Jacob Flores-Popcak MA, MA, LMHC
DESIGN WITH THE MIND IN MIND
Jacob Flores-Popčak (he/him) is a concept illustrator and graphic designer specializing in themed entertainment. With a dual foundation in clinical psychology and interdisciplinary design, Jacob brings a rare depth of audience insight to every project. His six years as a licensed psychotherapist uniquely fuel his creative process—translating human behavior into emotionally resonant, story-driven visuals. From theme parks and museums to brand identities and children’s books (12 titles and counting), his work blends analytical rigor with artistic flair. Recognized by the Walt Disney Company and featured in international exhibitions, Jacob leads with empathy, collaborates with clarity, and delivers with precision—start to finish.
“For our museum client, Jacob looked at our rough sketches, listened to the big idea, asked pertinent questions, and then turned out a set of beautiful concept renderings in a short amount of time. I appreciate his empathy for the visitor and their experience.”
—
John Kelton, Owner/Creative Director, Kelton Design
“I have worked with Jacob on several projects during his involvement with JRA and have enjoyed his collaborative spirit and thoughtful, well-crafted visuals... He’s delivered several imaginative, on-message experiential illustrations for our projects that integrate skillful graphic understanding while also fully emotive and savvy in their execution.”
— Tony Schmidt, Director, Studio, JRA
“It’s a pleasure to collaborate with Jacob. His passion for storytelling and placemaking is evident in his work, and I always appreciate his desire to push himself.”
— Luc Steadman, Principal Concept Designer, Universal Creative
Design Process
MOOD BOARDS, STORYBOARDS & SKETCHES
My psych-informed design process always begins with quick sketches, often created in real time during design charrettes while the team and I bounce around ideas. At this point, emotional resonance is the most important thing to me: What feelings do we want to get across with this piece? How do we want guests to relate to it, or to one another as a result of encountering it? What core memories or references do we want audiences to connect to this piece?
Next, I fine tune the sketches, and when appropriate, take them into storyboarding. Almost all of my projects start with a mood board, which I try to make an immersive scene rather than a mere collection of images. This helps establish emotional tone from the very beginning of the process.
Four mood boards from four very different projects; my mood boards tend to be immersive scenes, rather than collections of images.
Tortuga Taqueria
LOGO DESIGN, SIGNAGE, & MURALS
SeaWorld San Antonio came to me looking to re-imagine their Rosita’s F&B location to reflect both the Hispanic theming surrounding the location and a new Aldabra tortoise-feeding experience launching nearby. The result was Tortuga Taqueria, an eatery drawing aesthetic inspiration from both Mexican folk art and the Aldabra tortoises themselves. I designed all the graphic elements, from the logo and branding to the interior murals and instructional signage. The vibrant color palette and hand painted textures created the perfect environment for dining alongside these adorable reptiles!
End of the World
BRANDING PACKAGE, SIGNAGE, UI/UX
End of the World is an immersive museum experience meant to educate and inspire families with the incredible story of Ernest Shackleton’s daring explorations of Antarctica. In addition to the concept art, I also designed the logo/branding package. It evokes the types of swooping text seen in much of early1900s signage, especially as one might see on ships. The associated branding elements are incorporated across signage and touch screens placed within precariously stacked crates, allowing opportunities for further guest interactivity and way-finding.
Nitro Racer: Supercharged!
LOGO, SIGNAGE, & THEMATIC DESIGN
Nitro Racer: Supercharged is a racing waterslide at Water Country USA in Williamsburg, VA. I was thrilled to head up all artistic elements for the refreshed Busch Gardens attraction, from redesigning the logo and theming to creating all the safety signage. We went with a playful retro racing aesthetic that matches the heart-racing waterslide!
Belen Aerospace
BRANDING PACKAGE/IDENTITY DESIGN
Belen Aerospace seeks to find, cultivate, and promote breakthroughs in Internal Atmospheric Propulsion, a sustainable alternative to traditional chemical propulsion systems. The branding package I designed for them communicates their spirit of hope and is incorporated across web, print, and merchandise like stickers and patches.
The brand was based on a retro-futurist aesthetic, mirroring the brand’s hopeful mission. Anchoring the brand, the logo is made up of an uppercase letter B, the initial of Belen. However, this shape not-coincidentally references the rough shape of the Internal Atmospheric Propulsion system which Belen seeks to promote. The ecologicallysavvy sustainability of this system is further symbolized in the leaf in the upper right hand corner of the shape. This leaf is made possible by the negative space left by a mid-century modern star. Furthermore, the star is made up of 4 asymptotes approaching but never reaching the x or y axis; in analytic geometry, an asymptote of a curve is a line such that the distance between the curve and the line approaches zero as one or both of the x or y coordinates tends to infinity. This represents the infinite possibilities still held in the cosmos.
