Filipa Alves — Photography

Sea Website Florida Studio Main

Founded by Filipa Alves in 2022, Fl&oacute;rida Studio brings to life a cross-pollination of ideas between designers and makers, hosting a collection of handmade objects, home goods, apparel, vintage and art, alongside offerings in floral design installation and events. The brand reminds us that the creative spirit comes to life when you follow your heart while believing in the strength of collaboration.
 We&rsquo;ve had the honor to know Filipa for over a decade, when one might say that the first seeds for Fl&oacute;rida were planted. Over the last year we were able to conceptualize and build the brand from ground up, creating a new logo identity, signage, posters, other print application, creative direction and a custom ecommerce store.

Business Card Front

Business Card Back

<h3>Flowers</h3>
Fl&oacute;rida works with a variety of natural materials, like seasonal and preserved flowers, handmade objects, and often organic materials that are simply find along the way. Flowers are visible in much of the print material, and found even in Gif&rsquo;s of the &ldquo;&oacute;&rdquo; from the logo. Even the background colors of all product photography and pages carry a floral tone.

Sea Website Filipa

Sea Website Flowers

<h3>Studio</h3>
Photography brings to life the story of the studio, where portraits of makers and collaborators are taken by Filipa herself. This demonstrates the importance of human interaction and handmade craft.

Sea Website Studio

Sea Website Florida Studio

Social Media

Store

Poster

Artisan

Labels

Label 2

Website 1

Website 2

Florida Studio

An Interview With

Produced By

Cuba on Film

A Sunday afternoon drive at the beach - Santa Maria del Mar beach - outside of Havana. There are at least 12 people in the car. Taken on my first trip to the country.

Car - Santa Maria Del Mar, Cuba - 1990

When was the moment you knew it was going to be Cuba?
The first day I was there. I went with a group through The Center for Cuban Studies. I landed in Havana and was out photographing and everything was interesting. There was an incredible openness in the people, and the physicality of the city was that way too - the way the architecture was set up, you know, the doors that open onto the street. It was like walking into somebody's home. And people would say "come on in." I shot so much film on the first day, I thought, "I'm not going to have enough film." The thing about photography back then is that there were still places that had not been photographed much. It doesn't really work that way anymore. 
&nbsp;
Can you tell us more about the openness of the people and their relationship to the camera?
Well to begin with, the people in Cuba are warm. And this was before cell phones. Cameras didn't even exist there, or at least they did but on a very limited scale. There was none of that camera fatigue. And then when I look at the pictures, and at the people, there was something about the way that they looked back at me that said something about the energy that I was putting out there, some sort of I don't want to say, emotional exchange. If you come at somebody like you're open, you're not being aggressive, you're respectful&hellip; and all of those portraits, I would ask them. They would look back at me and they wouldn't change a thing. It was amazing that me asking them didn't alter the image.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
You took over 25,000 analog photographs on over 3,000 roles of medium format film. It seems like you were almost addicted. 
Well with that sort of street, or documentary photography, you never hesitate. You have to be completely present and ready to shoot something quickly, and not question it. You have to go with your instincts. It becomes a reflex. It's kind of like that point where you're learning a language and you don't have to think about it anymore. Watching, responding&hellip; watching, responding. And in a way it felt like I needed to cover everything&hellip; to cover the whole place and see every part of the island. It was about exploring.

Kids dancing on a summer afternoon at a seaside pavilion in Isabela de Sagua in the Holguin province in 1993. Another of the most iconic images from the series.

