Nostalgia by Design
ARYZE WORKWEAR X RIO KANEKI
About the Artist
Rio Kaneki is a freelance graphic designer, muralist and block print maker in Victoria, who creates classic and bold artwork with a timeless aesthetic.
Mar 19, 2026 · 3 min read
Rio was eight years old when a new shop opened up in his small, sleepy coastal town of Yaizu, Japan. Carrying Levi’s 501s and other North American products he had never seen before, it became his favourite place to visit and browse the shelves, imagining a world beyond the only one he knew.
One day, his mom let him buy a glass bottle of Coca-Cola (circa late 1980s). With its bold red label, elegant curved logo and tidy rows of English letters on the ingredients list, he was completely captivated by the shapes of a foreign alphabet. “I didn’t understand the meaning of it,” he recalls. “It was just letters, from A to Z, but that didn’t matter. I was fascinated by the look.” That one bottle sparked a lifelong interest in design and how letters can become art—stretched, contoured and spaced in ways that speak to culture and meaning beyond the words they spell.
After spending his 20s in Tokyo building an art practice and drawing eclectic inspiration from skateboarding culture, time in tattoo parlours and traditional Japanese artistry, he eventually landed in Victoria, comforted by mountains and ocean that echoed his hometown. He’s since made a name for himself locally with a distinctive, vintage-inspired aesthetic. Still grounded in those early influences, he says, “a lot of it comes down to lettering—the designs I like are built from type.”
His work now lives on hand-painted signs and murals, logos, product labels and clothing. He’s even designed a t-shirt for Nike Skateboarding.
His approach is guided by creating visuals that are simple, timeless and unforgettable, “like something anyone could draw on a napkin at a café… because classic never goes out of style.”
Years ago, our late Co-Founder, Ryan Goodman (1981–2022), envisioned an Aryze Workwear line inspired by high-quality industrial apparel. He was enamoured by the branding, tailoring and dedication to quality—elements that have since become core facets to the Aryze apparel we gift our team each year.
We set out to create the Aryze Workwear mark—something that could be stitched into a woven patch, or screen printed on a tee. A visual that would represent the distinct craftsmanship of Aryze’s work, featuring a timeless departure from the Aryze workmark you’ll see on cranes around town.
Rio’s handmade style was a perfect match for what we hoped to achieve, marking the path to bring Ryan’s vision to life. Loosely guided by our references—and some pulled from his own inspiration—Rio explored ideas for our new logo freely. His first drafts came back in the same red-and-white colour palette as the iconic Coca-Cola bottle that first sparked curiosity for design as a kid.
Our team gravitated toward options “A” and “B” from the first draft—we loved the elements of lengthened lettering and the clean border. From there, it was a process of refinement. With each round, the design evolved into the logo we use today, proudly worn in Ryan’s honour.
Rio’s work taps into something deeply familiar, calling back the everyday designs we grew up with but rarely paused to notice: the hand-painted lettering on a corner store window, the patch on a worn jacket, the bold type on a soda label. In a world that moves fast—and trends even faster—his designs offer a sense of grounding and familiarity. They’re honest, human and designed to last—the same intention we bring to everything we build.
A reminder that good design doesn’t demand attention—it earns its place by feeling like it’s always belonged.
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