Thread International
PACKAGE DESIGN
The pattern shown here was designed as part of a packaging proposal for Thread International, a company which gathers and recycles plastic refuse in Haiti and Honduras, recycles it into cloth, and sells the product to benefit the original communities. At a glance, this pattern appeared to be a weave, as one might see making up a piece of cloth. Upon closer inspection, however, one would be able to see that each “thread” in the weave was in fact a plastic bottle.
Placed on the boxes and product at an angle, the pattern served to give a dynamic edge to otherwise simple packaging. Furthermore, since it was developed with single-color use in mind, the pattern could easily be adapted for a number of branding uses.
The Ol’ Factory
BRANDING & PACKAGE DESIGN
Who doesn’t love a pun? The Ol’ Factory soap brand aims to fill the void of artisan soaps for men, while appealing to harlequin romance novel archetypes of attractiveness. Building on a pun (“olfactory” refers to the science of smell) and styled after rustic woodcuts, each scent is modeled after a traditionally masculine archetype and includes three thematicallyrelated scents.
The brand’s goal was to use entirely sustainable packaging, so a simple wrap-around label was chosen, printed on recycled soap paper with single color soap dye. The soap paper--made by combining recycled paper with the refuse of the soap making process--dissolves in water when the soap is used, meaning there are no leftovers in either the original manufacturing or the use of the product.
Ocean Outpost
MURAL PACKAGE
My inner pirate was incredibly excited to be commissioned by Melody Matheny of Melody Matheny Designs to create two huge murals for a newly developed mixed-use space at CHUKKA’s Ocean Outpost. The first mural I created was for an 8’x28’ wall and depicted the 160-acre property as it would have looked in 1746; the second mural was for the ceiling of the same space, and depicted many of the native species one should be on the lookout for when exploring the property. Both murals were rendered in the style of a mid-1700s map, with thousands of intersecting ink lines and lots of hidden illustrative details. The project also required me to render an East India Companystyle “trading stamp” to represent how the estate might have marked its goods.
Gruseltage!
AD CAMPAIGN POSTER DESIGN
To market the Halloween festivities at Austria’s Eis-Greissler theme park, I was tasked by Alex Korting Themed Entertainment Design to create a series of 7 posters at different dimensions. Drawing from the aesthetics of retro “rubber hose” style animation as well as Halloween posters from the same period, I reimagined both the park’s attractions and their adorable cow mascot Rubi with pie-eyes, gritty textures, and a limited color palette befitting the spooky family event.
Tausendfüssler
RIDE REIMAGINING CONCEPT PACKAGE
Erlebnispark Tripsdrill is a wildlife and theme park near Cleebronn in Southern Germany. The park wanted to completely reimagine the queue and exterior of its iconic Tausendfüssler family coaster as it prepared for the attraction’s 40th anniversary.
I was commissioned by Alex Korting to reenvision the area as the home of a caterpillar who loves to run competitively. I drafted the concept art but also conceived all the visual gags, from the mock inspirational posters to the bunting of “drying socks.”
The path to the Tausendfüssler attraction entryway is homey and lived-in, with colorful socks drying above.
The queue depicts the interior of the racing caterpillar’s home; mementos of his victories adorn overhead shelves.
The ride path takes guests past an in-world billboard for a “green leaf” shake favored by caterpillar athletes.
Campfire : Theatre in the Round
OUTDOOR AMPHITHEATER CONCEPT
Inspired by the great American folktales told around the campfire, this outdoor amphitheater concept places the stage within the “fire” itself, with gigantic logs serving as pillars around a central performance space. The stage itself resembles an ancient stump where storytellers and performers can entrance audiences of up to 1,100 people.
Holly Jolly TM Junction
SEASONAL ACTIVATION CONCEPT
I was very excited to have worked with Herschend Family Entertainment to illustrate this image depicting Holly JollyTM Junction at Christmas at Kentucky Kingdom. Used for in-park promotion of the event, the handdone illustrative style of the piece allowed for a tactile and bespoke quality that gave the art a storybook feel, perfect for the world of
Bircus Brewing Co.
BREWERY THEMING CONCEPT
I conceived this elephant stage for Bircus, a circus-themed brewery, as an answer to two needs: that for more storage, and the need for a dedicated performance space. The elephant’s torso creates shelving for beer kegs, and the stage itself opens to create further storage.
Bircus Brewing Company is the brainchild of former Ringling Bros. clown Paul Miller and Flemish youth circus Circusplaneet’s Coördinator, Matthias Vermael. A circus/ beer hall hybrid, it provides work and entertainment to the under-served area of Ludlow Kentucky, even while serving as a home to performers from 28 countries –Antigua to Australia, Ghana to Germany, and Indonesia to Israel.