Dancing - Isabela de Sagua, Cuba - 1993

So in a way it was about covering the whole place, and being possibly one of the first photographers to do that so extensively?
There were a few people, but not many, and particularly when you got further out there. I remember this little town called Baracoa, people didn't even know what to think of us. It was a sort of "who are you and what are you doing here." There were no tourists.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
How does Cuba relate to your other photography?&nbsp;
Adventure and exploration has always been there, but I think the real motivation, or compulsion, was that it was going to change, it was going to get homogenized and developed. I think that's what was imprinted on me, growing up as a child in St. Thomas - the homogenization, Americanization - and I remember in the seventies being really disheartened by that. I felt that because of Cuba's isolation, it had been saved from some of that homogenization, and it was true.&nbsp;
Once it happens you can't go back. It's sad. Change is inevitable, but when you start making giant leaps on the physical landscape of a place, you can't go back. Look at New York, if I had only realized, I would have shot even more. I wish that I had the presence of mind, I would have photographed the Music District, which was a street that only had music stores, and the Notions District. With New York I may not have realized it back when I was shooting there that it was about shooting it before it changed - it was more about exploration.&nbsp;
It's about documenting things before they're gone.

The sale of personal items such as records and books was a common site on the streets of Havana during the 1990s “ Special Period”. A wide variety of musical genres - Russian, Pop (Los Van Van) Son - Cuban country music from the 40’s and on (Los Trio Matamores) and African religion Yoruba inspired (Orisha) on display here.

More Records - Havana, Cuba - 1993

A playground ride with fighter jets in the town of Remedios in the province of Villa Clara. Taken on one of many cross-country trips.

Plane Ride - Remedios, Cuba - 1992

Girls sleep in the sand at a local beach - Santa Maria del Mar -outside of Havana. No towels in sight at this beach.

Girls at the Beach - Santa Maria del Mar, Cuba - 1990

People wait in line for an outdoor shoe repair in the town of Cueto in the Holguin province. Taken on of several cross-country trips to explore every major city and town on the 875-mile long island.

Shoe Repair - Cueto, Cuba 1993

Flags are flown for the anniversary of the storming of the Moncada Barracks in Santiago de Cuba (1953) this event is considered the beginning of the Cuban Revolution. The view is from the Hotel Colina in Vedado looking towards Old Havana.

View on July 26 - Havana, Cuba - 1993

A memorial to a loved son who was killed in an uprising after the triumph of the Cuba Revolution.

Memorial Gonzalez - Ciego de Avila, Cuba - 1992

A wonderful example of Cuban revolutionary graphics used as billboards, posters and murals everywhere. These replaced any form of commercial advertising.

Guitar Gun - Las Tunas, Cuba - 1993

A mural covers a bathhouse at a beach located on the peninsula of Playa Giron where The Bay of Pigs invasion took place.

Mural at The Big of Pigs - Playa Giron, Cuba - 1993

A beauty salon in the residential neighborhood of Vedado provides services on the back patio of a private home during the era of economic hardship known as “the Special Period”. One of more widely published and sold images from the series.

Beauty Salon in Vedado-Havana, Cuba - 1993

People wait in line to buy ice cream in Havana. Bicycles imported from China were one of the main forms of transportation at the time.

Helado - Havana, Cuba - 1994

An overcrowded public bus (guaguas as they are called in Cuba) rides through Central Havana. During the 1990s “Special Period” fuel was scarce, and transportation was difficult. Over flowing buses was a common sight during this time.

Guagua - Central Havana, Cuba - 1994

90s Cuba

Reference NYC — Branding

Encore Main Image

&lsquo;I grew up in a dive bar. Not just any dive bar though. It&rsquo;s the smallest bar in the world putting on major national acts. Over 65 Members of the Rock n&rsquo;Roll hall of fame have played here and a host of famous atletes, movie starts, amnd politicians have been here. But you&rsquo;d never know it. It&rsquo;s a place where everyone is equal and accepted. A place where you can show up in board shorts or a tuxedo and it&rsquo;s all the same. I&rsquo;ve seen ex-boyfriends&rsquo; local bands fill the room and Coldplay do the same. It&rsquo;s a sanctuary that has comforted so many through good times, heartbreaks, and all the moments in between.&rsquo; - Ruby Honerkamp, founder of Talkhouse Encore Talkhouse [THE BAR]&nbsp;has been a landmark for generations. This small, unassuming bar has brought unprecedented talent to the East End - from Billy Joel to Pink Floyd&rsquo;s Roger Waters - and no-one describes it as Ruby Honerkamp, daughter of the owner and now founder of the drink that bottles up all the energy of the bar.&nbsp;
Talkhouse Encore [THE DRINK] was born on October 2020 right in the middle of the pandemic, a way of keeping the family legacy alive even when the doors where closed and the stage lights where off.

