Als Büro für Gestaltung und Kommunikation bieten wir Grafikdesign und Markenberatung mit Expertise in den Bereichen Markenentwicklung, Markenmanagement, und Unternehmenskommunikation. dolceVita Creative bietet einzigartige Designlösungen, die in sich schlüssig, konsistent und zielgenau sind. Strategisches Branding, Corporate Collateral, Websites und Direktwerbung, die das Markenversprechen stärken und die positive Aufmerksamkeit für Ihr Unternehmen und Ihre Dienstleistungen erhöhen. Über die Jahre hinweg haben wir eine Reihe von Nationalen und Internationalen Auszeichnungen erhalten; diese Auszeichnungen repräsentieren nicht nur unsere kreative Arbeit, sondern bestätigen auch, wie wir unseren Kunden dienen, die bereit sind, ihren eigenen Weg zu gehen und sich so erfolgreich im Markt zu positionieren. Unser Fokus liegt auf der ganzheitlichen Entwicklung von Marken- und Unternehmenskommunikation.

Wir agieren als langfristiger Corporate-Design-Partner, der für unsere Kunden verschiedenste Projekte von Firmengründung, der Namensgebung bis zu umfangreichen Kommunikationsmaßnahmen betreut oder für bereits erfolgreiche Unternehmen Einzelprojekte im Print- und Digitalbereich realisiert. Mit unserem agilen Team und einem starken Netzwerk konzipieren und gestalten wir Corporate Identities für Marken, Unternehmen und Projekte, immer mit Blick auf individuelle Bedürfnisse, nachhaltige Konzepte und schnelle Prozesse. Auf diese Weise gelingt es uns, Menschen für Marken zu begeistern, Projekte sichtbar zu machen und Interaktion zu fördern ... konsequent und stringent, persönlich und digital. Wir gestalten so, wie es die Aufgabe erfordert, als kooperativer Dienstleister mit internationaler Erfahrung und gestalterischem Herzblut, stets jedoch immer im Austausch mit dem Auftraggeber und in höchsten Ansprüchen an uns selbst. Der Weg zum Ziel ist nicht immer linear und somit voraussehbar, jedoch bleibt die Neugier und die Passion an der Lösung gestalterischer Problematik immer wieder unser Antrieb, Einzigartigkeit zu schaffen.

As a creative agency with a wide range of project experience, we offer Graphic Design and Brand Consulting with expertise in Brand Development, Brand Management, Corporate Communications and Marketing. dolceVita Creative offers unique design solutions that are cohesive, consistent and right on target. Strategic branding, corporate collateral, websites and direct mail, that strengthen the brand promise and increase positive awareness for your business and services. We have received a range of National and Int. Awards over the years; these awards not only represent our creative work, but also validate how we are serving our clients, who are willing to go their own way and thus successfully position themselves in the market.

Our focus is on the holistic development of Brand and Corporate Communication. We act as a long-term corporate design partner who supervises a wide range of projects for our clients, from naming to extensive communication measures, or realizes individual projects in the print and digital sectors for already successful companies. With our agile team and a strong network, we conceive and design Corporate Identities for brands, companies and projects, always with an eye for individual needs, sustainable concepts and fast processes. In this way we succeed in inspiring people for brands, making projects visible and promoting interaction … consistent and stringent, personal and digital. As a cooperative service provider with international experience and creative passion, we focus on the development, but always in exchange with the client and with the highest demands on ourselves. The path to accomplish our goal is not always linear and therefore predictable, but curiosity and passion to takle design solutions remains our drive to create uniqueness.

Harald-M. Lehnardt, Creative Director 

I am a German Creative Director with 25+ years experience in fashion related print design, high-end creative concepts and international advertising. In the summer of 2005, I moved from New York City (where I attended grad school and have worked for 12 years as Sr. Art Director at Macy's) to Hawaii and my life has changed quite dramatically. I went jogging from Sunset Beach to Banzai Pipeline before breakfast - compared with rushing down 34th Street in Midtown Manhattan, heading to the office, and sometimes I attended 'board meetings' behind the house. 

