A fictional designer of very real experiences

Florent ‘Flo’ Aniorté said he felt this pull of sorts one random day in the Plateau: “Some supernatural force came over me,” he recalls. He walked into Café Bravo, not knowing why, and locked eyes with Camille Béland, who was behind the bar in the middle of what she calls her ‘barista phase’ at the time.

This meet cute is the origin story of a working relationship that would go on to shape the distinctively weird, tactile, and story-first design work of the joint practice André Brown. Think mad science like velveted gay bars that don’t exist or off-kilter rebrands that no one asked for, as well as actual hospitality projects that blur the lines between branding, world-building, and emotional resonance. And none of their work, or the pair of designers behind it all, is interested in fitting in.