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The Work and Play of Jeff Hayes

JeffTHayes@gmail.com

  • Work
  • Photos
  • About

Here's some assorted information.

The designer, spotted in his native habitat, the wild woods of the Willamette Valley.

Recent endeavors:

Sometimes a client knows exactly what they want, and sometimes what they want is a 1970's cartoon Godzilla in a karate gi, chopping a stack of bricks. And I say who am I to blow against the wind? I'm proud to help out this small community organization even though their budget was small, they offer cheap and free karate classes for kids and low-income families.

#logodesign #smallbusiness #kaiju #karate
Last night was the first Musical Interlude, part of Late Night @artistsrep. Some of Portland's best musicians told some incredible stories and shared some beautiful music. The setting was intimate and perfect, the sound was fantastic, and I came away with my heart full. Thanks to @saeeda_wright, @mooreamasa @swattykins @ellaphantzgerald and @snacks_turner for your performances, to @andreavernae for staying late with us and to @vrtxmag for being an invaluable partner in this new endeavor. .
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#pdxmusic #livemusic #storytelling #artistsrep #notabadjob
An invitation, not a threat, born out of a doodle, like most fun things. Which version do you like more?

#typography #melting #drippy #toomuch #pdxdesign #illustrator #psychedelicart
Ah, The Gorge. I missed you.

#pnwonderland
Some Saturday CNCing! It's pretty cool to see a thing I've designed turn into a thing I can hold. Next step, filling with color.

#inventables #cnc #friendswithbenefits #thicklines #oversizedcoaster #makingitupasigo #pdxdesign #art
Some much needed sunshine this weekend.
I'm proud of all the season images for @artistsrep, but there are a couple details about this one that I want to mention. The mouth is a crooked spine! The eye implies a wheelchair (viewed from the side)! I finally got to draw one of those S symbols that I spent years doodling! All that practice paid off. 
The show is in previews this week, and I feel like you should come check it out! It's a modern & very loose adaptation of Richard III set in high school, centered around Richard running for senior class President. It's funny, genuinely feels like high school, and it packs a punch.

#teenagedick #dontgoogleit #artistsrep #wedotheatre #graphicdesign #illustration #adobeillustrator #negativespace #wacom #doodles #neon #pdxart #pdxdesign #portland
Oswald West, please never change. There was more plastic on your beach this time, but you still felt like a dream. Old growth forests giving way to a secluded beach where fresh and saltwater meet, the sound of waves tumbling over countless rocks, ocean mist mingling with forest fog, everyone there is just appreciating your beauty. I wonder what Oswald East is like? Some weird cousin nobody talks about, no doubt.

#pnwonderland #oldgrowth  #forestsarehome
Thank you to Artists Rep, Aegis Counseling, Cale & Rachel, The Cheese Fairy, The Hollywood Theatre, Keizer Veterinary Clinic, Malheur Carpentry & Woodworking, Portland Actors Conservatory, PlayWrite, Portland Playhouse, Portland Revels, Portland Shakes, Project LTD, Wardrobe of Wonders and multiple other individuals for working with me in 2018. A season's worth of design work for multiple Portland theatres, several new brand identities for startup businesses, illustration commissions that pushed me in multiple new directions, wedding invitations, and event photography! It was my most successful year yet, professionally, and I'm looking forward to continuing the trend in 2019. Goals for myself moving forward: Continue to explore new illustration styles, continue to explore video editing and motion graphics, expand my branding portfolio, collaborate more both visually and musically, spend less time killing time and more time creating.

#portlandart #pdxart #graphicdesign #pdxdesign #illustration #digitalillustration #branding #identity #logos #logodesign #adobeillustrator #adobephotoshop
Playing and looping (not live looping though) and resisting the urge to make jokes about playing with myself. I'm still figuring out what the hell I'm doing, so there are definitely some sour notes, but whatever, there are also some that sound okay. I don't think I'll go pro any time soon...but I could do this for hours

#fingerstyle #electricguitar #shecter #garageband #loops #sundayafternoon #myhappyplace
Can't recommend Christmas morning hikes enough, a truly great start to the day. #nature #thereasonfortheseason
Honestly I don't even know how I get out of bed when I have to wake up to this some mornings... #dogbeak #dogsnoot #dogschnoz
The Life and Letters of John Muir (circa 1920..crazy good find at Powell's) and some @wildrootsspirits NW gin. This was for a gift exchange where you bring a book and pair it with an appropriate vice, and after buying this set, I almost opted to just keep it all for myself.

