Ron Haake
BRAND & SPACE – EXPERIENTIAL GRAPHICS
Production-ready graphic systems for branded environments, installations, and public spaces.
My work focuses on translating brand systems into clear, buildable graphic experiences across physical environments. I operate at the point where concept meets execution, refining ideas into production-ready layouts, coordinating with vendors and materials, and ensuring that what is designed holds up in the real world. With a background spanning environmental graphics, exhibitions, signage, and site-based systems, I’m comfortable guiding projects from early direction through final files, maintaining consistency, clarity, and technical precision along the way.
SIGNAGE & ENVIRONMENTAL GRAPHICS
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Historic Signage | Ghirardelli Square | Exterior signage integrating contemporary fabrication with historic character
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Walking Tour Signage | Ghirardelli Square | Wayfinding system guiding visitors through a historic factory district
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Burger Joint signage, SFO airport, waterjet cut elements with custom beveled glass disk
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Burger Joint sign & menu board, SFO airport, waterjet cut elements with vinyl lettering
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Identity Banners and Stands | Downtown Plaza | Opening banners and custom permanent stands extending the identity into space
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Signage Concept Drawings | Downtown Plaza | Presentation graphics translating the identity across multiple freestanding sign formats
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Kona Beach Steak House logo design and painted sign, Kailua Kona
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Youthful Essence signage, San Francisco, acrylic with laser cut elements
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Youthful Essence, San Francisco, display with recessed lightbox/display niches
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Humpy's Alehouse logo design and painted sign, Kailua Kona
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Peekaboo Palace informational signage, Bay Area Discovery Museum, interpretive panel designed for clear, kid-level reading
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Informational Signage System | Bay Area Discovery Museum | Integrated panel system developed for heavy public use and long term legibility
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Design of wooden sign with sandblast-carved HDPU inset panels
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Evans Farms signage, Tomales Bay CA
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Max's Coffee, San Francisco, waterjet cut signage elements
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Pa'akai Poke logo design, laser cut birch appliques over koa veneer, Kailua Kona
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Backlit signage with 3D cutout element, used for television commercial
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Hilltop Sandwich Shop hand painted sign used for television commercial
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Neon sign design for Mercedes television commercial
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Technical drawing showing menu design, wall finishes and large-format graphic panels for Mercado restaurant, San Francisco
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Custom mobile cart, digitally printed and laminated vinyl graphics
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Design for photo photo engraved stainless steel signage for outdoor memorial garden
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Installed interpretive signage paired with star compass monument design, photo engraved stainless steel panels in the garden
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Billboard With Spectaculars | Valley Fair Shopping Center | Monumental bas-relief product forms elevating mall goods to architectural scale
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Billboard With Spectaculars | Valley Fair Shopping Center | Food court campaign using bas-relief forms and branded mark at extreme scale
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Exterior Signage System | Kohanaiki Cultural Learning Center | Interpretive map and cultural profile panels fabricated in photo engraved stainless steel
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Migration Navigation Compass | Kohanaiki Cultural Learning Center | Public installation translating Polynesian wayfinding into dimensional form
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Environmental Wall Graphics | Hōkūleʻa Worldwide Voyage Exhibit | Large format exhibition map and graphic system mapping a global journey at architectural scale
EXHIBITS, DISPLAYS & SPATIAL CONCEPTS
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Chrissy Field Visitor Center, decorative frieze and suggestion box infographics
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Design & rendering of butterfly collection display for custom bus shelter advertising for San Francisco Zoo
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Chrissy Field Visitor Center, community heroes display with layered cutouts
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Chrissy Field Visitor Center, interactive tidal flat exhibits with magnifier and illuminated display
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Identity Banners and Stands | Downtown Plaza | Opening banners and custom permanent stands extending the identity into space
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Signage Concept Drawings | Downtown Plaza | Presentation graphics translating the identity across multiple freestanding sign formats
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Tandem Visions | Conference set | Speaker series featuring retired world leaders.
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Sidewalk Surfers skateboard deck art show, Hapuna Prince Hotel, exhibition view showing pacing and object grouping
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Design & 3D rendering of freestanding lightbox wall for Youthful Essence cosmetics commercial
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Design & 3D rendering of oversized book for Sprint tradeshow display
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Design & 3D rendering of tradeshow set for Piperlime
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Design & 3D rendering of talkshow set for broadcast
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Design concept sketch for exhibit at Bay Area Children's Discovery Center
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The Big Scoop | Dreyer’s | Fabrication drawings of oversized architectural ice cream scoops
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The Big Scoop | Dreyer’s | Store prototype presentation drawings featuring oversized architectural ice cream scoops
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Concept sketch with specifications for costume used in television commercial
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Pencil sketch concept drawing for Amana appliances magazine ad set
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Marketing Booth Design | Ghirardelli Square | Architectural brand elements adapted into an offsite marketing environment
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Kitchen Set Rendering | Amana Appliances | Concept rendering for a national print campaign. Final built set closely matched original spatial study, including appliance placement, sightlines, and lighting strategy.
