Goldleaf

“Cannabis By Design” originally published in Civilized (RIP), fall 2018

In terms of the challenges facing cannabis today, consider the tech industry. Take the Facebook hearings last April, when Mark Zuckerberg assumed the hot seat and fielded questions from United States Senators about Russian interference in the 2016 election. For his part, Zuckerberg appeared to be making sincere attempts to translate Facebook’s machinations into layman’s terms for the likes of Lindsay Graham, Orrin Hatch and the other members of our legislative body. However, listening to senator after senator ask question after question, each gentleman so shockingly ignorant of social media and/or the Internet, at one point, there were audible gasps heard throughout the room. 

Here’s the thing: those U.S. Senators use technology—every one of them use all types of devices and all types of platforms all day, every day. Whereas the same cannot be said—the same most definitely cannot be said of cannabis. In fact, the Roman Senate c. 300 AD might very well have had more exposure and knowledge of the subject. All of which is to say the challenge of cannabis education is truly historic. 

The second front is aesthetic, inasmuch as making a clean break from cannabis’s checkered past demands a new visual language that surprises, challenges, and, ultimately, inspires. The long game of winning hearts and minds begins with opening eyes, or, more specifically, making people want to look and to keep looking. And in one fell swoop, print by print, the small, Ohio-based design company Goldleaf is addressing both problems in a head-on manner that’s more than just smart, it’s thoughtful. 

Because, not satisfied with being original and contemporary, Goldleaf goes a step further: by approaching weed as a journey, not a destination. The very leaf icon itself—Goldleaf views the pot leaf in term of her data, not her figures. They view her historically, botanically, scientifically, technologically—from ground-breaking opioid studies, to terpene graphs that read like pop art, to ikebana-inspired cannabis prints, Goldleaf’s designs are as visually appealing to a cannabis expert as a novice. Furthermore, rather than a bridge for mainstreaming, the leaf becomes the springboard for design innovation—not simply elevated, but forward. On that note, Civilized spoke with Charles, director of design at Goldleaf.

Q: Goldleaf has such a refined aesthetic, let’s start with some of your art and design inspirations?

G: As I’m sure many designers would say, my influences and inspiration have evolved, and continue to evolve. There are a few mainstays, of course, but layouts, color palettes and style seems to always be growing. If I’m looking for common threads with my influences, I really love nature as a subject, and thoughtful simplicity as a style. 

Early on, I was fascinated by M.C. Escher’s more graphic shapes (animals with negative space), and anything by Charley Harper (nature shown in simple shapes and colors). Complex ideas boiled down to the bare bones. On the other side, I still hold Andy Goldsworthy on a pedestal. His medium is certainly the opposite of graphic design, but his work continues to be inspirational—intensely patient, nature-focused, and somewhat futile, since most of his works don’t last. I’ve always found that charming. 

Beyond that, I worked with a couple clothing brands for years and learned to really appreciate some of the high-fashion aesthetic—some being the keyword. I liked the Scandinavian-inspired looks—clean, stark, sometimes bleak; cold, but with splashes of color, and always confident. I think I still carry some of those influences with my work at Goldleaf: the Danish modern and Bauhaus.

Q: In terms of Goldleaf’s early work, what was the first idea that came to mind for a cannabis print? 

A: I love data visualization, always have. I’m fascinated by the idea of making a dense and complicated subject display visually—and shown in a way that is accessible to the layperson. Taking it a step further, I love when people are drawn in aesthetically first, then held close due to the content. 

My first designs were attempts to translate some interesting cannabis data into a visually pleasing format. The Cannabis Wheel print was one of our very first and we still offer it today. I love the circular graph and the way each one can be unique. I still enjoy thinking of different cannabis cultivars with that lens. 

