We think and create with a holistic mindset

As a communication design studio, we collaborate closely with clients on branding projects, aligning each step through dialogue and guiding the process with clarity and care. 

When needed, we bring in specialists and work closely with those who will realise the work from the very beginning. What unites everyone involved is curiosity, strong communication, and thoughtful intent.

Looking to define your brand positioning or sharpen your core strengths? Need a small, agile, and experienced full-service team to develop a new branding concept with you? Or do you already have existing design guidelines that need to be applied or thoughtfully evolved?

Let’s talk – whether you need support with strategy, concept, design or implementation.

Selected branding on LinkedIn

» Cross-Disciplinary Strategies – university branding
» HMA – brand identity for architects

Selected studio work on Instagram

» Cross-Disciplinary Strategies – logo animation
» Crazy Creatures – winery brand identity
» Von Menschen und Marken – book design
» Bambini – identity, store & packaging for children’s fashion

We teach design and workshops

Practical workshops and university teaching

Looking to book a workshop on giving and receiving feedback, a session on visual communication and branding, or a talk on design education centred around dialogue?

Sven Ingmar Thies, founder of Thies Design, brings over twelve years of experience teaching at the University of Applied Arts Vienna. His book Teaching Graphic Design explores reflective pedagogy and design education fundamentals.

Our workshops focus on constructive feedback within creative teams and client–agency relationships, tailored for agencies, design studios, universities and organisations.

Curious? We’re happy to start the conversation.

Workshops on feedback and critique

» ‘Giving feedback on creative work’ – for agencies
» ‘Clients meet Creatives’ – how to understand each other?

Education podcasts with Ingmar Thies

» Watch OhneDenHype – playful learning (German)
» Listen Designerklärer – good teaching (German)
» Listen Design education talks – holistic design (English)

Design education disussions on LinkedIn

» ‘Johanna Pirker, video tutorials or classroom lecturtes?’
» ‘Rathna Ramanathan, how do you get a good mixture of students?’
» ‘Kashiwa Sato, who decides when a project is finished?’
» ‘Hey, students, what do you expect from your teachers?’

Design education insights on Instagram

» Masterclass ‘Branding & Giving Feedback‘ (Hangzhou)
» Workshop ‘Pitch presentations for start-ups’ (Linz)
» Sean Adams on the book ‘Teaching Graphic Design’ (Pasadena)
» Educational trip (Seoul)

We initiate design to explore and evolve

At Thies Design, we regularly launch self-initiated projects – to learn, reflect, and grow. These projects are a vital part of our practice, opening space to explore design education, test artistic formats, and deepen our understanding of creative processes.

Some of our initiatives take experimental forms. Errare Creare, for example, is an installation about error and iteration in idea development, first shown in the garden of the University of the Arts in Tokyo.

Among our self-initiated projects is also the book Teaching Graphic Design. It is based on interviews with educators from Austria, China, Germany, Japan, the UK, and the US.

We’re always open to new perspectives and conversations, especially around design, teaching, and collaboration.

Feel free to reach out.

Selected self-initiated projects

These projects include artistic works, research, and publications that enrich our design practice beyond client briefs:
» ‘Japanese Rooms’ – insight into the lives of 82 Japanese
» ‘Errare Creare’ – error and iteration in ideation processes
» ‘Teaching Graphic Design’ – English and German book editions
» ‘What does love mean?’ – send your answer, join the project
» ‘Tuesday Questions’ – be part of our education discussion