Portrait of a man with long brown hair, gray beard, glasses, wearing a dark shirt, smiling against a black background.
A stylized illustration of a smiling man with glasses, a beard, and a cap, wearing headphones, surrounded by colorful, layered shapes, with text reading 'Mythical Illustrator, Designer &'.

Storytelling | Illustration | Symbolism

I illustrate the dreams of your brand to reach the hearts of your clients with a captivating story.

Designer and Illustrator

Full Portfolio
Full Portfolio
Purple text on a white background reading 'Happy Birthday'.

Independent Brand Project

Graphic Design | Branding | Illustration

Colorful logo for Dark Pebbles featuring a smiling teal pebble character with large eyes, situated above the stylized text 'Dark Pebbles' in teal and purple.

Rationale

Objective: Design a brand identity, graphic standards and applications by completing a self-initiated design project to meet professional development goals.

About my Project: For this project, I developed a brand identity that authentically represents my experience as both a designer and content creator. The choice of using my long-standing internet alias "Darkpelos" and creating the mascot "Peludinho" reflects my commitment to maintaining authenticity while establishing a professional presence. By incorporating playful elements like the mascot illustrations for different content categories, the brand successfully balances professionalism with approachability, making it relatable to the target audience of content creators.

Logo of DarkPals Studios featuring a cute animated fire character with big eyes, and the text 'DarkPals Studios' with stylized font in shades of purple and teal.

Logo Proportions

A simple drawing of a blue butterfly with its wings spread, positioned on the lower left side of a blank white background.

Sketches

Collection of cartoon drawings including a cute puffle, a character with glasses, a fiery character, a smiling cat face, a character with horns, and a character with spiky hair and glasses.

Brand Standards

Colorful logo of Darkpelos Studios with a purple background, stylized text, and a small character illustration.
Collection of cartoon flame icons in various colors including teal, purple, black, and white, with some icons outlined and others filled.
Color options and logo designs for Darkpelos Studios, including various color variants of a cute, smiling, spiky character face logo with the text Darkpelos Studios in different colors and styles.
Darkpelos Studios logo on a turquoise background, with purple and white text, and a signature at the bottom right that reads 'Designed by Matheus Stefan.'
Digital marketing items including a smartphone displaying social media profiles, a tablet showing logo designs with fun character graphics and menu options, a set of business cards with QR codes and logo, a stylus, a notebook, and sheets of paper with logo sketches and ideas, all branded with Darkpelo Studios colors and logo.

Stationary

Stack of business cards with a QR code, colorful gradient design, and stylized animal logo.
Colorful brochures for Dark Pelos Studios, featuring purple, blue, and teal gradient backgrounds with icons and text, lying on a light gray surface.
Two smartphones lying on a gray surface, one displaying a colorful social media profile and the other showing an app's tutorial screen.
Purple text on a white background that reads 'Celebrating 50 Years of Excellence'.
Stylized graphic of a person with a beard, glasses, headphones, and a cap, with colorful text behind them that reads "My Beloving Designer & Illustrator".

Professional Visual Identity

Illustration | Graphic Design | Branding

Multiple variations of a logo for 'Matheus Stefan,' a designer and illustrator, featuring a cartoon face with headphones, glasses, and a beard, with different color schemes and backgrounds.

Applications

Stack of business cards with a colorful graphic design and QR code, featuring a stylized illustration of a person with glasses and headphones, and the name 'Marhysa Stefan'.

Rationale

Objective: Through a close look into the objectives after the program is finished and with the type of design career preferred, define the core concepts and messages needed to communicate a design for a professional visual identity.

About my Project: My personal brand identity combines storytelling through illustration, symbolic design, and authentic expression. Using turquoise and purple, I've created a visual system that balances playfulness with professionalism. The brand features carefully edited typography, illustration styles, and symbols to showcase my narrative-driven design approach. The logo includes a self-portrait with headphones and beret, reflecting my approachable artistic style, while the pencil-integrated 'T' in Stefan emphasizes my illustration focus.

Drawing inspiration from my diverse influences in cartoons, gaming, and vintage design, I've crafted a visual language that combines playful illustration with meaningful symbolism. My brand identity reflects my commitment to creating engaging narratives through visual design, emphasizing my unique ability to tell stories through illustration and symbolic elements. The core of my personal brand centers on transforming complex ideas into accessible, visually compelling stories that resonate with audiences while maintaining authenticity and creative integrity.

Sketch - Speedpaint

Blank white background with no visible objects or details.

Variations

Close-up of a purple Los Angeles Chargers logo on a helmet.
Colorful abstract artwork with layered shapes and patterns in pink, blue, and white, on a pink background.

Candy Box

Experiential Design | Graphic Design | Crafting

A man with glasses and a beard holding a pink box with a colorful pop logo on it in a classroom with a whiteboard and drawings of a Pokémon character and a robot in the background.
A wooden frame with pink and red concentric circles painted on a pink background, secured with masking tape at the corners, placed on a cardboard-covered surface.
A pink circular background with cutouts and a blue and white sign or decoration spelling out the word 'PO'.

