Last week in the studio (CW17-26)

In this regular “Last week in the studio” series, I write about what I worked on during the previous week. Last week was a good one as I could concentrate on just one thing.

Week 17, 2026: Codeboxx

I like weeks where I can focus on just one project, and last week was all about working for Codeboxx. They sell thermal printers and supplies for the packaging industry to print, amongst other things, barcodes and QR codes. That may sound dull, but there are stories to tell about every business; you just have to find and tell them.

One thing that stood out to me was how the company supplies products which keep production lines running. If there’s a break in supply, those lines could stop. “Knowing what customers will need and when is an art,” they told me. That gave me the idea to recreate famous works of art from QR codes.

I made a series of artworks—including the Mona Lisa, Munch’s The Scream, and several by Vincent Van Gogh—by creating a set of QR code textures with different densities from light to dark. Then, I placed these shaders over reproductions of the paintings.

Product images from this industry are, well, dull. Even the manufacturers’ own product shots look dreadful. So, instead of showing dozens of printheads and ribbons that all look identical, I made animated graphics that represent each product category.

This website design is shaping up nicely, and over the next week, I plan to finish the coding and get it online. Hopefully, that week will be just as productive.