the success of the latest edition: BrandinLondon.
Amsterdam, Rotterdam, The Hague are cities of printers, merchants, navigators. Cities of ideas that, arriving here from the four corners of the world, inspired typographic publishing and Flemish art in the Golden Century, and today fuel the most innovative design.
Here we have learnt to wrest the land from the sea and tame the destructive force of water, here the culture of design is tangible, the challenge in combining modernity and tradition the taste for daring and ingenious choices. Thus design flows in the street art of squares and gardens, in the futuristic architecture of new neighbourhoods, in the numerous ateliers of creative young people, and in the studios of professionals who have incredible feats to tell.
Distributed in Amsterdam, Rotterdam and The Hague, Peter Biľak, Studio Dumbar, Haller Brun Kessels & Kramer, Studio Lava, Studio Thonik, Vanessa Van Dam, Hansje Van Halem, are among the most successful in the fields of brand identity, advertising, motion graphic, interaction and multimedia design, publishing, typography, and exhibition. Multifaceted professionals who manifest themselves in bold, original, playful and sophisticated graphics.
It is in this lively environment that the students of the Graphic Design bachelor’s programme have experience the “BrandinAmsterdam” journey, guided by lecturers and designers Agnese Angelini, Emanuele Cappelli and Antonio Pace.
Between talks and site visits, students learned refined techniques, cutting-edge languages and the most exciting industry trends. Above all, they had the unique opportunity to discover unexpected drifts and marvellous landings, firmly steering the tiller.
With the BrandinAmsterdam project, Audrey Abigail Atienza, Olivia Gaone, Giulia Giordani, Bianca Marinotti, Angela Martina Mastrolonardo, Luca Merlini, Davide Paolini, Alessandro Zingone were able to experiment with new creative visions and build a professional network that will be a beacon of their future.
All Dutch studios students will visit during the BrandinAmesterdam experience:
Peter Biľak
Peter Biľak is a multidisciplinary designer and founder of Typotheque, specialising in type design, typography and branding. Typotheque has shaped language, pushing the boundaries of technology, designing for communication in an increasingly digital, international and multicultural world.
In 2009, Peter Bil’ak introduced pioneering concepts in typefaces for the web, being the first commercial foundry to license its entire typeface library for use on the web.
Typotheque’s work has been recognised by most professional associations, winning the Dezeen Awards, i Gold European Design Awards; il Type Directors Club Certificate of Excellence; il Tokyo TDC; il Granshan Type Design Competition; la Society of Typographic Arts; the contest Letter 2 of AtypI, a collection of the best typefaces of the decade, and its fonts selected among the Best typefaces of all times by FontShop.
Peter writes and lectures all over the world, and is among the industry leaders with whom students will have the opportunity to engage.
Haller Brun
Our journey will take us to the wonderful Sonja Haller and Pascal Brun, the driving forces behind Haller Brun.
They will welcome us into their studio and reveale their passion and cutting-edge design initiatives. After graduating in Switzerland, they moved to the Netherlands where they founded their studio in 2011. They mainly work in the fields of art, design and architecture, with a focus on editorial design.
Haller Brun’s work is characterised by combining the Swiss tradition for precision and typography with Dutch directness and playfulness. Many of their designs have been honoured with prestigious awards, including ‘The Best Dutch Book Designs’, ‘D&AD Awards’ and ‘European Design Awards’. In 2019, Haller Brun was responsible for the visual identity design and publication of The Measurement of Presence, the Dutch participation in the 58th Venice Biennale.
Studio Dumbar
Studio Dumbar is one of the most awarded studios in the world. The studio team explores new possibilities in the fields of creative coding, motion, sound, artificial intelligence and creates proprietary technology tools.
The studio works for a variety of clients, from the world’s leading technology companies to local businesses, NGOs, governments, non-profit organisations and cultural institutions. The result is reflected in the professional recognition of their work; internationally.
