Even if you don’t recognize artist Cody Swinkels by name, chances are you’re likely familiar with his work. As a sign designer and painter, Swinkels gives his clients the glory of having their names in the bold print. Using walls, windows, and sandwich boards (even the sides of boats) as his canvases, his distinct lettering style often gives away each seemingly anonymous work. We had the pleasure of chatting with Swinkels about his process, influence, and the art of branding.
How did you find the niche of brand/logo design?
I’ve always had a fascination with lettering and design. Starting in elementary school, I spent many nights at home re-drawing the old English alphabet and other typefaces, trying to replicate and perfect them. Something about drawing lettering always gave me a great sense of accomplishment and joy. During my high school years in Calgary, I started getting involved in city-funded youth art programs, which had me designing and painting murals around the city. It was a great program that ultimately made me comfortable working with a range of clients at a fairly young age. A few years later, in my twenties, I approached a local sign painter named Rick Jensen and asked if I could work under him in any capacity to learn the art of sign painting. Over the following three years assisting him on various projects, I gained an enormous wealth of knowledge about type design specifically and what it looks like to run a small business in the arts.
When taking on a new project, how do you settle on the personality of someone else’s branding?
When I am taking on a new project, first and foremost, I always do my best to gather as much information as possible from my client. Often, I am not necessarily coming in to create branding but to create something that will aesthetically compliment a space or provide some flair to an existing brand. That could mean creating a unique piece of art within the parameters of a client’s pre-decided branding colours or doing the direct painting or custom mural work on the walls of a business. I am generally careful not to steer too far from a client’s vision unless they have explicitly given me creative control. At the end of the day, it’s a matter of having good communication and using my understanding of layout and design to make something that works and serves its purpose well.
How would you describe your aesthetic, and were there any particular artists/styles that influenced it?
My work style changes frequently from project to project, but there is a thread that binds it all. The art of hand lettering and sign painting goes back a hundred years or more. It is a vocation that requires heavy, detailed research in regard to its traditions and techniques.
I am taking well-established design rules and mixing them up with my personal interests in art. I’ve always enjoyed 1970s counterculture cartoons, i.e., Robert Crumb, Von Bode, and Ralph Bakshi. I’ve been inspired by poster art and traditional tattoo aesthetics as well because I think they go hand in hand with traditional lettering. In general, I really like the idea of trying to recreate hand-painted ephemera from the mid to late century with a twist of whatever I’m interested in at that moment.
To name a few sign painters I really admire: John Lennig here in Vancouver at Bigtop Signs, Chris and Stu Dobell in Victoria, Thank You Lettering Co., and Southpaw Signs in New York.
You have a solid breadth of pieces across the city. Do you usually work alone?
Yes, I mainly work alone. I have gotten down a really good solo process at this point. If the project is big, I may hire a friend or local artist to assist me.
What have been some of the projects you’ve been most proud of?
There would be a lot to name! I’m very proud of my “Starfield” mural, which can be seen at the King George Hub in Surrey. I recently completed a gold leaf gilded window at Band of Fools Tattoo in Langley, which was a great experience. I have some other gold leaf work in Gastown at Pacific Rose Tattoo that I’m super fond of, and they have been such wonderful people to work with.
Do you ever get feedback from people on the street?
It’s mainly just people walking by yelling things like, “You missed a spot!” “Ya spelled it wrong!” or “Hey! Picasso!” That last one made me laugh.
Check out Cody Swinkels work here.