Very accomplished graphic design from graduate Paul Schoemaker

If nominative determinism had been a stronger force in German designer Paul Schoemaker’s life, perhaps we’d have a cordwainer on our hands. Or feet. Instead, Paul chose a graphic design route, and we’re glad he did.

Two projects that impressed us did so because of their simplicity, and a winning use of well-constructed wee icons. The first is the visual identity for event planning agency Eventbüro Bettray, which uses a bold, geometric, typographic identity and a series of well-drawn icons that beautifully convey the different facets of the organisation.

“The agency’s work always oscillates between two seemingly opposite poles: organisation and creativity,” Paul explains. “And so does the identity design: a strict, quadratic grid is filled playfully with geometric shapes. That’s how their monogram evolves and it also informs the dynamic pattern that is used through all applications.”

Another project we love was born from Paul’s time studying at the FH Düsseldorf, when he and his friends Moritz Kotzerke and Axel Mohr were tasked with designing “a visual identity that works without a logo.” As such, the branding for a second-hand pop-up store, Nichtsneues (“Nothing New”), used a series of triangles filled with patterns from the fabrics behind sold, so "every detail is somehow referencing the concept of recycling.”