M&H Architects: Brand Identity

Layout
Research
Identity Design
Process Documentation

Collaborators: Jay Bopp (Adv.)

M&H is a fantastical high-class architectural design brand that grew out of my childhood dreams of becoming an architect. Unlike the vast majority of my work, M&H coalesced from a feeling rather than being distilled after extensive research. I used a random name generator to assign names to my imaginary clients: Akira Morimoto and Fleming Hansen. (I made a rule to use the first two generated names. “Hansen” was pure coincidence!) The dramatic color palette encouraged me to lean into the bespoke (not to say pretentious) feel of the brand. At the core of of M&H’s style is Japanese formal sensibility harmonized with materials from the American Heartland.

The logo combines the owners’ initials, two pertinent Japanese characters, and a raised circle to evoke Japan’s rising sun. Yuichiro Kojiro’s Forms in Japan and Takeji Iwamiya’s Katachi: Japanese Pattern and Design in Wood, Paper, and Clay were invaluable resources for developing M&H’s shape language.