A Brand Studio Built on Kinship, Collaboration, & Craft
Our story
Hewn originated from a kind of kinship — two fellows whose mutual admiration deepened into friendship, and then into partnership.
Boswell had turned a twenty-year barbering career into Best Barber, a thriving NYC brand, and along the way found that his real gift was business and relationship-building; when he moved to Maine in 2022, putting that gift to work for fellow entrepreneurs became a clear calling.
Michael, an award-winning artist and Art Director, had been his client and friend for years. So when Boswell needed a hand-drawn wordmark for a branding project, Michael was the natural call — and, in typical fashion, he delivered more than was asked: not just the wordmark, but a logo that was a revelation.
One night at the pub, upon completing the project, Michael said, "We should do this. Together." In that moment, two dreams aligned, and HEWN was born.
Building with Intention
We pride ourselves on making work that survives the test of time. We balance strategy, creativity, and heart to bring ideas to life. Our clients are our creative partners in a truly collaborative process, applying our craft to the raw materials intrinsic to your project. Every client provides us an opportunity—to learn, grow, and create something unique and lasting.
Meet the partners
Bookends of the branding spectrum for over a decade—Boswell cultivated one brand methodically, for a single business. Michael built at the opposite end of the scale, with consistency, for many.
Boswell
is a barber and entrepreneur. In 2015, he founded Best Barber, an upscale barbershop in New York City, with the promise of Handsome Made Simple. Since moving to Maine in 2021, he has grown deeply attached to the town and its community and is eager to contribute.
A barber for 25 years, he paired dedication to technical skill with a sincere interest in people, which earned him a devoted, long-standing following. He has built Best Barber into a trusted community space with a diverse clientele — anchored by a clear visual identity, a thoughtfully designed four-chair barbershop, and a remarkably steady team. A robust mesh of established systems and clear standards allows him to operate the shop remotely to this day.
That experience is the foundation of HEWN. What we build for our clients, Boswell first built for himself: a brand, a space, and a way of talking about the business that has held up for over a decade. It's the work he most wants to do.
At HEWN, he works on business building, brand strategy, and messaging—defining a brand, positioning it uniquely, and articulating what it says when it introduces itself—with thoughtful execution and a genuine love for all things aesthetic.
Michael
is an artist, award-winning senior art director, and digital designer. He has worked on branding, interactive digital design, and print campaigns for major companies, including E*TRADE, one of the most recognized and trusted brands in American finance, for which his work earned awards and recognition.
An art director for 15 years, he pairs a careful eye with the discipline of working at scale—applying brand standards across thousands of touchpoints. Inside a large institution, he learned what most designers never get to see: how a brand holds together when hundreds of people are using it at once, and what breaks when it doesn't.
Throughout his career, Michael has continued his creative practice working for small brands and organizations he cares about. It is this work he is most proud of. More more more more
At HEWN, Michael leads creative—honing in on innate identity, creative design done by hand, and a fluency with the visual language organizations are recognized by. He brings sincerity, understanding, and care that are felt at every step of the process, gently guiding a client to a revelatory destination.
“As a designer myself, I found their creative process took me to places I hadn’t imagined. I loved my logo so much that I want to get it tattooed on my arm. I recommend them to everyone I know.”
—Dane Charles, found