Meet the Humans Behind Arcana Studio
It can be so easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of visual images, moving reels and dancing videos on the internet – that we actually forget behind every brand there is actually a real, living and breathing human being (or two!)
We wanted to take the opportunity to step away from the pretty Pinterest boards and showcase more about ourselves.. so you can learn more about our personal brands – behind the brand!
Arcana Studio is made up of two female-empowered, globe trottin’ individuals – Creative Strategist and Brand Genius, Lorena, and Digital Creative, Josie.
Without cheating, what’s your “Currently playing” in Spotify right now?
Josie: EKG - Club Mix by fleet.dreems and àj magic. Haha, it is definitely not a “club” jam – I like to listen to chill, beach vibe music when I work and daydream in the garden
Lorena: Yellow by Audrey Assad. I’m a big fan of covers, I love how one song (or even just one set of lyrics) can sound different depending on who is singing and what they’re expressing! Otherwise, my music taste is a bit all over the place - you can catch me listening to acoustic, mainstream indie, lofi beats, M-pop, broadway, EDM - as long as it’s good, I’ll listen to it!
What is your coffee order?
Josie: No matter how hot it is, I always order a hot, oat milk flat white!
Lorena: Hahaha that’s funny, I also only ever take my coffee hot! Black for me.
Why “Arcana”? What does it mean?
Josie: Arcana by definition means mystery or secret, coming from the Latin term arcanum. In the universe of tarot cards, the Major Arcana suite of cards symbolises life lessons and karmic patterns that can inspire and impact your life’s path to enlightenment.
I’m deeply inspired by the world of spirituality, magic, manifestation and energy. Arcana just made sense when we started to see a pattern of dream projects organically come our way – ones that are fully aligned with our working styles, personal values and passions.
Lorena: Josie suggested “Arcana” and without knowing what it means, I said yes right away! It may seem silly but it just felt right. I think it’s because Josie and I had worked together on a few projects that by the time we decided to start Arcana, I knew and trusted that whatever she suggested would be just right.
What is your personal design aesthetic? How does that influence your designs?
Josie: When it comes to design itself, I’m definitely much more visual. I love to personally design very clean, minimal, elegant and ethereal websites or designs. Of course, I love working together with our client partners to collaboratively dream up their digital vision together. And as always, Lorena is the perfect complement to making every illustration vision come to life
Lorena: Thank you! This may not be answering the question fully, but my personal design aesthetic is functional. I love visual design that conveys a strong message and sense of self. Design systems, iconography, signage, war art - anything goes. This is why branding is so intriguing to me as it’s about creating a visual identity that can be utilized across different mediums and why starting with a strong understanding of the brand strategy makes a world of difference.
Who is your favourite artist? Why?
Josie: Currently, my favourite artist is Shira Barzilay (@koketit on Instagram), because she can take a seemingly ordinary photograph and add her touch of whimsical illustration or drawing to it. It’s so ethereal and cute! It really reminds me of daydreams and brings me back to my youth of long, endless summers of staring at the sky.
Lorena: It’s hard to pick a favourite artist! A long time love of mine is Malika Favre - her style is based on bold colours and geometric shapes. There’s always a really meaningful message behind her art, and I find that I’m always blown away by how effortless her pieces look. But if you dive deeper, you’ll see an insane amount of detail and skill is required.
Why focus only on businesses that are service-based, conscious and/or social impact positive?
Josie: A core, founding philosophy of Arcana Studio is to work on projects that have a positive impact on society and/or the world. For too long I’ve worked in industries or companies whose values do not align with or reflect my own. It was important for us to be able to intentionally choose to collaborate with businesses who have the same values and need for social impact as us. Our client partners have been the best to work with!
Lorena: As we get older, naturally our perspective on life changes. You start to appreciate the peaceful mornings, the health of you and your partner and the value of family. Most of all, you start to think about how you are using your time. Arcana really is an opportunity to be more intentional with our time and work with client partners that match with our perspective and values.
Why are most of your client projects women?
Josie: We certainly do not exclude working with men!! We love working with client partners whose values and mission align with ours. We are a service-based and female-empowered small business, and as the saying goes: Like attracts like – the magic of the law of attraction :)
Lorena: Agreed. Gender doesn’t really matter, it’s the connection and energy between us and our client partners that is most important!
Lorena
Designer, charcuterie lover and mom of one.
I help impactful business owners, with a vision to do things differently, build amazing brand strategies and identity – so the branding can tell their mission and story for them.
Josie
Designer by trade, yogini by passion, chip connoisseur by night.
I help intentional business owners translate their vision into Squarespace website reality – so they can show up in the digital realm to reach their dream clients.
