The Swamp Collective find roots of graphic design in the muck, mud and mire of Europe

"Karolina Pietrzyk and Tobias Wenig, are both primarily Berlin-based graphic designers and illustrators who founded the group project Swamp Collective, a collection of artists that self-publish, from zines, books and posters and collaborate with artists, musicians, cultural institutions and musical festivals across Europe. Formed to create an umbrella space to capture all of its artist's talents, the collective started swamp.center at the beginning of 2025"

"Whilst digging through archives, taking photographs, drawing and scanning materials, the collective works primarily with nature - exploring typography, history and maps to capture the unique swampiness of its visuals. "Typeface research is always one of the most fun parts of the work," says Karolina. "It's great to research specimens, digging the story behind them - we spend hours on it, it's fascinating.""

"The swamp is a very special place for the collective, or as they call it: "mystical". In its work for an exhibition Kukania, curated by Katarzyna Różańska-Szabelska at Arsenał Gallery in Białystok, Poland, the collective honoured the medieval myth it's named after, exploring the marsh as both "a historical and contemporary place of refuge", says Karolina. To do this, the collective borrowed visuals from Brandenburg swamps to produce moving collages mixed with typography taken from old holiday resort postcards."

Swamp Collective, led by Karolina Pietrzyk and Tobias Wenig, is a Berlin-based group that self-publishes zines, books and posters and collaborates with musicians, cultural institutions and festivals across Europe. The collective launched swamp.center in early 2025 to function as a small publishing house, label and bookshop. Work centers on nature and swamp imagery, combining typography, history and maps to create a distinctive visual language. Creative methods include archival research, photography, drawing, scanning and detailed typeface study. Colour palettes emphasize bucolic greens and twig-like forms, with occasional references to retro computer ASCII aesthetics and gallery commissions.

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