01 / SELECTED FRAME / LISBON
INDEPENDENT CREATIVE STUDIO
Ideas with
somewhere
to go.
I build visual identities, digital experiences and image systems for people making the next interesting thing.
Viewportfolio↘
02 — ABOUT
Design should feel inevitable.
ATELIER NORTH is the fictional practice of Mara Vale, a multidisciplinary creative director working between identity, photography and digital.
For over a decade, Mara has worked with founders, cultural spaces and ambitious small teams to turn loose ideas into visual worlds that people remember. The studio stays intentionally small: one lead, a trusted network, and no unnecessary layers between an idea and its final form.
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MARA VALE / CREATIVE DIRECTORTHE SHORT VERSION2014 — NOW
012014
Started in editorial design, building identities for independent magazines and cultural projects.
022018
Moved into digital direction, creating launch systems for design-led brands.
032022
Opened ATELIER NORTH as an independent practice with a deliberately flexible model.
04NOW
Working across Europe and remotely with a rotating circle of specialists.
03 — SELECTED WORK
A few things
made recently.
Identity, editorial, photography and digital experiences. Filter the archive or open a project for a closer look.
04 — SERVICES
From first thought
to final frame.
Choose a focused engagement or bring us in at the beginning. Every project is shaped around what actually needs solving.
Brand Direction
Positioning, visual territories, naming support, identity systems and the rules that keep a brand coherent.
Digital Design
Websites, campaigns and product interfaces designed from the first wireframe through the final interaction.
Image & Art Direction
Photography direction, casting, locations, image treatment and visual storytelling for launch or ongoing content.
Editorial Systems
Publications, reports and cultural material where typography, rhythm and information need to work as one.
“
Mara has a rare ability to make a complicated idea feel obvious. The work gave our launch a point of view before we even had the words for it.
Elena RossiFounder, Aster House
01 / 03
05 — NOTES / JOURNAL
Thinking
out loud.
PROCESS / 08.09.26
What a good brief leaves unsaid
A few notes on finding the useful tension between a client's words and what the work actually needs.
Read note ↗
SHOWING 03 OF 12
06 — CONTACT
NEW PROJECTS / AUTUMN 2026Have a good
problem?
Tell us what you're building, what feels stuck, or simply what you're curious about. We will take it from there.
AN ATELIER NORTH / FICTIONAL STUDIO
NORTH
RIVER
OLD TOWN