Mateo Buitrago’s identity for Adina Burlacu reflects the brutalist craft of her handmade objects

Seeking a balance between form and function, and blurring the lines between craft and industrial design, Berlin-based artist Adina Burlacu produces an eclectic series of handmade objects such as chairs and plates. Created as and when inspiration arises, rather than as a part of a fixed production schedule.

Madrid-based designer Mateo Buitrago was commissioned to devise the visual identity for Burlacu’s work, finding the brutalism and clean lines of her creations to be the ideal starting point. This led him to a modular system, both for the stacked wordmark and in the form of an ever-changing selection of geometric shapes. “The modularity of the wordmark, as well as the shapes system, speaks of her ability to create different pieces but always maintain the same essence,” Buitrago tells us; adding that the shapes also mirror the “boldness” that Burlacu’s objects possess.

The sans serif wordmark and its accompanying serif counterpart aim to represent the aforementioned balance of craftsmanship and industrial design, while providing elegance and contrasting character to the identity. The typefaces of choice – Frostype’s FT Base and Displaay’s Reckless Neue – also both match in their x-height, making them the perfect partners not only in concept, but from a technical perspective.

Playing a supporting role to Buitrago’s typographic approach is the colour palette, which aims to feel calm and allow Burlacu’s work to speak for itself. Primarily black and white, Buitrago reveals that “the colours allude to the honesty in the process and the materials with which Burlacu usually works.”

Mateo Buitrago

Adina Burlacu