Q&A with Simone and Adam:

Tell me a little bit about yourself, who you are, and where you are from.  
Simone: 
Origin: the Nordic seas around Copenhagen
Education: Copenhagen Technical Academy for Graphic design
Sign: Aries
Favorite Cocktail: (summer) Corpse Reviver #2  (winter) Old Fashioned with rye and not too sweet!
Favorite Foods:

  1. Carbonara (but I can’t have gluten anymore)
  2. Classic full Danish lunch assortment of smørrebrød (the danish ‘open sandwich’), cold Tuborg beer and an icy snaps chaser.
  3. Cotelettes d’Agneau a la Provencale
  4. Lobster mango roll

Adam:
Origin: the woods of northern New Jersey.
Undergrad: Syracuse University
Sign: Aries (on the cusp)
Favorite Cocktail: Oaxaca Sinatra (negroni with mezcal)
Favorite Foods:

  1. Any Pasta with poached egg on top (so it goes oozey all of it)
  2. Crab legs
  3. Hot Fresh Bread and butter
  4. Oysters (kushi)

Simone Fabricius & Adam Walko | Creative Directors at Safari Sun

What kind of work do you do as a creative agency?
We are a creative studio working on a wide range of branding projects. We do a lot of packaging projects and visual identities, this includes activation of brands and design strategy. We work on quite a few iconic re-design projects at the moment but we also work a lot with start-up companies and a few internal passion projects to keep the creative juices flowing. It’s difficult to describe exactly what we do since we as a company prefer not to be labeled, but everything we do is done through the lens of design.

Simone, how do you describe Adam an artist and creative partner? 
Simone: I look at Adam as a true artist – he’s everything you love and hate about artists: a rich and sensitive artistic vision, brilliantly creative with an anal attention to detail. People often get fooled by the outer Jersey roughness and the torn and stained t-shirts, but under the surface rests a calm wolf with the finest palette, refined taste buds and a poetic mind.

Simone Fabricius & Adam Walko | Creative Directors at Safari Sun

Adam, how do you describe Simone an artist and creative partner? 
Adam: Simone oozes style and precision. Nothing in her life is unconsidered, all the way down to her transitioning/cascading nail paint.  She’s an amazing designer and a great partner in crime.  A no bullshit badass, who I can always trust to tell me the truth and can help dial up any piece of creative. Ever since I first freelanced with her, I knew we would work together in the future on a more permanent basis (mostly because of her steadfast dedication to consuming copious amounts of champagne).

Are you working on anything else creative? Any personal projects? 
Simone: I just took up ceramics and really love it, I’ve had a need to create something with my hands. Ceramics seem to be the perfect mix of creativity and practicality AND it’s wonderfully relaxing, you can’t think about anything else. It’s also one of those rare mediums which always look cool even if you make mistakes.

Adam: : I’m currently trying to produce my third project installment to an ongoing home goods series I produce under the name, “ThanksForEverything.”

It’s a pink marbled wine / ice bucket.  I’m also involved in an ongoing sketchbook practice / project I started in 4th grade – To finish 100 books by the age of 50. I’m seriously behind, maybe out of the race entirely. (I’m only on #43 -ugh)

Simone Fabricius & Adam Walko | Creative Directors at Safari Sun

 

What are you currently working on?
We’re working a lot with Campari Group in San Francisco at the moment, creating visual identities for some iconic spirit brands. We also work with Blue circle, a sustainable smoked salmon brand. We are redesigning the whole brand: packaging, illustrations, graphic elements, website and tone of voice. We also have a few passion projects going on, we just designed a Korean street food restaurant in Paris and we’re trying to launch a single serve cocktail concept.

Do you have a dream assignment? Something you’ve always wanted to do or someone you’ve wanted to collaborate with?
We are constantly pushing our designers to keep a “stocked pantry” of people they would like to work with in the future.  So we have a very long list of artists we would love to collaborate with in our pantry.  I think we thrive off of dream assignments that require us to fully define the entire “world of” for the brand. So a dream assignment would be anything that would require naming, positioning, all the way through to a finalized logotype / look and feel.   We definitely are pushing for more work in the fashion and hospitality realm (two intense passion areas for us)  Anything in the science innovation realm. Time travel?

Simone Fabricius & Adam Walko | Creative Directors at Safari Sun

What is one of your earliest creative memories?  
Simone: My parents had these incredible beautiful and collectible year plates hanging by Danish artist Bjørn Wiinblad. His style is very colorful, figurative, people with big heads, small bodies and very geometrical features in their faces, there was always a narrative in his designs. That was probably my earliest memory of graphics. I got lost in them and since have collected.

Adam: Drawing crazy images on homemade cardboard shields and swords with my grandfather.

How do you define success?
Simone: Success consists of going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm (Churchill).

Adam: Success is having close friends to support you; and being able to go to bed satisfied with who you were that day.

Simone Fabricius & Adam Walko | Creative Directors at Safari Sun

Any advice for someone interested in following in your path?
Simone: Don’t take no for an answer! In this industry you’ll get a no very often, from trying to get your first job to fighting for your creative vision, keep up the spirit and never forget the passion.

Adam: Define your own perspective and always have an opinion.  Make your own projects work.

What is the best advice you’ve ever received?  
Simone: I have two things I follow. The first one was from my dad and the other one from a mentor. If you have fun with what you do you’ll have success and happiness. When your job starts to feel like a job, it’s time to change.

Adam: If you’re bored, vacuum. (from my mom- meaning there should be no goddam reason that you should be ever creatively bored in this world.)

Simone Fabricius & Adam Walko | Creative Directors at Safari Sun

To learn more about Simone, Adam and Safari Sundays check out http://www.safarisundays.com/.