When starting their studio, DALBA, in April 2024, Anna Lawlor and Muirín Goulding weren’t too concerned about sticking to the status quo. In fact, it was their mission to do the exact opposite of that. According to their Instagram bio, the studio creates “daring design and mischievous makings”, with their work encompassing 2D/3D visuals, design, illustration and art direction.
My connection to the founders is a personal one—as well as being friends, I was one of their first clients, commissioning them to create bespoke visuals for my club night, HONEYPOT. What started as one of their first joint freelance projects led to the pair springing out to founding their own studio together. I meet up with one-half of DALBA, Anna Lawlor, to discuss their journey so far, their roots in Irish folklore, and their passion for working with female-founded brands.
The co-founders are both IADT Dun Laoghaire graduates, Lawlor in Animation and Goulding in Graphic Design, although they met after they finished their studies. They were both working in a Dublin-based creative production studio and soon began to get paired up to work on briefs. “We had such a creative synergy, working together,” Lawlor reflects. “We were on the same wavelength and had the same work ethic. It just flowed.”
The pair were then put together on more projects, cutting their teeth in mediums such as projection mapping, storyboarding, VR, and 3D design. It was during this time where I worked with them on a freelance project for HONEYPOT, where they designed cheeky, psychedelic visuals for a number of our parties. Working together on that project felt seamless and fun, mainly because we are so closely aligned in perspective, taste and inspiration.
This brings our conversation to the topic of working with fellow female creatives. “Most of our clients have been female-run, queer businesses, which is also how we identify,” Lawlor notes, mentioning HONEYPOT, Naked Bakes, and Seek Dance as a few. “It feels amazing to be working with people who share the same values and aesthetics. It makes the whole production process feel really empowering and exciting.”
I note that their studio feels distinctly feminine—from the name (Irish for ‘mischievous’), to their logo (a devilish girl blowing a bubble), to their copy (lighthearted, casual, with Instagram captions often signed off with a kiss or heart emoji). Lawlor and Goulding agree and tell me that this was intentional. DALBA is a manifestation of their shared aspirations, their influences, and indeed, their personalities, too.
“When we were brainstorming the idea for the studio, we started off by drawing mind maps and asking questions about what kind of brand we wanted to communicate. We've always been into just really cutesy, girly, sexy kind of imagery. I think in Ireland there hasn’t traditionally been much room or respect for that. With DALBA, we wanted to portray something fun and shamelessly feminine.” Lawlor tells me.
This idea of shamelessness is one that we continually return to throughout our conversation. I wonder how this brazenness applies when working with bigger clients who might have stricter brand guidelines, such as Guinness, who have commissioned the studio for a number of projects, including visuals for a HONEYPOT set in the Guinness Storehouse.
Have they ever worried about being taken less seriously, I ask them, for their penchant for all things flirty and fun? “We probably used to worry more that it was a negative, but now it only seems like a positive. I think our clients come to us for that perspective, which you could say is more counter-cultural. We’re two young, queer women just starting out within the industry. I think we can be seen as fresh, which in our eyes is a pro.”
Ironically, much of their work, which feels distinctly modern, is rooted in inspiration from the past. From their initial days working as a creative duo in an agency environment, the pair have always drawn a huge amount of inspiration from Irish folklore. These references are ones they return to time and time again, whether they’re creating 3D renders inspired by Celtic knot-work or putting a modern twist on Irish flora and fauna.
“We draw a lot from Irish heritage,” Lawlor states. “Pagan mythology is a big source of inspiration for us. We’re obsessed with the darker, more mystical side of it, because it’s so rich and untapped.”
The pair express excitement at a resurgence of Irish design that’s popped up in recent years. “It feels like people are reclaiming these stories and moving them away from the more commercial, tourist-type expressions that you see in places like Temple Bar. We’re taking these ancient styles of design but bringing them to a place that’s more modern and fresh. It’s really exciting to see people put a fresh, contemporary spin on these folklore and traditions, and it’s definitely something we’re excited to do more of in our work.”
With their studio being less than a year old, DALBA are still finding their feet and figuring out what it means to run a studio. One thing they’re certain of is not to lose their sense of play and exploration—the thing that connected Lawlor and Goulding when they first started working together, and the thing that unites them still.
—
Cover graphic by Róisín Jordan