Erik Herrström’s identity for Björkhem embodies the Swedish law firm’s forward-thinking attitude

Stockholm-founded law firm Björkhem, launched by figure-head Emil Björkhem, was set up to legally and strategically advise businesses with an innovative eye and forward-thinking attitude. In need of a visual identity that suited their approach, and to actively react against the tiresome corporate practice of banal stock imagery and characterless typography, Björkhem called upon Vienna-based designer Erik Herrström.

Highlighting the strength of simplicity across a considered sum of parts, Herrström translated the energy of the firm through punchy, dynamic and elementary expressions of form, colour and typographic hierarchy. Led by the core concept of ‘Lady Justice,’ the Roman goddess of justice, the identity abstractly references the goddess’ sword and scale bowls via the brand’s ‘B’ logomark, embodying Björkhem’s reverence towards equal and fair administration of law.

Reflecting as much through the secondary execution of type, Herrström tells us, “I tried to identify a serif that would feel like it belongs in the world of Roman mythology,” landing on Ivy Foundry’s IvyPresto, as well as Europa Type’s sans serif Europa to accompany it. “I wanted to use a serif in order to make it clash in with the simple shapes in a sophisticated way,” Herrström explains, “Europa is a geometric sans serif and it simply felt right for the body copy,” culminating in a powerful partnership indicative of Björkhem’s philosophical attitude to their work, as well as their pragmatic expertise on the field.

Keeping things grounded, however, Herrström cemented the personability of the business in the choice of green as the firm’s primary colour. There was no big idea here, unfortunately,” he concludes, “my client's favourite colour is green so he wanted to use it for his own company.”

Erik Herrström

Björkhem