Heikki
Lotvonen

Curriculum Vitae

Heikki Lotvonen

Graphic Designer | Coder | Teacher | Net artist
Email:
hlotvonen@gmail.com
Phone:
+358 40 5888 229
Locality:
Helsinki, Finland
Languages:
English (Fluent)
Finnish (Native)

MAIN INTERESTS

EDUCATION

Master of Arts in Fine Art and Design
Sandberg Instituut / Gerrit Rietveld Academy, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
2016 – 2018
Bachelor of Arts in Graphic Design
Aalto University School of Arts, Design and Architecture
2011 – 2016
Exchange Program, Graphic Design Department
Royal Academy of Arts, The Hague, The Netherlands
2014

SELECTED PERSONAL PROJECTS

Glyph Drawing Club — modular graphic design editor
2018 - Present
  • A novel design tool that is used for the creation of modular graphic designs, including type design, illustrations and patterns
  • Free-to-use, open-source project, developed using React and MobX technologies.
  • Includes various ornamental shape-based fonts that are used in the drawing process.
  • Used by hundreds of designers globally.
  • Integrated into graphic design curricula in multiple countries.
MoebiusXBIN — ASCII art editor with custom font and color support
2020 - Present
  • A program for creating unusual ASCII art with custom bitmap fonts and color palettes.
  • Built upon the foundation of an open-source ASCII art editor, customized for added functionality.
Bannermo.de — Minecraft banner composition editor
2021 - Present
  • An online tool for designing complex modular banner compositions for the game Minecraft.
Grid Drawing Club — WYSIWYG tool for creating complex HTML element arrangements
2023
  • An online tool for designing complex modular HTML element layouts using CSS grids, gradients, border-images, and clip-paths.
Unicode Drawing Club — Unicode art editor
2023
  • An online tool for crafting ASCII-inspired art using the entire palette of Unicode characters.

WORK EXPERIENCE

Web design and development
Freelance / Self-employed
2013 – Present
  • Design and development of websites for various cultural clients.
  • Hand-coded HTML, CSS and JS according to client needs.
  • Interactivity through React, Svelte or Alpine.js.
  • Content management with Kirby and static site generators.
  • Committed to fast pageloads, accessibility, small web, no tracking and non-intrusive design practices.
Graphic design and illustration
Freelance / Self-employed
2013 – Present
  • Graphic design and illustrations for print, web and merch using self-developed image making tools and methods.
Visiting teacher, Visual Communication Design
Aalto University School of Arts, Design and Architecture
2019 – Present
  • Hosted workshops on using Glyph Drawing Club for custom type design and illustrations. For BA and MA students in 2019, 2020 and twice in 2021
  • Developed and taught a six week "Intro to HTML & CSS" course. For first year Visual Communication Design students in 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023
  • Co-taught a six week "Intro to typography" course. For first year Visual Communication Design students in 2023
  • Co-taught a six week course on "the intersection of typography and language". For second year Visual Communication Design students in 2022
Visiting teacher, Visual Communication Design
Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts, Copenhagen, Denmark
2018 – 2021
  • Developed curriculum and taught a 2 week intensive introductory course on using experimental tools and methods for creating visual narratives. For first year Visual Communication Design students in 2018, 2019, 2020 and 2021
Visiting teacher, Graphic Design
Estonian Academy of Arts
2021
  • Hosted a one week remote workshop on the topic "Unusual Graphics with Custom ASCII Art". For graphic design BA students.
Web developer
Werklig Oy
2015 – 2016
  • Established the Web Developer position at Werklig
  • Translated design concepts into functional, user-friendly websites.
  • Collaborated with designers to meet project goals and requirements.

AWARDS

Gold award in Visual Identity and Branding (Baltic Circle)
Vuoden huiput, 2015
Recognized as part of the GRMMXI collective
Vuoden Junior recognition award
Vuoden huiput, 2015
Recognized as part of the GRMMXI collective

EXHIBITIONS

O' Worm Supreme
Group exhibition, Tuo Tuo, Joutsa, 2020
Glyph Drawing Club Gathering
Kosminen, Helsinki, 2019
SPREAD Zinefest
Group exhibition, Groningen, The Netherlands, 2018
CelestialServices
Graduation Show of the Sandberg Instituut Design Department, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 2018
Lorem Ipsum - Puhetta graafisesta suunnittelusta
Group exhibition, Designmuseo, Helsinki, 2018
Enter & Encounter
Group exhibition, Designmuseo, Helsinki, 2017
Soirée Graphique N°9 Norden
Group exhibition, KOMET, Bern, 2016
Spring Steam 2016: I Used to Be a Graphic Designer
Group exhibition, Kellohalli, 2016
Vuoden huiput 2015 exhibition
Group exhibition, 2016
GRMMXI --- TALKOOT
Group exhibition, Galleria Kalleria, 2015
KNIGHTS OF GRMMXI
Group exhibition, Sushibar+Wine Fredrikinkatu, 2015
Springsteam
Group exhibition, Design Forum Showroom, 2015
Mayday!
Group exhibition, Design Forum Showroom, 2014
GRMMXI: Have You Ever Dream?
Group exhibition, Sushibar+Wine Fredrikinkatu, 2014