Max Hammons Portfolio

Hey! I’m Max.

I design. I make messages clear. I fight confusion — it’s everywhere I go. My job is to make great design, to create understanding, and to elicit emotion. I create meaning and establish clear hierarchy in everything I do. My design is strategic.

My design is aesthetic.

My design is pragmatic.

Design is what I do.

ICELAND DONUT MAG CREATION CARE WEEK THE HUCK DISTILLERY

CALLED SENIOR SHOW OLD VENICE A VISION THAT GREW

ICELAN

AND A branding project for the most remarkable place on earth.

Iceland is full of unique places and people. Its topography dramatically ranges from stark ice wastelands to redhot erupting volcanoes. This contrast demanded to be manifested in the brand. To accomplish this, I constructed typographic styles that reflect the scale and diversity of the landscape while each region of Iceland was given a unique color palette. Images were chosen on how well they conveyed the spirit of Iceland rather than being purely informational.

It was very important to the brand equity that the concepts behind the brand (brand attributes) be clearly stated in the Max Hammons / ICELAND

I’ve never been to Iceland. But I’d love to go. It seems like everyone and their hipster brother has been (except me). Maybe I should be a hipster? Probably not, I don’t like coffee near enough and I hate wearing suspenders and skinny jeans. Oh well.

manual for the Icelandic Brand. These concepts inform every decision made, from typography to verbiage. In order to inform future applications and properly perpetuate the Icelandic Brand, designers must understand the full brand identity system.

My objective for the Icelandic brand was to display the beauty and modernity of Iceland while staying uniquely Icelandic. The end result is a brand that displays the grandness of the land without distracting components or becoming about itself.

Max Hammons / ICELAND

Max Hammons / ICELAND

Max Hammons / ICELAND

Shown here is an Icelandic sub-brand: Iceland National Mail (The Fox). The Fox is an application of the Icelandic brand using the brand identity components and elements outlined within the Icelandic Brand Manual. The Fox utilizes the Icelandic color palette, color fields, type cut by the Icelandic angle, and the same typography rules as the main Icelandic brand. Because of the way The Fox complies with the standards of the Icelandic Brand, it remains confidently under the umbrella of the primary brand while still retaining its uniqueness as an independent entity.

Max Hammons / ICELAND

DONU MAG

UT A zine highlighting San Diego’s trendiest donuts of the now.

This zine showcases San Diego’s top donut eateries and supplies useful donut information and history. It is a field guide to today’s trending donuts and a reference for the donut enthusiast.

The Donut Mag is all about being loud and proud in one’s (and really everyone’s) love of donuts. Type is oversize and the photos are larger than life. The extreme typographic contrast makes the headline style blur the line between type and image.

M a x H a m m o n s / D O N U T M AG

My favorite donut is a chocolate covered glazed with sprinkles (Shown above). Yes, I ate that donut.

And yes, it was delicious.

This style creates a fun and light hearted atmosphere; donuts don’t take themselves seriously, so neither should a zine talking about them.

All the verbiage that’s used is unapologetically colloquial reflecting the young and hip donut culture.

Through the combination of this colloquial language, oversized red-colored headings, and large donut photos, the donut mag cuts through the clutter of lesser breakfast items and straight into the heart of donut-loving San Diegans.

M a x H a m m o n s / D O N U T M AG

M a x H a m m o n s / D O N U T M AG

CREAT CARE W

TION WEEK A campaign to inspire a sustainable lifestyle in college students.

Every year Point Loma Nazarene University (PLNU) dedicates a week to raising awareness of the school’s sustainability efforts as well as educating students about sustainability in their own lives. This year the senior class of graphic designers decided to work closely with the PLNU Office of Sustainability to help promote the week on campus.

Using a human-centered design approach we began with the design question: How might we ignite a campus-wide dialogue about Creation Care Week at PLNU? To answer this question we decided to create opportunities for students M a x H a m m o n s / C R E AT I O N C A R E W E E K

We began our adventure at 10am Sunday morning laser cutting our stencils. Due to a gross underestimation of how long the laser cutter takes to cut, we finished cutting at 6pm. After taking a short break to eat dinner and “work on other homework” the team was ready to start painting.

At 9pm we began. Before the first set of stairs was finished, we realized that this project was going to take longer than expected. Pizza was ordered at 12:30am. At 3:15am tragedy struck; we ran out of paint.

Two of us made a frantic run to the La Mesa Walmart in hopes of salvaging the night.

