Howdy!

I’m Jon and I am a graphic designer. I am also an emerging artist, but we’ll get to that later.

My path to graphic design started early with untold numbers of attempted Mighty Ducks logos strewn about my childhood bedroom. The fascination with logo design and general mark making continues to this day as I evolve and refine my take on the craft. However, education and experience has taught me that design goes well beyond a logo and the value of engaging with creative challenges from a holistic perspective.

Skills

Working with a brand’s core visual language is what gets me most excited. Targeting its purpose and refining the tone and expression of a brand into a simple, yet effective visual identity is where my creativity flourishes.

Brand Design

  • Having cultivated a strategy-first approach to all my work, I have a good eye for layout and typography as they have a project-wide effect on the user’s experience, print and digital alike.

  • Infographics and directorial designs are important to me as a designer concerned with making esoteric ideas accessible to all.

  • My illustrative ability is quite niche and more related to my artwork, but I believe it contributes well to my overall creative skillset as a graphic designer.

  • I do my best to leave my ego at the door and interact with ideas and concepts as objectively as possible. Whether visual or linguistic, I think that a creative narrative should be simple, yet sophisticated—always with a purposeful underpinning.

Tools

Adobe Creative Suite

I’ve been using Adobe software for 15 years and could not live without Illustrator and InDesign as my primary design tools. Photoshop places a close third in my set of creative skills.

Figma (+Microsoft)

I have experience building digital assets and functional templates in Figma, taking advantage of its ability to transition to common software apps from Google, Microsoft and Apple.

Education

Kwantlen Polytechnic University
Richmond, British Columbia, Canada

Four-year Graphic Design for Marketing program

Bachelor of Design
2008–2012

EXPERIENCE

Providing services focused on branding and illustration in addition to a traditional suite of deliverables (stationery, signage, marketing material, packaging, apparel etc.).

Freelance Graphic Designer
2012–present

Working in collaboration with the principle, Chrystale Thompson, I was responsible for new brand development, existing brand stewardship and expansion as well as packaging, signage, illustration and marketing material for a range of clients from fashion and hospitality to sporting events.

Graphic Designer
Ecstatic Design & Communication
2012–2017

Remote Brand was a start-up focused on B2B branding and strategy. Working in lockstep with lead strategist, Landon Pendlebury, I was responsible for all brand development and subsequent deliverables from stationery and signage to trade show booths and website design. 

Collaborating with photographers, communications experts and our web developer were core elements of our overall production process.

Lead Designer
Remote Brand
2017–2023

References

Remote Brand
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

604.499.1124‬
landon@remotebrand.com

Landon Pendlebury
Principal, Remote Brand

Based in Windsor, Ontario, DarkRoast is a remote team with a stable of designers that service companies who are primarily in the food and beverage industry. Working with three unique companies (considered my own clients) I provide day-to-day creative stewardship—ranging from ground-up brand development, to packaging design, to advertising concepts and social media assets.

Senior-level Designer
DarkRoast Design
September 2023–present

Ecstatic Design Studio
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

604.646.6644‬
chrystale@weareecstatic.com

Chrystale Thompson
Principal, Ecstatic Design Studio

Hardpressed Print Studio
Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada

1.306.270.4579‬
steve@hardpressed.ca

Steve Thomson
Founder CEO, Hardpressed Studio

A Creative Life

Aspirations

As I gain more experience as a designer and emerging artist, my long-term goal is to go it alone and provide for my family on my own terms. I believe this will open more doors for me than ever, as I am capable of working in a variety of creative spaces and look forward to meeting amazing people all along the way.

Interests

  • I spend more time than most making the most painfully particular playlists that suit my every mood. Country, soul and reggae tend to plug up my ear holes on the regular. Music is an essential part of my creative process and life in general.

  • I’m writing this on a desk that I built while wearing jeans that I tailored that are held up by a leather belt that I made. Let’s just say my studio is messy for good reason.

  • Travelling on four wheels is my favourite way to adventure. It’s autonomous, low-key and doable with a coffee in hand.

Printmaking
Origin of Matchbook Paradise

As a direct result of life as a designer and being on a computer for the better part of a day, I’ve followed a path into something much more tactile: linocut printmaking.

Matchbook Paradise was born of a love for the open road and all that comes with the quintessential American adventure on four wheels. Being a graphic designer by trade, my interest in the history of motoring and mid-century advertising evolved into a hybrid of art and design with a particularly vintage automotive flavour.

Contact
Jon Janzen

Email
matchbookparadise@gmail.com

Mobile
604.379.8447

Portfolio
matchbookparadise.com

Address
4906 47A Avenue
Delta, British Columbia
V4K 1T4