Sketches

A hand-drawn design on paper featuring the word 'SALE' in large capital letters, with outlines and shading in purple. The paper is taped to a surface, and there are additional sheets with cut-out circles visible in the background.
A workspace with a large sheet of paper featuring a maze design, black markers, a ruler, a sharpener, fake black headphones, a plate with cardboard circles painted pink and blue, a box of bubble gum, and printed black maze pieces on a brown table.
A table displaying multiple sheets of paper with the word 'POP' and an abstract circular graphic design in red, white, and blue colors.
A desk with large printed number cards, some cut into smaller pieces, and sticker dots, likely for a visual activity or game.
A man with dark curly hair, glasses, and a beard, wearing a black hoodie, is working on sign-making in a woodworking shop. The workbench has large printed signs with red and blue text and logos. The background shows various clamps, wood planks, and work tools on shelves.
Colorful poster with the word "POP" in large blue letters with white borders, set against concentric circles in shades of pink and blue on a pink background.
A cardboard box with a pink circular pattern cut out and blue and white question marks in the center, sitting on a desk in a classroom

Rationale

Objective: In a lottery choice of un-marked candy, snack or beverage, explore the sensory experience and express it in spray paint and paper cutting, while including a 3-letter word in suitable typography.

About my Project: For this project, I chose to focus on capturing the nostalgic experience of bubble gum through a dynamic, three-dimensional design. By transitioning from my initial concept of "SAD" to "POP," I was able to transform a potentially limiting emotional response into a playful celebration of childhood memories. The resulting piece effectively combines technical skills in paper cutting and spray painting with conceptual depth, creating a visual representation of a bubble gum bubble that resonates with both personal experience and universal appeal.

Process

A worktable with office tools including a black and red utility knife, a yellow utility knife, a red and white eraser, a metal ruler, scissors, a pen, a craft knife, and a Proxxon hot glue gun. In the background, paper with the word "vol" printed in large black letters is laid out for crafting. An electronic device, possibly a tablet or laptop, is visible with a person’s face and some text on the screen.
A printed poster with overlapping paper cutouts of circles in pink and blue colors, placed on top of a photograph showing people outdoors.
Purple and white abstract logo with stylized text.
A wooden lantern with black metal hinges and detailed Celtic knot designs on its white panels, mounted on a wooden base.

Luminous Object

Fabrication | 3D Modeling | Form and Function

Rationale

Objective: Design, Document, and Fabricate a small Luminous Object, while exploring the relationship between Narrative, Form, Materiality, and Value— from concept to fabrication.

About my Project: In developing this luminous object, I aimed to create more than just a functional light source - I wanted to craft a meaningful piece that embodies both personal symbolism and practical design principles. The hexagonal form, inspired by traditional oil lamps, serves as a perfect vessel for incorporating the intricate laser-cut designs of Led Zeppelin's imagery and the Hermit figure. The innovative use of magnetic charging and portable power functionality demonstrates my commitment to combining thoughtful user experience with symbolic storytelling.

Final Poster

A wooden lantern with pink stained glass panels and a serpent symbol on one side, sitting against a dark background with musical lyrics, and a hooded figure holding a lantern on the right.

Process

Purple text spelling out "Happy New Year" on a white background.
A green textured background with a cartoon teddy bear made of patches and stitches, and text that reads, 'Strike once, Scar Forever. Love shouldn't hurt, stop the cycle.' The bottom includes a logo for Little Hearts Foundation, a phone icon, a QR code, and social media icons.
A cartoon teddy bear with visible stitches, patches, and bandages, sitting with its legs crossed and smiling.
A blue teddy bear with a stitched heart on its chest sits against a textured teal background. Text on the image reads: 'Scream once, Echo Forever. Love shouldn't hurt, stop the cycle.' The bottom of the image includes the logo for Little Hearts Foundation and a QR code.

Cause Marketing Campaign

Illustration | Graphic Design | Branding

Logo of Little Hearts Foundation featuring a stylized heart with a drop shape inside, set against a blue textured background.

Rationale

Objective: Design a marketing communications campaign to inform, promote awareness and inspire action for a social problem in a multicultural society.

About my Project: The campaign addresses the sensitive topic of child abuse through a powerful visual metaphor using teddy bears - universally recognized symbols of childhood innocence and comfort. By depicting three distinct forms of abuse (physical, mental, and sexual) through damaged teddy bears, we create an emotionally resonant message that communicates the severity of abuse without being overly graphic or traumatizing. The color-coded approach (green, blue, and purple) helps viewers quickly identify different forms of abuse while maintaining a cohesive campaign identity. The consistent call to action "Love shouldn't hurt. Stop the cycle" emphasizes both the emotional impact and the urgent need for intervention.

Purple background with a cartoon purple bear holding its paw to its face and a message that reads, 'Touch Once, Mark Forever. Love shouldn't hurt, stop the cycle.' at the top. The bottom includes a logo with a heart icon and the words 'Little Hearts Foundation' and a QR code.

Organization Logo

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Illustration of a person with a purple beard and mustache, wearing blue sunglasses, teal headphones, and a purple cap, smiling.
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