In the summer of 2017, after 26 years in the USA, I decided to move to Germany, to care for my dad and explore new professional avenues and projects. I love what I do, and I feel very lucky to have lived and worked on an island in the pacific ocean for 12 years. It was quite a thrill and an incredible experience to have had the ocean behind the house, a relaxed island style community and the opportunity to be involved with a variety of challenging design projects and assignments. Europe now opens a plethora of options for me and it turned out to be like going back to your roots and the origin of what infused my creative life.

I always work hard, in hopes that I will put good and creative work into the world; I have elegant type skills and a good eye for visuals, along with the technical expertise, I feel blessed to have the eyes to see beauty everywhere and the heart to appreciate it. I know I am doing exactly what I was made to do – and hope to grow and improve, as long as I am on my creative/artistic path. Over time, I created an array of corporate identities, brochures, advertisements, book concepts and designs, trade show concepts, displays and booth development (Surf Expo in Florida) as well as conference collateral, for 'Conservation International' in Washington, 'Applied Brilliance' and 'The Fashion Group' in New York, identities and sales collateral Financial Institutions in New York, Signage for “Banzai Bowls” and “Weddings of Hawaii”, Branding for 'Naked Cow Dairy' and 'KM Boards Hawaii' on Oahu, Identity Development, Trade Show collateral and Support along with eCommerce platform for “HappyMax24” in Germany, I worked as Sr. Designer on the Creative Team for 'Coco Palms' on Kauai, 'Ka'anapali Coffee Farms' on Maui, 'Hokulia' and 'Kukio' on the Big Island, … and lots more. In addition, I offered consulting services to  a couple of non profit organizations throughout the islands and even taught classes at ‘Pacific New Media’, a branch of the University of Hawaii at Manoa.

After moving from Hawaii to Germany I would like to face new challenges. With a small and enthusiastic team and network of professionals, I am very interested to assist you with design, marketing and representation; possibly developing innovative creative concepts and more complex visual strategies in the areas of print & digital, as well as context development, architecture and structure of your desired web presence - to support your business as an off-site creative component and reliable resource. ‘Responsive Web Design’ is an important topic which we master in conception and development, from corporate website to complex e-commerce solution. ~ I want to inspire people for brands, personally and digitally, consistently and stringently.

Background info about my life and my profession

I studied Visual Communication at the Design Faculty in Bielefeld (Germany), then moved to New York City as a Fulbright Scholar in 1991 to attend the New School for Social Research and Parsons School of Design in Manhattan, where I finished my Master of Art in Media Studies. I became Senior Art Director at Macy’s headquarters for Federated Department Stores in New York and was responsible for all fragrance, cosmetic and watch advertisements and collateral for the North East US region. After 12 years as Senior Art Director in New York City, I decided to give up my loft on Manhattan’s West Side in exchange for a nice little house in the Pupukea Hills on Oahu’s North Shore, and took advantage of a new and challenging offer as Design Director in Honolulu.   

In 2006 I had the opportunity to join a creative team at a Honolulu based premier design and consulting firm, that provides Hawaii-style brand development and management (22 years in business). This opened up many opportunities to exciting projects and design challenges, and my skills assisted to shape the perception of their clients, by developing comprehensive communications strategies and marketing identity systems with emphasis of consistency and continuity of design to the overall brand equity. This approach strengthened existing brands and produced a clear understanding of the individual brand message.

In 2009, I joined forces with a selected group of talented creatives on island, and experienced that the best philosophy to be successful, is to share resources, collaborate with other talents and contribute to the overall success of a project - maybe create something new and unexpected within the process. With a fine-tuned eye and a sophisticated sense for text and image; I have been able to apply my skills to many award winning projects in the US but also in Europe, won several Pele Awards, as well as awards from the Honolulu chapter of AIGA, [American Institute for Graphic Arts], and taught 3 classes at Pacific New Media at the University of Hawaii at Manoa. (1. Introduction to Desktop Publishing, 2. Design & Project Management, 3. Visual Poetry).

