Hexagon Illustration System
A custom illustration system developed to extend an already established Hexagon brand. The challenge was not to invent a visual language from scratch, but to create one that could feel distinctive while still belonging naturally inside an existing identity.
Brand Principle
Brand Principle
PROJECT DETAILS
Client
Hexagon
Year
2026
Location
Global / International
Role & Ownership
Art Director · Graphic Designer, Full Ownerhsip
Deliverables
Illustration system · Construction principles · Illustration library · Brand applications · Usage guidance
Credits
Observe.
Hexagon already had a strong visual identity built primarily around photography. But some of its most important stories involve systems, processes and technical relationships that a camera simply cannot capture. The opportunity was to introduce illustration as a complementary language: capable of explaining complexity clearly, while remaining recognisable across Hexagon’s different industries, audiences and communication formats.
This closely reflects the final system’s intended role: illustration supports the photography-first brand specifically where systems or abstract technical concepts need to be made visible.
Deconstruct.
The research looked both at Hexagon itself and at illustration systems used by other technology brands. The strongest systems shared a few traits: clear rules, modularity, meaningful levels of detail and enough flexibility to adapt without losing their identity. From there, the problem became less about finding an illustration style and more about defining a set of principles: precision, clarity, distinctiveness and purposeful storytelling.
The early work explicitly established those principles as a global decision framework rather than independent stylistic preferences.
Create.
Those principles eventually became a structured isometric language integrated directly into Hexagon’s existing grid and layout system. Rather than treating illustrations as standalone artwork, the grid determines how they occupy space and connect to surrounding communication.
The finished system uses two core levels of detail: Macro scenes for environments and relationships, Micro illustrations for focused explanations, supported by narrative pictograms. A shared framework for composition, geometry, linework, colour and scalability lets each level serve a different purpose while still belonging unmistakably to the same visual system
