Michael Barton and Mari Fujita are multidisciplinary designers who share backgrounds in art, film making, and architecture. Through their roles in the design practice Maiku Brando, they endeavour to produce delightful and useful human-scale products.
Michael and Mari aim to share a feeling of joy through design. Their practice is focused on the development of inventive and elegant design solutions, while seeking the potential for their designs to deliver a greater impact. They apply traditional and emerging technologies and materials in novel ways, while constantly questioning conventional industry practices and production methods.
Their design practice stands out as symbolic of the times we are in. The pandemic demands a practical response – and their face mask design unites functionality with extreme comfort, unique graphics, and an ethos of care. Each product is designed, hand dyed, hand printed, and hand sewn in Vancouver, transcending the medium. Genuine practical and psychological needs are met by their product: people need PPE and they also needed to feel uplifted. Maiku Brando strives to give both. “When society is faced with challenges, it is time to double our commitment to the acts which elevate us.” — Michael Barton
