Paris-based graphic designer and photographer Romain Bourillon sees a stark contrast in his two practices. In his photography, he finds compositions akin to an Italian Renaissance painter, emphasizing contrast through flash lighting. However, in his design practice, Bourillon aims to create work that’s more “primal, geometric and systematic,” as he says. “I enjoy playing with angles, vibrant colors and round shapes.” Graduating with a BA in graphic design and a MA in digital creation at École Estienne in Paris before interning with Virgile Florès and design agency M/M, Bourillon has almost universal influences in everything creative, from fashion to the furniture and architecture of the Auböck family to the Japanese kamon crests. “All these signs and symbols that shape the world, from alphabets to pictograms, inspire me to create my own visual language,” he explains. “I want to think of a logo as I would a piece of furniture. I want to create a poster as I would a lighting fixture.” With several photography exhibitions under his belt at the Marseille-based Musée Cantini and the Paris-based Grand Palais Immersif and Rodin Museum, Bourillon wants to leverage his interests in graphic design, iconography, mixed media imagery, photography, CGI and AI into creating his own design language. “I don’t claim to change anything,” he says, “but I do want to make my mark by offering a new kind of graphic ornamentation and fashion imagery. At the core of everything is the image, the symbol and the sign. I have many aspirations for the future even though I am still at the beginning of my journey.”