Orvis Brand Illustrations

Love of adventure & the wonder of nature

To capture the natural world in lettering…

Orvis requested a set of beautifully illustrated letters encapsulating their brand essence and reflecting the company’s love of adventure and wonder of nature. Each letter in the ORVIS name would be illustrated with flora and fauna from a different natural setting, inspiring a year-round excitement for the outdoors.

I began by drawing the characters, before exploring the relationship between each letter and the imagery it would contain, to find harmonious shapes and compositions.

Orvis Brand Lettering and Illustration, chalk stream | Design by Jamie Clarke Type

O – River: Trout with aquatic vegetation, bubbles and water patterns. Rock and sand at the bottom.

Orvis Brand Lettering and Illustration, R Uplands | Design by Jamie Clarke Type

Each letter has an ornate, woodblock feel, reminiscent of the pre-Victorian alphabets of Louis John Pouchée’s foundry in London.

The settings chosen for each of the letters were: River, Uplands, River Bank, Forest Floor, and Salt Water.

R – Uplands: A dog flushing two pheasants, surrounded by tall grasses and wild flowers.

Orvis Brand Lettering and Illustration, river | Design by Jamie Clarke Type

V – Riverbank: Caddisfly with bullrushes, showing water and dragonfly.

Orvis Brand Lettering and Illustration, forest | Design by Jamie Clarke Type

Letter I – Forest Floor: Nesting grouse under oak with acorns. Showing mushrooms and bracken.

Orvis Brand Lettering and Illustration, sea | Design by Jamie Clarke Type

S – Salt Water: Tarpon fish struggling against a line. Palm tree top and bottom for context.

Orvis Brand Lettering and Illustration | Design by Jamie Clarke Type

Original sketch for each of the letters.

Orvis Branding by Jamie Clarke Type on shopfront

Photo Credit: Gregory Allen

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