#screwyouguysimstayinghome ghome #johnmuir #suchabadass #wildroots #gin #aforestinyourmouth

You can connect with me here:

I think of visual art as a prism that I can use to focus my energy. Not in like, a woowoo spiritual crystal healing sort of way, more like a Pink Floyd album cover sort of way. My greatest gift is the ability to transform your ideas, no matter how vague, into reality. It’s very satisfying to be given a list of phrases or concepts or feelings, and through a process I’ve honed over the last ten years, accurately represent them in a logo or illustration. At the end of that process, nothing makes me happier than hearing “Wow, that’s exactly what was in my head, I just didn’t know how to describe it.”

I like to think that my work says more about me that words can, but a bit of backstory never hurts. right? I feel extraordinarily lucky to have found my path as a graphic artist relatively early in life. It started in high school, being introduced to Photoshop. I floundered in college until attempting to take a course in the Adobe suite, only to find I had to be enrolled in the Graphic Design program as a whole in order to sign up for that class. That opened the door to whole worlds of branding, package design, traditional and digital illustration, web design and so many other facets of design that I had never considered. Suddenly my ADHD self had something to focus on.

I graduated in the height of the recession, but was able to find a full-time job at a locally owned sign shop in Salem, SignWorks of Oregon. While the day-to-day orders weren’t always creatively fulfilling, I did get to help multiple new businesses get off the ground, guiding them through the daunting process of branding, and then helping them apply it across a wide range of collateral. I was the main point of contact, answering phones and helping walk-in clients, creating designs, sending proofs and guiding production to ensure expectations were met. The owners of the company were also young and creative, and together we developed a fun and unexpected brand for the shop, using our shared love of comic books as inspiration. From there I moved to Portland and continued working in the sign industry until finding the right time to make the jump to more artistic endeavors.

I’m currently employed at Artists Repertory Theatre in Portland, where I’ve been since 2015. I loved being in theatre in high school, and getting to work every day in support of large-scale professional artistic collaborations can, at the best of times, feel like a dream come true. Being trusted to make decisions that can potentially impact a large group of people took some getting used to, but as I get more comfortable with that idea, I find myself continuing to try and push boundaries whenever possible. I’m proud of my efforts to unify our brand, while continuing to help it evolve to match our mission statement. On any given day, I’m editing and animating actor photos, collaborating with a team to develop social media campaigns, building Spotify playlists that represent the plays, updating our website, and figuring out how to draw people into a world of theatre that they may not believe is for them. Our building occupies an entire city block in downtown Portland, and I utilize my background in sign design and fabrication to keep our lobby space looking fresh. My work has been seen on billboards, busses, the MAX lightrail, local television, Willamette Week, The Portland Mercury and The Oregonian as well as in national magazines including The New Yorker, GQ and Vanity Fair. I’ve also contributed to the productions themselves, with designs making cameos in I and You, Small Mouth Sounds, and most recently contributing to the costume and set design for the modern adaption of Richard III set in high school, aka Teenage Dick (maybe don’t google that one).

I’m always striving to maintain a steady stable of freelance clients, and as an artist I’m always seeking to learn and grow through collaboration with others. I love the research I get to do for the wide variety of projects I’ve been a part of. I’ve designed competition uniforms and floor graphics for the Sherwood High School drumline. I’ve also designed multiple full vehicle wraps. I’ve created custom etched pint glasses, beer bottles, and t-shirts both for fun and for money. I’m teaching myself AfterEffects to add motion to my graphics, I recently started using a CNC machine to carve my designs into wood, and I believe in the beautification of otherwise boring surfaces across Portland through the careful application of stickers. I would love to educate others on what I know so far, and I’ve started speaking annually at local high school career fairs. Have an idea that you need help with? Let’s grab a coffee or beer and figure it out!

Good work speaks for itself, but sometimes it also helps to hear from other people:

"Jeff's professionalism, attention to detail, and excellent communication made a daunting task into a pleasure. Imagery is a big part of a business identity, and Jeff's insights made all the difference.  I look forward to working with him again."

-John Coleman, Malheur Carpentry and Woodworking

"Jeff possesses an unusual combination of impressive creative ability mixed with strong organizational talent not often found in the field of graphic design. A good listener and communicator, he is able to create designs that perfectly meet the needs of various types of clientele, matching their vision with great accuracy. I would highly recommend his services to anyone in need of quality graphic design work done in a timely manner."

-Jeff Parsons, Owner, FastSigns Clackamas

"Jeff was my head designer for a number of years at my sign and design company. His boundless creativity, enthusiasm and respect for design, along with a keen eye for aesthetics consistently impressed and excited both myself and our clients. One of Jeff's strongest skills is his ability to collaborate with clients and/or other artists to bring vague concepts into reality. In my own experience, his final product is often times more exciting than the image I originally had in my mind. This is a hallmark of a great designer and one of the many reasons I still go to him for my own projects as well as refer him to others."

-Scott Lucas, Owner, SignWorks of Oregon

 

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