As far as other early sketches and ideas, I was lucky to collaborate with a couple great designers when crafting the initial concepts for Goldleaf—both of which I met through my work in the garment industry (and they’re now designers at Apple and Pinterest). They were incredibly helpful at establishing some of the style guides and rules that our first designs utilized. We’ve built off those first concepts, but the original ‘modern & minimalist’ styles still permeate throughout all our works. 

Q: Given cannabis’s complexity, as far as creative trial and error, has there been a Goldleaf design “fail” you could share? Or a design concept you simply have not been able to corral just yet? 

A: I’ve been pretty lucky thus far and, design-wise, we haven’t had many total failures. Though we have had some in other areas of business (product development, namely!). But as far as our design track-record, I think our success is partly due to our process—our designs, whether done by myself, or a collaboration with another designer, must pass through various phases and milestones before it reaches its conclusion. If something isn’t feeling right early on, we’re changing it or aborting all together. For that reason, we don’t have many print design failures. 

Q: Work with a range of scientists, designers present unique challenges? 

A: Early-on, I learned a few key rules when working with other designers: 1) find an artist who can already do what you want. Assuming an artist can match something they haven’t demonstrated normally won’t work out. 2) Give them tons of guidance and instruction. A lot of work, but the more direction, the better, for both parties. All to say, there was a learning curve within Goldleaf, so we certainly had some ideas that never got off the ground—either due to aesthetics or because the concept was slightly off-brand. That isn’t to say that every print we’ve created is a home run, but we’re happy with the results of anything we publish, even if its audience is incredibly small. Creating items for small niches is our sweet spot.

Q: Goldleaf is passionately science-forward in its approach. How did science get built into your DNA, so to speak? 

A: From the start, that was one of our founding principles with the brand. It is no secret that there’s plenty of misinformation, and re-education, that needs to happen in the cannabis world. We wanted our brand to help facilitate that learning. In addition to being educational in nature, we wanted to take a measured, mature and even clinical approach to our content. 

We’ve always tried to distance ourselves from the classic ‘stoner culture’ visual, and instead, to embrace a scientific-approved look. All of our designs work to push that mission forward. We rarely use conventional cannabis imagery in anything we do, and choose to speak in a voice that is symbiotic with the scientific vernacular. This approach is certainly one of the things that’s created so much interest from such a wide audience—both conventional and cannabis-specific, spanning a wide range of age groups. 

We’ve been able to work with some of the top minds in the space—from scientists and researchers to growers and engineers—and I think our content integrity is a big reason why we have garnered the respect we currently enjoy.

Q: Having worked in other industries, what have been some of the design challenges you’ve faced while working in cannabis?

A: To be honest, we haven’t had to deal with many road blocks. This is mostly due to the 1st Amendment and our constitutional right to free speech. We make printed material—books, artwork, charts, etc.—and thus, we deal in information and education. No one has challenged that, thankfully, nor do I think they can. We’re based in Ohio and a very red county at that. We work with a good deal of local businesses and service providers and the reaction to our brand has been almost entirely welcoming and warm. I’m very thankful for this and I think it is positive affirmation of the coming changes. 

That said, “forward thinking” entities like Google, Facebook, Pinterest and other tech giants continue to be a thorn. I know this is common and understood with other cannabis brands, but because we walk a tight line—a cannabis company who is not a cannabis company—I can’t help but feel frustrated when we are barred from certain online services simply because we have a few blacklisted keywords on our site, or because some of our artwork depicts a cannabis flower.

Q: Based in a non-legal state, how does Prohibition affect your design process?

A: Simply put, most people love what we do, and they love the idea of working with Goldleaf here in Ohio—they see it as proof that the industry helps create jobs, which it does. This has been a real gift for us since we’re in a place to make many people’s first impressions of a cannabis business a good one.

Beyond that though, 90% of our design team is not in Ohio, including photographers. They dwell in either a legal state, legal country, or in Europe. Thankfully, we haven’t had any pushback from creatives we’ve approached or partnered with. I think there are many reasons for that, but one of which is an opportunity to work with a subject that has previously been off-limits.