Predictably, they did not carry the paint that they had claimed to on the Internet. We returned empty handed and defeated.

However, in a miraculous feat that can only be described as majestic one of my group members found more paint.

And finally, as professors and overachieving students came on to campus at 6:30am, we concluded. We were extremely exhausted and I was hungry.

to learn about the week and PLNU’s sustainability tactics. Working as part of a team, my job was to create installations that stated facts about PLNU’s efforts to be environmentally friendly.

The challenge was visual noise. Students are bombarded on a daily basis with things grasping for attention. To cut through the noise, my team created an unexpected experience by painting staircases with brightly colored text that highlighted sustainability efforts. Students who encountered the staircases were surprised and delighted to see how PLNU is caring for people and our planet.

M a x H a m m o n s / C R E AT I O N C A R E W E E K

THE H DISTIL

HUCK LLERY A logo and branding project for a Killarney, Ireland based distillery.

This design challenge began with 3 large constraints. One name, one object, and one product. I was given the name “Huck,” the word “dog,” and a “bottle of whiskey.”

The task was to create a logo from these constraints.

Obviously, I had an Irish distillery logo on my hands.

To bring an Irish distillery into the present, I decided to employ an old copy machine.

I used this machine to distort my work and the end result was a logo that referenced the past but bore the marks of digital distortion. To make all the other brand applications, the same process was used to maintain the aesthetic.

M a x H a m m o n s / T H E H U C K D I S T I L L E RY

This one was fun. I modeled the dog after my friend’s dog.

His name is Pickles. Pickles likes playing with other dogs at Dog Beach, playing Frisbee, and eating doggie treats. Pickles is a good boy.

And finally, because whiskey is a very Irish thing, I needed to mark the logo with that Irish touch. Because of my low tech approach, I decided only one color should only be used. So I implemented Irish orange into the logo flood style and, boom. Brand.

M a x H a m m o n s / T H E H U C K D I S T I L L E RY

CALLE

ED A book helping students to find their vocational calling.

I was commissioned by the department heads of The Colleges of Mathematical, Information and Computer Sciences, Physics and Engineering, and Arts and Humanities to design a vocational reader that would be required reading for select general education courses.

This book showcases the best in each vocational calling and helps guide students through the process of choosing a career path for them.

Max Hammons / CALLED

This project required me to work with people that I don’t usually work with: math people.

They were all over this one.

Initially I was concerned that their analytical lean would cause them to be skeptical of anything non-rational.

However as the project went on, their different background allowed them to see things that I couldn’t, improving the final product to a level that I could not have taken it to on my own.

Despite this, I still hate math.

I worked with the department heads to implement a system to present the content. Even though the book was to be required reading, I didn’t want it to feel that way.

This was a really exciting opportunity to not only work with high quality art and literature but also with people from very different backgrounds and fields.

Max Hammons / CALLED

SENIO SHOW

OR W

A campaign highlighting the Senior Show and celebrating all those involved.

Throughout my time at PLNU I have been greatly influenced by others in the community.

Their perspectives and stories have inspired and allowed me to create more than I could have imagined. I believe this experience is common in all the departments on campus.

We are all only as good as we are because of how we influence and grow each other.

As seniors, we are very excited about our Senior Show. Thinking back on my college experience, I know I couldn’t have done all that I did without those around me—my friends.

Max Hammons / SENIOR SHOW

The hardest part of this project was convincing the designers I worked with that I had indeed spent more than “2 minutes” on this “overly simple” project.

It may look simple but it’s a great concept. After I finessed the it a bit more and addressed some concerns the designers had, they saw my vision, input some of their ideas, and together we made something that looks great.

To show this conceptually, I created promotional materials that work to visually unite and celebrate each of us in all the creative departments.

This is shown in the exclamation marks. All the marks are different but they all communicate the same thing. And together, all the different exclamation marks make up the promotion.

In the same way, we are all different exclamation points. We have different quirks, shapes, families, and perspectives. But when we are united together we create what we cannot create on our own.

We are great because of our differences.

Max Hammons / SENIOR SHOW

In addition to print promotional materials, I was part of a select group of students who collaborated with renowned film title designer, Danny Yount to create a promotional video for the event. This was an incredible opportunity to work along side a crossdisciplinary team made up of film, music, and design students to integrate motion graphics, video, and originally composed music.

Max Hammons / SENIOR SHOW

OLD VENIC

CE

An integrated branding project capturing the spirit of and sophistication of Italy.