In the summer of 2017, after living for 12 years on the Northshore of Oahu in the Hawaiian Islands, and 14 years in New York City, I decided to move to Germany, where I grew up originally, to care for my ailing dad, and to continue my creative work with new projects and challenges. In addition, I decided to start working on a book about my 26 years experience in the US, from when I finished my studies (Visual Communication) in Germany, then moved to New York City (on a Fulbright Scholarship) to finish my Masters in Media Studies, followed by International work experience as Artist, Sr. Art Director and Designer - and returned to Europe 26 years later.

In the fall of 2019, I decided to take 2 month off and walk the “The Way of Saint James”, “The Camino” across Northern Spain. 500 miles on foot, starting in Saint Jean Pied-de-Port, crossing the Pyrenees, 5 weeks on a pilgrimage to Santiago De Compostela. It turned out to be one of the most exhilarating experiences of my life and a time I don’t want to miss. I connected with people from 35 different countries, that all shared a common bond: the passion for the Camino, and became “Ohana” (Family). It was one of the greatest adventures of my life and I promised myself to do it again within the next 10 years.

The Camino is all about making connections and being positive, to see ‘Beauty’ everywhere. I came to understand that the successful philosophy in art and business is to share resources, to collaborate with other talents, to contribute to the overall success of a project through synergy of vision, as well as innovation … to create something new and sometimes unexpected within the process. I am as passionate as ever about my design work, my artwork, my travels and my writing. I look forward to connect with other creatives, ready for new adventures, new clients and new design challenges.

It is my belief that good people will always connect, one way or another.
I appreciate you taking the time to review my work online.
Mahalo, a nui loa..

Harald-M. Lehnardt
Creative Director & Principal | dolceVita Creative
www.dolcevitacreative.com
Fine Arts & Communication
harald@dolcevitacreative.com

Kuliana Edition (Fine Art Publishing)

Unique Contemporary Artwork from the Hawaiian Islands

We offer Digital Fine Art Prints in limited editions, or a thematic series, including dramatic perspectives of the ocean and nostalgic elements of Hawaiian history and surf culture, as well as inspiring poetic text-and-image compositions that will transform your interior environment into a sanctuary of spiritual comfort and wellness.

Our collection is available in a choice of sizes, printed with archival-quality inks onto rich fine-art print substrates, including embellished canvas giclées with added Liquitex gel brush strokes, distinctive and eye-catching metallic prints, mounted on sustainably harvested solid carbonized bamboo panels, prints on brushed aluminum, acrylic, museum-quality papers and distinctive chrome metallic emulsions on gallery mats, image wraps. New specialized printing techniques will be aded in the near future, we are always eager to learn and evolve. Selected compositions can be personalized upon request and custom orders are available. 

HOW IT ALL STARTED
Sometimes good things come unexpected, and here and there we find signs that things do happen for a reason. I remember when I returned a rock to Hawaii; a rock that my mom took from a Hawaiian vacation in 2000, and I brought it back to the islands in 2003. I actually transported this rock from Germany to New York City, then to Los Angeles and finally to the old Heiau in Pupukea, on Oahu’s NorthShore .. not knowing back then (I lived in New York City at the time), that I would move to Hawaii in 2005 .. and actually moved to Pupukea (less than 1/2 mile from the place where I returned that (river) rock). [FYI: It is bad karma to take rocks from the islands]. Coincidence or not, fact is that this particular trip to the islands had an incredible effect on my future. I am just so very thankful to be here: thankful for all the things that happened on my artistic journey - full of memories and adventures that would set a path of guidance and inspiration.

I studied Visual Communication in Germany with focus on photography and film design. Half way through my studies, I shifted and set the focus to graphic design and typography and started to combine my artistic vision with new tools and ways of communication. I read about the Bauhaus years, Kandinsky, El Lissitzky, Moholy Nagy and Mondrian - I fell in love with American Abstract Expressionism, its colorful and abstract dynamics. I developed a fascination with letters and words and within my graphic studies I was inspired by Paul Rand, Neville Brody and David Carson, who changed the academic understanding of design and function, and had a major impact on the tradition of type design and typography in particular. (Years later, I was honored to have David Carson as a guest at my New York loft ~ it just shows that anything and everything is possible.) Never give up, work hard and enjoy the journey.