The studio is also a promoter of the DEMO Design in Motion Festival, the largest motion festival showcasing the best work of designers from around the world for 24 hours on 5,000 digital OOH screens in the Netherlands.
Kessels & Kramer
Erik Kessels is a Dutch artist, designer and art curator, has a particular passion for photography and is the art director of KesselsKramer, as well as co-founder of KesselsKramer Publishing.
The Kessels Kramer studio works from film to digital, making every work social, in the deepest sense of the word (society), something that can engage and become part of a community, rather than just accumulating ‘likes’.
They make content that is human and involves risk. Relevant and irreverent communication that helps our clients promote business, build loyal communities and change mindsets. They produce solutions that blur the boundaries between culture, commerce, content and collaboration. All within a start-up mentality, aiming to utilise budgets, resources and the multidisciplinary talents of their team as effectively as possible. Their studio is in a deconsecrated church.
Studio Lava
Lava, is a world-renowned branding and design studio.
Through the synergy of strategy, design and technology, we create living identities and bespoke tools for organisations to last and stand out.
A technology-driven branding and design studio, their passion is to help brands navigate the future in a sustainable and flexible way through a combination of strategy, design and technology. They specialise in creating living brand identities and intelligent bespoke tools that enable organisations to adapt and grow. Their clients include Museumkaart, City of Amsterdam, Tony’s Chocolonely and UNStudio.
Lava’s team of strategists, designers and technologists work to ensure that a traditional logo translates into a holistic design concept close to people.
Studio Thonik
Thonik is a design collective founded by designers Nikki Gonnissen and Thomas Widdershoven. The studio focuses on design projects that are socially relevant, graphically impactful and flexible in their application. The studio’s strategic approach is combined with innovative use of media and a focus on the digital sphere. Graphic architecture: Studio Thonik’s new premises in Amsterdam are striped.
Visual research, spatial quality and technological experimentation combine in the first three-dimensional project of the Dutch graphic design studio, Domus magazine dedicated an article to them.
The studio’s clients include Hyundai Department Stores (Seoul), Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen, Shanghai Power Station of Art, Manifesta 9, the city of Amsterdam, the Marta Herford Museum in Germany, the Venice Architecture Biennale, the Holland Festival in Amsterdam, the Dutch broadcasting network VPRO and the Dutch Socialist Party (SP). Exhibitions of Thonik’s works have been held at the Power Station of Art in Shanghai, the Venice Architecture Biennale, the Spiral Art Center in Tokyo, MOTI Breda, Galerie Anatome (Paris) and the Institut Néerlandais in Paris. Thonik’s works are also in the permanent collection of museums such as the Centre George Pompidou in Paris.
Vanessa Van Dam
Vanessa van Dam (Amsterdam, 1971) is an independent graphic designer. She graduated from the Gerrit Rietveld Academy (Amsterdam) in 1996 and has since worked with artists, architects, photographers, writers and curators. Besides running her own studio, she has taught at several art academies and participated in various commissions and juries.
Hansje Van Halem
Graphic designer Hansje van Halem has become known for her distinctive typography and her geometric, almost psychedelic illustrations built on complex patterns. Van Halem digitally scratches, draws or weaves her letters and designs stamps, posters and illustrations. His design experiments sometimes result in commissioned applications for public space, including the border fence at the Dutch Schiphol Airport. His work can be found in the collection of museums, including the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam (NL), the Allard Pierson / UvA University of Amsterdam (NL), the Museum für Gestaltung Zürich (CH) and the Letterform Archive (USA). As part of his independent work, Hansje has been chief designer of the Lowlands music festival since 2017.
Tin Studio
Tin Studio is an internationally operating branding and digital design studio. They are a team of young designers, strategists and digital minds with the goal of building thriving brands and unique online experiences. They believe that every great idea deserves an audience. Intrigued by the unknown and fascinated by new ideas, they use design to elevate every type of customer.
