It’s a rainy summer day in 2022 and my partner and I are paddling through the industrial part of the city of Zurich, Switzerland. We are searching for a studio whose visuals I fell in love with a few years ago in Berlin’s papeteria Luiban. It decorates more than one gallery shop or select stationery store with its natural motifs in precise geometric design.

Behind the brand is the graphic duo Xiaoqun Wu and Oliver Hischier. And you can also meet the two of them in person in their studio. Despite the address and descriptive clues, however, our ability to navigate among the container buildings in the complex is a bit low.  When we finally find them, a smile follows. A two-way smile. Xiaoqun Wu and Oliver Hischier are actually some of the first people who ever heard about my vision of the LOPE project. The first ones I wanted to approach with this idea. 

The studio is tiny and that makes it all the nicer. They show us their notebook and postcard sets. They explain the concepts. They’re happy to be interviewed.

They’ve been working together for over 10 years and they do it in a really functional way, of course they’re not only fueled by the beauty they produce for the retail market, but also by their own graphic work. In all cases, they work with ease, blending Chinese and Swiss currents while focusing on sustainability. And they refer a lot to local natural resources. Before we leave, they give us the Helvetic Treasure. One of the most beautiful editions showcases mountain crystals from the Swiss Alps.

Merci, Bienvenue Studios.

It was such a pleasure.