A Letter of Love

One of my favorite experiences in my youth, and one of the things that pulled me toward graphic design, was making mixtapes for friends. Not just choosing the songs, but building the whole gesture around them. Sitting with the feeling of that person. Designing the cover. Cutting, gluing, lettering. Writing a small dedication on the inside. Turning time and attention into a physical object that could be held. A quiet way of saying: I see you. I thought of you. I made this for you.

In this workshop we step into that same energy, but in a simpler format that can travel through the mail. You will create a set of postcards for a friend, a partner, a family member, or someone who would genuinely appreciate receiving a dedicated surprise. We will design, write, and prepare your cards in the studio, and you’ll leave with something ready to send.

You’ll create postcards on prepared paper stock and explore a mix of techniques such as collage, layering, drawing, handwriting, stamping, and simple composition exercises. By the end, you’ll have a small collection of finished cards, each with its own message, ready to be addressed and sent.

We’ll begin with collage or drawing as our starting point and follow what emerges. You can keep it playful, poetic, direct, abstract, messy, tender, humorous, or all of it. The focus is not perfection, but contact. Making something real, with your hands, for a real person.

We have plenty of materials in the studio for collage and experimentation. If you want, bring old paper stock, journals, letters, or magazines you would like to cut into and include in the work.

Alex Libotte is a Berlin-based visual artist, photographer, and former creative director with a background in Communication Design. After years working across the creative industry and living in London and São Paulo, his practice gradually shifted from brand and agency work toward a more personal, process-led approach rooted in experimentation, craft, and making by hand. Today, he teaches a course on experimental design in Hamburg and brings that studio and workshop mindset into every session.

Alex co-founded Space Of Hearts together with his wife, Adriana Takeuchi Libotte, as a space for hands-on practice, cultural exchange, and creative community. Design Unplugged is the result of many conversations with fellow creatives about the fact that in a screen-first, AI-accelerated industry, many of them are starting to miss the tactile side of the actual craft and that returning to materials can restore creative confidence, satisfaction, and a more human visual voice.

Design Unplugged is a series of hands-on, off-screen workshops for designers, makers, and visual explorers at Space Of Hearts in Berlin.

It's a deliberate interruption. A holiday from perfect. A retreat off-screen where experimentation, and the act of making, matter more than the polished outcome. We consider it freedom from the need to perform. A space for you to simply be and experiment. Here, the hands and the heart lead again.

Our workshops are built for anyone who considers themselves a designer, an illustrator, or a creative mind who misses making with their hands, and for anyone curious about experimental methods that don’t start with a template.

There are various formats within the Design Unplugged series, but the intention is the same: step out of digital autopilot, calm the system, experiment without needing immediate answers, and rebuild trust in your own ability to create, to make. You’ll leave with artifacts, techniques, and inspiration, but more importantly with a refreshed relationship to what creative work can hold. Not faster or better, but honest and more human.

• A small set of finished postcards, each with its own message
• A handful of collage studies and composition experiments
• A simple, repeatable method for making personal paper gifts
• The feeling of having made something real for a real person
  

Old paper stock, journals, letters, magazines, printed photos, or any paper ephemera you’d like to cut into and include.

Duration: 2,5 - 3 hours
Language: English
Group size: Up to 12 people (min. 4)
Price: €35.00 per person (materials and tea included)

What you’ll make: A small set of postcards on prepared paper stock
Materials provided: Prepared postcard stock, a selection of collage materials, glue, scissors and cutting tools, pens/markers, stamping tools etc. Please feel inspired to bring your own as well.
Who it’s for: Designers, illustrators, and all curious makers who want to get off-screen and into hands-on experimentation. No prior experience needed, background in visual arts is helpful
Minimum participants: 4 people. If fewer than 4 people are booked, we will cancel the workshop and issue a full refund.
Cancellation and refunds: Tickets are non-refundable. If we cancel the workshop, you will receive a full refund.
Takeaway: Your finished postcards, ready to address and send, a good memory and the satisfaction to have made something with your hands.

Important Photo & Video Notice:

We may take photos and short videos during the event for documentation and promotion. If you prefer not to be photographed or filmed, please let us know when you arrive.

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