About Mike

Work Bio

An award-winning retail designer and illustrator, Mike Hopper has over 25 years of experience working with diverse clients to create engaging spaces and powerful, evocative presentations.

His work runs the gamut from interior design and identity graphics to architectural concepts and visualizations. Merging his artistic background and architectural design skills, Mike creates uniquely expressive images that are a valuable asset to all stages of design and project promotion. 

After graduating from the University of Oregon, Mike fulfilled his dream of living and working in the U.K. In London he shared a flat with other artists while working at Frank Solano Architecture LTD, a leading hospitality design firm known for luxury hotel projects. He worked on projects in Turkey, Italy, and Northern Cyprus, and took the opportunity to travel extensively throughout Europe.

Back home in Eugene, Oregon, he advanced through a series of positions at KRS (King Retail Solutions), a retail design company specializing in the food sector, eventually becoming a Creative Manager for custom projects. The wide range of clients served by KRS provided Mike with an eclectic and diverse mix of projects, some adhering to strictly established design standards and others seeking innovative, cutting-edge solutions. Popular brand clients included Eddie Bauer, Safeway, Procter & Gamble, Pendleton, and Nike. This experience gave Mike direct access to a vast array of production methods and fabrication materials as well as a keen understanding of how to create workable and effective design solutions for any budget.  

Today, Mike works with a network of like-minded collaborators and associates to provide creative solutions tailored to each project, from interior environments and graphics to conceptual rendering and illustrations. Clients benefit from the personal attention of a small studio and the wide-ranging experience of a diverse group of consultants.  He has worked with architects, designers, developers, business owners and marketers to visualize, develop, promote and create effective environments. 

Our Logo 

The word “Chapulin” (cha-pool-een) for grasshopper is specific to Mexico and is more than an allusion to Mike’s last name, Hopper. It is an affectionate nickname bestowed on him by his in-laws of Mexican heritage. The grasshopper has long been associated with intuition, forward movement, creativity, and good fortune. If the muses kept pets, a grasshopper would certainly be their first choice.

Education       

In 1989, Mike received a Bachelor of Interior Architecture from the University of Oregon’s School of Architecture (a five year, FIDER-accredited program). During his time as a student, he won first place in The National Halo Student Lighting Design Competition and completed an internship with Buffalo Design Group in Seattle, Washington. He maintained a relationship with Buffalo Design and continues to do freelance projects with them.  

He also earned an Associate Degree in Graphic Communication from Lane Community College where he honed his drawing and painting skills, and did an internship at KVAL TV in the Production Art Department.  

Personal 

In his leisure time, Mike enjoys wave sailing and surfing, a passion that kicked off two decades of surf travel throughout coastal Mexico. He has ambitions to acquire art, become a better runner, and get back into fly fishing. Today he enjoys being a husband and father, and finds solace in the woods and on the beaches of Oregon.