"All that is gold does not glitter,
Not all those who wander are lost..."
My name is Slava "Fomkeen," and I am a graphic designer who lived in Toronto for nearly 20 years. I currently reside in St. Petersburg. For the past few years, I've been running a small freelance branding studio, mainly serving startups and small local businesses. Back in my early teen years, I developed a passion for the art form of graphic design, but I only took the leap to pursue formal education about 5 years ago. These past 5 years mark the beginning of a lifetime dedicated to learning about this subject—a lifetime of adventure.
I have always been fascinated by a myriad of things related to design, from analyzing how the exaggerated use of vertical lines, curves, and other geometry can shape a style like Art Deco to uncovering subtle clues as to why some typefaces feel friendly, old, or mysterious. Recently, I have been captivated by the works of graphic designers such as MinaLima and Annie Atkins, who create graphic props for movies. Their work has inspired me to embark on a passion project where I aim to explore and expand my graphic design skills within a themed and story-driven environment.
During the creative drought of the early 2020s, I picked up an iPad and began creating art in a mono-line style, focusing on themes I enjoyed such as Magic, Secret Societies, and Fantasy. Being a firm believer that artwork should exist beyond hard drives and dusty sketchbooks, I naturally started sharing my creations on Instagram under the name "The Order of Curiosities." Every design I crafted always had a story or inspiration behind it. The more effort I invested, the more compelled I felt to explore other areas of design and delve deeper into storytelling. That's how this idea came to life.
The Order of Curiosities is a world-building art and graphic design project where we delve into the themes of mystery, secret societies, and magic. Our goal is to craft a comprehensive visual representation of an entirely new universe filled with diverse settings, places, items, characters, stories, and interactions. Drawing inspiration from the creations of graphic artists involved in the production of props for movies, books, theatre, games, and more, we aspire to bring these elements to life. I envision that some of our designs could materialize into physical products, whether in the form of prints, pins, or unique items that would be cherished as collectibles.
Picture yourself in an ordinary world, suddenly recruited by an organization dedicated to tracking and hunting all things magical and peculiar—an organization steadfast in its belief that magic was and still is real. It insists that magic manifests through select individuals and resides within lost items, artifacts, and curiosities. Now, you find yourself entrusted with missions and quests where you encounter a plethora of odd and peculiar things dismissed by society as mere trickery and deceit. Yet, you know better. You sense there is something magical waiting to be uncovered and understood.
This universe exists in parallel to ours. As you observe and recount past events, you may discover correlations between occurrences in the real world and how they were influenced by the magical reality within it. The stories told and unearthed span centuries, with newly found information aiding us in making more sense of our known universe.
Want to pitch in an idea for our storytelling art adventure? Whether you feel like you want to pitch in an elaborate theme into the story or just suggest an interesting character with a loose background story, I want to hear it!
1. Read the description of the project above to have a better understanding of the themes and setting.
2. If proposing existing ideas, please make sure they are not copyrighted.
(we can't have a bow huntress named Katniss Everdeen existing in our world)
3. Remember that this universe lives on the border of reality & fantasy.
(If you propose that dragons exist, how could we make it believable)
4. Run wild, be creative, while I can't guarantee that your ideas will be implemented, they can still serve as inspiration for something else.
5. Please understand that you are sharing ideas that I will put a spin on. While I can and will credit if your idea gets used in the project. I can't provide any compensation or creative rights as this will kill the soul of this project.
(if you are not okay with this, you are not obligated to participate)