Black and white photography of Venice, Italy in the early 20th century depicts a level of class and sophistication rarely seen today. To emulate this spirit for the Old Venice Restaurant, a largely monochromatic color palette was chosen as well as typography that respected tradition but also brought the restaurant into the present. The result is a brand that embodies the spirit of modernity while also drawing inspiration and influence from old Italy.

Max Hammons / OLD VENICE

Max Hammons / OLD VENICE

Max Hammons / OLD VENICE

Unfortunately, due to my status as an extremely poor college student, I was only able to go to The Old Venice Restaurant once. And even more unfortunate, was my limitation to only order a single appetizer and a water.

Despite the shifty eyes from pompous waiters, I’m glad I went. I learned more about the vibe of the brand and what The Old Venice Restaurant stood for. Also the Bruschetta was fabulous. Win, Win.

Because of the largely monochromatic color scheme, The Old Venice Restaurant’s identity is able to adapt to the many events that the restaurant hosts. These frequent events bring in lots of people and (importantly for the brand) many different color schemes. Rather than suggest that guests do not personalize their event to their own tastes and preferences but the restaurant’s, The Old Venice Restaurant brand cooperates with this influx by remaining largely monochromatic. The brand does not upstage any event, but compliments it. In this way, the restaurant remains family oriented with a modern and classical Italian spirit.

Max Hammons / OLD VENICE

A VISI THAT G

ION GREW A book that restores the pleasure of reading to those visual impairments.

I was commissioned by the Kingswood Retirement Community Historical Society to design a book for the upcoming anniversary of the institution. Because much of the audience has visual and motor impairments, many design elements and techniques were not practical to use. From the beginning, my goal was for the book to be read without any visual aids. After all, this is how I read books, so I wanted to extend that pleasure to the audience of this book as well.

M a x H a m m o n s / A V I S I O N T H AT G R E W

This was really cool to work on.

Personally I take for granted the ability to read whatever I want without any difficulty.

But for the residents of this retirement home, and those with impairments everywhere, this isn’t the case. I loved being able to accommodate for their needs and make the book accessible for them. They loved it too and offered to throw me a party so they could meet me and tell me personally how much they love what I made. I was unable to attend this party due to logistical conflicts. I was bummed.

Retirement home food can actually be pretty good and I was stoked for that brunch bar.

Making typography accessible is not only about making type bigger. Large type sizes are only a small part of the picture. Choosing a typeface that is legible and readable is more of a factor. To that end, a typeface was chosen with unique and recognizable characters, long ascenders, used with expanded tracking, proper leading, and without ligatures, italics or bolding (as these can be a hindrance to legibility for those with visual impairments).

Color use restrictions are also a factor for this audience.

Colors chosen needed to be at minimum 70% opacity when grey. So that the tints that were chosen would be M a x H a m m o n s / A V I S I O N T H AT G R E W

vibrant enough so that those with visual impairments could distinguish easily between colors. Another accessibility element that was integrated into the production of the book was the use of ripproof paper. Many people with motor disabilities find it difficult to do fine motor movements such as flipping pages without ripping thin paper. So paper was used that made it easier for those individuals to read the book comfortably. The design strategy overall emphasized clear hierarchy and differentiation. This was implemented throughout the book to minimize any confusion between sections or different elements.

M a x H a m m o n s / A V I S I O N T H AT G R E W

Thanks to Abbie, Alex, Ana, Brenden, Brett, Bri, Cassidy, Chandler, Chip, Coach, Connor, Connor, Courtney Mayer, Damien, Dave Adey, Eugene Harris, Grandma and Grandpa, Greg, Jack, Jayme, Jenna, Lael Corbin, Martin and Deb, Michael, Michael, Mom and Dad, Noah, Oklahoma State University, PLNU Admissions, Paige, Phil, Rich, Sam, Sarah Beard, Tess, The Global Orphan Project, The Mac Lab, Tyler Blik, the squad, the crew, the gang, and everyone not on this list. You know who you are.

All thanks to You. You continue to propel me further than I can ever imagine. Keep pushing me.

The interior of this book is printed on Finch Fine 80lb Text with a 110lb Finch Fine cover sheet. This book is typeset in Proxima Nova; a typeface designed by Mark Simonson. All content in this book was written and designed by Max Hammons and copyrighted by Max Hammons for the private use of you the reader. Any other pictures, descriptions, or reproductions of this book without the express written permission of Max Hammons is prohibited.

I’m hungry.