Eggspedition : Easter Bunny
DARK RIDE PERSONAL PROJECT
Combining springtime aesthetics with Italian Renaissance architecture, I designed this classic dark ride to take guests down into the burrow of the Easter Bunny. I decided to style the Easter Bunny as one of the Renaissance masters, painting frescoes on eggs and carving masterpieces out of chocolate. Riding in Easter eggs, the guests would help him out with “quality control” and become honorary Easter bunnies by the attraction’s end.
The entrance to the attraction is set into the hills like a rabbit’s burrow, with Renaissance-inspired dome roofs.
The ride path takes guests past the Easter Bunny painting eggs in his master studio.
Visit Vulcan
MUSEUM CONCEPT ART PACKAGE
How do you make a city’s art scene accessible and inspirational for kids? That was one question that drove this blue sky design I rendered for Vulcan Park & Museum, depicting an exhibit exploring the diverse community of artists that have made their mark in Birmingham, Alabama. Working with Kelton Design, we envisioned a whimsicallycluttered space where kids could encounter real jazz instruments and get “hands on” with real masterpieces.
I also created several concept sketches depicted how children might playfully learn about Birmingham’s cast iron industry, illustrated by the example below.
Lumystica
TOURING EXHIBIT CONCEPT ART
Created by Lightswitch, Lumystica is a dazzling touring event of circus-inspired fun. I created three pieces of highly-stylized concept art, reminiscent of traditional block print posters but with a fittingly modern and funky twist. The art depicts a kaleidoscopic hall of mirrors; a room of circled circus wagons and shimmering astral lanterns; and an interactive game featuring an old-time circus organ!
This concept art package deviated from my normal style but was an incredibly fun challenge. Designer Antonio Pelayo designed the logo and branding package from which I drew the vivid color palette.
Dragonslayer
ROLLER COASTER PERSONAL PROJECT
As a kid, I was obsessed with stories of knights and dragons, especially the 80s sword-andsorcery films that depicted them so vividly. I’ve always wanted a ride that could capture that same thrill, and that desire served as the inspiration for this coaster.
Modeled after the steel-motorbike-meetshorse-riding concept seen in attractions like Pony Express at Knott’s Berry Farm and Steeplechase at Luna Park in Coney Island, this coaster casts riders as knights of old. Riding along on saddle-like seats and with innovative harnesses, riders would face off against a mighty dragon and simulate a joust by way of a sharp bank turn that has riders pass other ride vehicles coming and going.
The logo/marquee for this attraction is modeled after medieval tapestries and illuminated manuscripts.
Very Merry-Go-Round
HOLIDAY CAROUSEL PERSONAL PROJECT
Inspired by German Christmas pyramids, or Weihnachtspyramide, The Very Merry GoRound” was envisioned as a double-decker carousel and with a big propeller on top (as illustrated in the logo). Instead of horses, the animals would be predominantly reindeer like the one seen here. But like most carousels, there’d be a few other animals too, in this case representing different winter holidays: a polar bear for the Winter Solstice, a horse for Hanukkah, and more.
Icelandic Restaurant
RESTAURANT AND NIGHTTIME SHOW
I was commissioned by a certain Florida theme park to create a series of concept artworks depicting a refined Icelandic-inspired restaurant, build around a waterfall projection show. I had fun including little details, like a driftwood pergola or support beams inspired by Viking ships. Unfortunately, funding to the project was cut before it could continue further, but it remains a favorite concept of mine due to the unique aesthetics.
The entrance to the restaurant is modernist, but with traditional Icelandic and Norwegian touches.
The dining area gives guests a front-row seat to a projection show on a private waterfall.
Tiki-natti
BAR ART INSTALLATION
I had the awesome opportunity to imagine, design and even fabricate this tiki art for Fishbowl at the Banks, a Cincinnati-based tiki bar. I came up with the idea to build out the city skyline as a series of tiki faces, and pitched it to the owner, who loved it.
After designing the piece with a series of sketches, I modeled it out in CAD for an initial CNC carve. I then hand carved the smaller details, staining and aging the piece and inlaying individual sea shells.
Misc. Illustration
BOOKS, COMPETITIONS & EDITORIALS
I have illustrated over 12 books, several for children, in a variety of illustration styles. In addition, I regularly create editorial illustrations for an array of national periodicals. This work has won me a number of awards, including:
Finalist, National Indie Excellence Awards | Hermosa Beach, CA 2019
First Place, Best Illustration with Graphic Design or Art | Catholic Press Association | Chicago, IL 2021
First Place, Best Illustration with Graphic Design or Art | Catholic Press Association | Chicago, IL 2019
Featured Artist | AIGA PGH365 | Pittsburgh, PA 2018
Winner/Featured Artist | Escucha Mi Voz | Jalisco, Mexico, 2016
Finalist/Featured Artist | D23 Design Challenge | Disneyland, California, 2015
Design Challenge 2015 | Finalist, Featured Artist
D23
Escucha Mi Voz! 2016 | Contest Winner Sausalito Arts Festival, American Worker Series