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Marketing Booth 3D Rendering | Piperlime | Vectorworks model rendered for a modular mobile marketing environment
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Big Book of Internet History Rendering | Sprint | Monumental book form designed as an attention anchor for outreach
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This Week in Northern California Set Rendering | KQED | Broadcast set and graphics rendered for regional television production
BRANDING, PACKAGING & APPLIED GRAPHICS
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Design & fabrication of custom felt pennant for magazine ad
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Laser cut MDF with faux cast metal patina designed & fabricated for magazine ad
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Design & fabrication of custom logo used to advertise video game
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Design of custom brass medallions for award
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Custom Lightning switch designed to promote exhibit at SF Exploratorium
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Shopping Bags | Ghirardelli Square | Historic building illustrations on vintage themed bag designs
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Shopping Bags | Valley Fair Shopping Center | Duotone retail bags featuring subtle spot varnish overprint logo
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Design of Oranjeboom Pilsner engraved logo for executive office
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Design & fabrication of Tundra logo for Toyota television commercial
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Vitex Guardian viking plaque, sandblasted and milled aluminum (two views)
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Promotional packaging and custom RC truck for Twisted Metal video game
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Design & fabrication of comp packaging for fictitious Client Cooler carbonated drink used in corporate communication
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Design & production of generic orthopedic products for Nike magazine ad
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Design & laydown view of logo and business card design for Three Little Birds
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Three logo designs for church, welding business and art studio
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Logo design for retail store & custom woodworker
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Logo design for ResortAc.com travel booking site
PRINT, EDITORIAL & PROMOTION DESIGN
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Editorial layout and typography for a magazine feature.
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Identity System | Downtown Plaza | Complete identity system establishing color, material, and geometric language
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Stationery System | Downtown Plaza | Letterhead system reinforcing the custom mark and verdigris copper texture
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Marketing Materials | Ghirardelli Square | Collateral system supporting the brand’s historic narrative
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Passport Coupon Book | Ghirardelli Square | Savings passport concept structured as a tactile loyalty program
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Marketing Mailers | Ghirardelli Square | Illustrated mailers promoting a distinct shopping experience
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Collateral Designs | Valley Fair Shopping Center | Integrated marketing system built around a custom mall identity
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Digital illustration for Kona Coffee Growers Association advertising
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Advertising concept and layout developed for print publication.
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Design of promotional poster for Kukio Blue Water Swim event
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Promotional postcard design for BMW Art + Auto event
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Promotional postcard design for BMW Art + Auto event
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Retro-inspired album cover design for magazine ad for Senpra Energy
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Promotional postcard and ad design for Hawaii Artist's Collaboration
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Promotional poster design for Holualoa Music & Light Festival
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Promotional postcard design for artist Shelly Maudsley White
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Custom centerfold design for Pioneer magazine ad
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Magazine ad design for UCSF Children's Hospital
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Poster design for SF Exploratorium exhibit
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Retro poster design & illustration for Kohanaiki Beach opening event
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Outside of tri-fold brochure design for artist Gary Eoff
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Ad layout & custom embossing for Berringer magazine ad
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Outside of tri-fold brochure design for Holualoa Village Ohana
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Design of artist bio card for artist Steve Grossman
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Bio design for artist Carol Tredway
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Design of fine art print Of This Earth
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Design of fine art poster print with Mango design
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Design of fine art poster print with Duke Kahanamoku design
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Design of flying fish design poster for display
METHODS & PROCESSES
I design signage with production and installation in mind from the outset. My work regularly involves illuminated and non-illuminated signage, dimensional lettering, vinyl graphics, laser- and waterjet-cut components, neon, and custom fabricated elements.
I work closely with fabricators, installers, and clients to deliver clean, production-ready files that account for materials, tolerances, mounting, code requirements, and real-world conditions. My primary tools are Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop, with long experience preparing vector art and specifications for large-format output, CNC cutting, and custom fabrication.
I’m comfortable in fast-paced production environments where accuracy, clarity, and buildability matter as much as design.
