ESPI on site: Eike König at TYPO London 2012

From Hort to Heart – the title says it all. Eike König’s talk was one of the most inspiring at this year’s TYPO London and a perfect fit for the conference theme. A one-minute run through of posters, magazines, album covers, t-shirts and various illustrations accompanied by loud music was all the audience got to see of Eike’s commercial work that day. Instead they witnessed a designer who says he never had a plan or a strategy, but always remained true to himself and »a few simple rules«, who is involved in teaching and mentoring and highly committed to social projects with children and students.

Adrian Shaughnessy with Eike König © Gerhard Kassner

»Who am I?«, Eike König asked as the quickly switching frames and music faded out, introducing the two people that have influenced him the most: his parents. Their everlasting trust and necessary support (even if they never completely understood what he did) have made him who he is and have taught him to be responsible for himself. »I’m not an angle, but I try to be one as often as I can.«

As a child of the Cold War he was impressed by Neurath-like information graphics that explained the nuclear threat and it was this discovery that helped him understand and appreciate the work of a graphic designer. Combined with his passion for music Eike König decided that he wanted to design record sleeves and in the early 90s he became an art director at a music label.

Ready to work on his own and by his own rules he founded Hort in 1994. He wanted to have fun, get paid, not work with people he disliked, build relationships, not work for, but with people, be honest to himself and the client and keep on searching and exploring. Also he promised himself that he would quit, if he did not feel the desire to have fun any longer. Eike König assured he was still following these rules and that relationships are still more important to him than money and success.

At some point Eike realized he was missing something and decided to work in teams rather than on his own. Respecting his colleagues and trusting them from the bottom of his heart, letting them fail and learn, supporting them and giving them a space where they can grow to follow their own way is Eike König’s main theme at Hort.

In German Hort describes a place where children stay after school. Thus Eike König started the After School Club, a workshop for school kids. Convinced that design has a stronger social impact than art or music (but that the discipline is underrated in our society), Eike teaches the children the meaning and the fundamentals of design in a playful way. He explained that »road sign don’t grow out of the street« and, in return, also learnt from them.

Recently he also began teaching design students at the Offenbach University of Art and Design. Having been told that he needs to change something while at the university, he decided to achieve something new, an event that would be completely run and organized by the students independently. Then Eike explained what in his eyes should be the new role of a professor: no longer a person who tells students what to do, but rather a mentor who supports them and asks the right questions that will help them grow and improve.

In the last part of his talk Eike König presented one of the latest self-imposed projects developed at Hort: the creation of a new band in all its facets. This »new visual sensation« combines writing, composing and playing music as well as producing it and giving it a visual identity. Performances and exhibitions have been experimental combinations of sounds and images. Wondering wether the results could someday even be included in commercial work, Eike and his colleagues at Hort have discovered a »playground in experimentation«.

Eike König claims the German title of the 1955 movie Rebel Without a Cause starring James Dean best describes his attitude: … den sie wissen nicht was sie tun (… for they don’t know what they are doing). It’s hard to believe Eike König does not have a plan or a strategy. But if it means he continues to be socially committed and involved in teaching children and students, we’ll take him for granted. What began with a concept for his studio, Eike has expanded and applied to several other projects over the years – truly »from Hort to Heart«.