000141130013 Copy

Talkhouse Encore Portfolio Image

Encore Sea Website

Together with the design team from <a href="https://referencenyc.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Reference</a>, Ruby and family have created a brand the embodies &ldquo;music in a can&rdquo; and &ldquo;play forever&rdquo;. We created the Talkhouse Encore website to match this spirited approach.&nbsp;

1 Talkhouse Encore Sea Website

2 Talkhouse Encore Sea Website

0 Talkhouse Encore Sea Website

Talkhouse Encore

Montauk Seafood 00

Montauk Seafood Company is owned and operated by two local fishermen, Wes Peterson and Doug Davidson. At this local market, it is just as much about the whole fishing experience as it is about seafood. And above all, it is about Montauk. The core concept of its logo and brand needed to be seen through the eyes of fishermen, with Montauk always present . While not the most commonly recognized, flags are a part of the day-to-day of those who work and live at sea. The whole brand is inspired by the boldness of flags and the statement of stencil typography. From there, design and content tell the rest of their story, applied to signage, cards, website and instagram.&nbsp;

Montauk

Made by Sea Montauk Seafood 1

Made by Sea Montauk Seafood 2

Made by Sea Montauk Seafood 3

Made by Sea Montauk Seafood 4

Made by Sea Montauk Seafood 5

Made by Sea Montauk Seafood 6

Made by Sea Montauk Seafood 7

Made by Sea Montauk Seafood 8

Made by Sea Montauk Seafood 9

Montauk Seafood

Made by Sea   Stellar Union 01

Sheila White &amp; Bill Schefferine first formed Stellar Union in their Brooklyn loft in 2001 when their son Ray was born. As artists and designers they had always searched the stores and sidewalks for the most unusual, eclectic finds to contrast and complement the clean lines of modernism. They opened their main location in 2004 in Southampton. We created a minimalist ecommerce website to host over 200 items while maintaining easy search and UX. On this fast, light-weight interface, product pages popout from right to left, creating a sense that you never leave the main page.&nbsp;

Made by Sea   Stellar Union 02

Stellar Union

Daniela Lino — Illustration

Morgan Ione — Photography

Made by Sea Rowayton Seafood Connecticut

Rowayton Seafood is a family business and legacy landmark found at the mouth of the Five Mile Rive in Rowayton, CT. What started with a simple dream in 1978, has found its way into the minds of people from every corner of the country. The Market resides in an old fishing shack that was once the oldest operating Lobster Co-Op on the Long Island Sound. The market was purchased in 1978 by Kevin Conroy, followed by the restaurant next door in 1996. Kevin and his family are avid fishermen and can be found regularly returning to the docks from off shore fishing adventures.

Made by Sea Rowayton Seafood Connecticut 2

Made by Sea Rowayton Seafood Connecticut 3

Made by Sea Rowayton Seafood Connecticut 4

Made by Sea Rowayton Seafood Connecticut 5

Made by Sea Rowayton Seafood Connecticut 6

Made by Sea Rowayton Seafood Connecticut 7

Made by Sea Rowayton Seafood Connecticut 8

Made by Sea Rowayton Seafood Connecticut 9

Made by Sea Rowayton Seafood Connecticut 10

Over the years the Market and Restaurant became visually recognized and known in different ways: &ldquo;The Restaurant at Rowayton Seafood,&rdquo; &ldquo;The Restaurant,&rdquo; Rowayton Seafood Market,&rdquo; &ldquo;Rowayton Market,&rdquo; and more. Our challenge was to establish the common brand name of &ldquo;Rowayton Seafood,&rdquo; while creating a sense of sub-branding for the market and restaurant. This new brand honors the story of Rowayton Seafood, a visual celebration comprised of a new logo, voice, visual language and print and digital application. It celebrates forty-four years of family, community, authenticity and of course, seafood.&nbsp;

A Creative Agency based in Porto and New York.