R
un For The Hills can be found in
Notting Hill’s Great Western
Studios. This is an industrial-chic
space in west London designed specifically
for the creative industries; we’re one of over
100 studios that are based in the building.
We’ve been here for about five years.
When we outgrew our initial studio space
we knocked through the wall and took over
the space next door. We have a light-filled,
glass-roof atrium that’s perfect for client
meetings, or for just breaking out of the
studio and working on laptops. The
building has a café and, crucially, a
reception that can take delivery of the
numerous parcels of art tubes and antiques
that arrive for us. Over the years we’ve built
up a studio-curated collection of original
art and vintage finds.
1 OUR LIBRARY
This is full of graphic novels, typographic
and logo compendiums, cartography books,
and interiors, fashion and film guides. It’s a
great reference source for design inspiration
when starting a new project.2 A GIANT POLYSTYRENE HEAD
This looks like the Statue of Liberty’s head
or a TV prop from a series on ancient
Greece. Everyone thinks it’s made of
concrete, so it’s fun to pretend to get
squashed by it! Our studio is filled with stuff
we’ve picked up from antique shops on
Golborne Road or Kempton Market. Some
things are waiting to find a home in one of
our projects, others go into our online shop
(artefacteria.com). We can get attached to
certain items and there’s a sense of sadness
when one leaves us for a new home.3 LITERARY LONDON MAP
Our studio walls are covered with art prints
that we’ve created for projects. The largest of
all is a giant print of our Literary London
Map. This was from an exhibition thatlaunched our first Limited Edition Print
Collection back in 2012. It was our first
bestseller, and the first of many typographic
maps that Run For The Hills has designed.
It’s a map of the capital featuring characters
from the pages of novels based in London.
The artwork was a labour of love that was
six months in the making.4 ANIMAL SKULL
This antelope skull – possibly an impala –
wearing an eye-patch was the inspiration for
our logo. We have lots of customised
taxidermy (all humanely sourced), including
a swan called Graham, Colin the badger and
a family of deer heads.5 CHINA BATMAN
Our Caped Crusader presides over staff tea
breaks. We use him as a prop: he’s sneaked
himself into most Run For The Hills
photoshoots. As an added bonus, his head
comes off and he’s always full of biscuits.4 5
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WANT TO HAVE YOUR WORK SPACE FEATURED HERE? EMAIL [email protected]