After I finished my studies in Germany (1990, Toscanian StillLife's), I received a Fulbright Scholarship in 1991 and moved from Germany to New York City to attend Parsons School of Design/The New School For Social Research. I wrote my Master Thesis about the interaction of ‘Text + Image in the Communicative Pattern of Fine Art Photography’: I wrote about Barbara Kruger, Gilbert and George, Duane Michals ... and I took a closer analytical look at my own artwork, trying to figuring out why I was doing what I was doing. That was way back in the early 90’s; later in my professional life as Sr. Art Director at Macy’s headquarters in New York, I continued to develop fine type for national ad campaigns, from Chanel fragrances to Prada shoes, and continued with my ‘text-image’ compositions in my artwork on the side, but always continued to experiment and develop new concepts, whenever I had a chance ... and continued my vision and focus.

I always wondered when I would find my niche,- my calling,- and my own style? With all what I have experienced in my life; living in different countries, studying abroad, experiencing Manhattan for 14 years as a professional and all that came with it ... until I finally found my way out here to the Hawaiian Island; the islands that I love so very much and in a way changed my life forever – adding momentum to my quest for artistic liberation and success.

The synergy between text and image is my passion: my urge to discover and create new compositions by adding text, word-fragments and single letters to distinct images – playful, yet with ‘intent.’ The combination of text and image can tell stories – can ask questions – can make us aware of things, or simply be poetic and take us away for a brief moment to different places, that are directed by our own imagination. Over time, I came to understand that the successful philosophy in art and business is to share resources, to collaborate with other talents and to contribute to the overall success of a project, through synergies of vision, as well as innovation: creating something new and sometimes unexpected within the process.

During my 12 years as Sr. Art Director in New York City, I was exposed to planing and execution of national product launches, major marketing strategies, and in Hawaii I learned a lot from my artistic collaboration with Christian Riese Lassen; about business structure and focus, i. e.; building editions, creating unique artistic resources and a lot more.

I cherish all that I have learned from my Professors in Germany, Dr. Roland Günter and Professor Gottfried Jäger, my mentors that allowed me to approach each artistic project playful, poetic and sometimes find the philosophy later,- or within the process. I also admire my former employer, Oren Schlieman in Honolulu: a fascinating ‘Thinker’ and Creative Director, that taught me to do things right and be open minded .. take a step back and observe from a distance, collaborate and honor the people you work with. I owe all of my mentors and teachers a great deal of gratitude, and I am thankful to God for his guidance and inspiration.

It is my profound belief that the concept of the “Kuliana Edition” is the essence of my artistic as well as spiritual experience I have captured over the years: the artistic and authentic outlet and platform I have been striving for all my life. Working and collaborating with such a variety of talented artists and visionaries (link) is truly an honor: in our artistic collaboration, we share the same degree of passion and enthusiasm, the ability and commitment to synthesize dynamic and compelling compositions: elegantly integrated interdisciplinary works of art.

We want to explore new methods, tell stories, define new perspectives, new elements and create a processes that we can develop further and advance our entrepreneurial and creative work. Our multi-disciplinary approach enables us to combine our talents to make a unique product with a fresh perspective: develop a distinct and innovative style of art that spans from adaptation of ‘Abstract Expressionism’ to inspirational and spiritual compositions. With the help of friends, business partners and mentors, that guided me along the way, from Germany - across the Atlantic to New York, and finally across the Pacific - almost half way around the planet - to the beautiful NorthShore on the island of Oahu, I am truly excited to have launched  the Kuliana Edition and offer a wide variety of products from an array of editions.

Mahalo for your time, reading my story; I hope you enjoy my artwork and you find something that captures your taste and preference ... and maybe it even entices you, to come and visit the beautiful Hawaiian Islands.

Aloha, Harald-M. Lehnardt