The Story

Hatherly began their studio practice in 2014 focusing on brand identity design for small businesses and startups before working as a graphic designer with The Brand Consultancy from 2016-2018. From 2018 to the Summer of 2020, Hatherly worked as the Creative Director of Oak & Oscar, helping to build the design language and guide the creative and operational strategy for one of the premiere upcoming independent watch brands in the United States. In 2020, John founded Sondwerk—an interdisciplinary creative studio dedicated to building heart-centered art and experiences. From 2021-2022, John served as an art director with the award-winning Moncur branding agency where he helped guide creative transformations of highly technical and complex brands in the advanced manufacturing, energy, education, and professional services industries.

They are currently engaged as the founder of John Hatherly Design, a values-driven brand and creative consultancy, founder and steward of Sondwerk, their artistic studio for self-initiated projects, and as the creator and host of Infinite Search: Conversations of the humankind.

John is a leading memeber of the Chicago Graphic Design Club, a member of the Society of Typographic Arts, a sustaining member of the American Institute of Graphic Arts, a member of the Spudnik Press Coöperative, former resident artist at Platform Studios, and a member of The Design Museum of Chicago—serving on the exhibit design committee for the initial build out of the first permanent-space exhibit, Starts/Speculations: Graphic Design in Chicago Past and Future in 2012.

Hatherly believes in mastery taking generations, and approaches their work with a sense of naïvety and wonder—an infinite search for voice through a series of discrete, playful explorations in a search for forms that illuminate life.

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