About HarikaZen

Hey there! We think it's really cool that you find interest in us.

We have assembled a list of topics that we hope will get you to know us better. If you have any additional questions, you can contact us using our contact form. We will happily answer any inquiries you may have.

What does HarikaZen Mean?

HarikaZen is a fusion of the words Harika, and Zen.

Harika is a Turkish word, and has many meanings. It can be translated to Wonderful, Fantastic, Beautiful, Divine, Cool, Phenomenon, Prodigy, and so on.

Zen has a Japanese origin, and is used in this context as either the definition of a meditative state, or the attainment of enlightenment.

What is HarikaZen?

The essence of our brand is the multicultural inspiration we're gifted from the collaboration with our friends around the world.

We create our designs by drawing unique influences from a computer graphics art form known as Amiga Ascii. We always keep minimalism, graffiti, street life, and architecture close to our hearts since it reflects our origins.

We had this idea for many years to involve our friends in organizing a project that would make a big impact on our lives. During our first Amiga Ascii Art exhibition, the overwhelming positive feedback made us realize that there’s more potential in our creations than we had anticipated.

What we had been doing as a hobby for almost 20 years involving just a small group of enthusiast friends, all of a sudden got a wider audience than we are used to. It showed us that our concept is regarded as new and fresh to many people from different cultures and places in society.

With a little bit of luck, and a lot of hard work we now have the opportunity to create something that involves the things we love and have been passionate about for more than half of our lives. Being able to do this together with many of our best friends is truly a dream come true.

Who are We?

HarikaZen was founded in late August 2013 by Orkan Meydan and Marcus Hoffren, during the preparations of our first Amiga Ascii Art exhibition in Cologne, Germany.

Marcus, originating from Stockholm, has worked over 8 years in the printing business with layout and design. He is also a professional Linux system administrator and developer with over 15 years of experience. He has a remarkable talent in learning new things easily, and absorbs impressions like a three year old.
His way of structured thinking allows him to come up with complex, unique and creative ideas while being able to express them in words that many people understand.

Orkan, an original Cologne citizen, has worked over 6 years as creative freelance designer. Having a solid background within media, he is not only an artist, but he has also made public relations a part of his lifestyle.
He has a strong sense of diplomacy, and occasionally acts as a mediator. His urge for artistry is almost primal. Present him a way to create, and you will soon know the definition of a natural born artist.

Marcus, is a down to earth guy, who keeps both feet on the ground.
In contrast, Orkan is keeping his head in the clouds, where he draws much of his creative inspiration.
 

Our Goals and Future Plans

We aim to keep producing our high quality unique designs and styles, while being on the lookout for new and interesting technologies we can utilize to make our future products stand out even more in a crowd. At the same time we want to expand the collaboration with our friends to assure that we keep our products as varied and fresh as possible over time.

The four designs we present to you at launch are only the beginning. Besides having more designs, color combinations, and product types planned, we are already working hard at making high quality prints & canvases available in our shop.

Our vision is to offer art everyone can afford, which will come in various sizes, colors, and utilizing different printing technologies. We are also planning to release very limited numbered canvases using the most exclusive printing technologies possible. This choice for the true aficionado will of course come with a certificate of authenticity.

At the time of our shop launch, we have already cleared the rights for future designs from at least five more of the best artists within our niche. This adds up to eight artist friends who we are very happy and proud to be working together with, and we are positive we can involve several more over time.

Further down the line, we want to offer custom design jobs. We are also planning some more art exhibitions to be held across different locations, where we aim to showcase new and old designs, and conceptual ideas.