{{Short description|Israeli–British artist and designer}} {{Use dmy dates|date=April 2026}} {{Use British English|date=April 2026}} {{COI|date=May 2026}} {{Infobox artist | name = Yoni Alter | image = | caption = Yoni Alter, London, 2023 | birth_date = {{birth based on age as of date|33|2014|4|13}} | birth_place = Neve Monosson, Israel | education = Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design (BA, Visual Communications, 2006); London College of Communication (MA, 2007) | field = Sculpture, print, graphic design, public art<!-- | known_for = ''Shapes of Cities''; ''Love Continuum''; ''City Lights'' --> | movement = Pop art | website = {{URL|https://yoniishappy.com}} }}
'''Yoni Alter''' is an Israeli–British artist and designer based in London, known for vibrantly coloured works that reduce architecture, cities and familiar imagery to bold silhouettes and geometric forms.<ref name="Guardian2014"/><ref name="CR2014"/><ref name="Designboom2015"/> He works across print, sculpture, painting, public installation and digital media,<ref name="PrintMag2017"/> and has collaborated with Hermès, Karl Lagerfeld, Tate, London Live and the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, among others.<ref name="Prestel-author"/><ref name="FashionNetwork2018"/><ref name="Guardian2014"/>
==Early life and education== Alter grew up in Neve Monosson, a community in the Tel Aviv metropolitan area, the youngest of four siblings.<ref name="Haaretz2014"/> The ''Evening Standard'' has reported that his father is an architect and his grandfather was an engineer.<ref name="ES-Hatfield-2014"/><ref name="KM"/>
He studied Visual Communications at the Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design in Jerusalem, where his teachers included the graphic designer and Israel Prize laureate David Tartakover.<ref name="KM"/><ref name="Campaign2013"/> During his third year at Bezalel he spent a student-exchange term at Middlesex University in London.<ref name="Haaretz2014"/> He completed his BA at Bezalel in 2006 and returned to London in 2007 for an MA in Graphic Design at the London College of Communication (part of the University of the Arts London).<ref name="Haaretz2014"/><ref name="UAL-LCC-Alumni-2021"/> From 2008 he worked as a creative at the advertising agency JWT in London, continuing his personal art practice in parallel before transitioning to full-time independent work.<ref name="Haaretz2014"/><ref name="ES-Hatfield-2014"/>
==Work== Alter's work sits between graphic design and fine art, with what ''Creative Review'' described as "strong silhouettes, bold colouring and Pop Art iconography".<ref name="CR2014"/>
===''Shapes of Cities''=== Alter's best-known print series is ''Shapes of Cities'', in which the signature buildings of a given metropolis are stacked in a single frame at accurate comparative scale and rendered in overlapping translucent colour.<ref name="Designboom2015"/><ref name="MyModernMet2013"/><ref name="Colossal2014"/> ''Designboom'' described the prints as "sharp, detailed and vibrant",<ref name="Designboom2015"/> and Alter's New York skyline image has been stocked by the MoMA Design Store.<ref name="MoMAStore"/>
===''Love Continuum''=== ''Love Continuum'' is a 7.5-metre (approximately 25-foot) looping typographic sculpture that reads as an abstract curve from most angles but resolves into the word "love" when seen from a specific viewpoint.<ref name="Colossal2024"/><ref name="Domus2024"/>
The sculpture was first exhibited in London at Duke of York Square in Chelsea, opposite the Saatchi Gallery, in summer 2024 as part of the Kensington + Chelsea Art Week public art trail.<ref name="Domus2024"/><ref name="EmbassyIL-LoveContinuum"/> ''Colossal'' compared the work to Robert Indiana's ''LOVE'' and noted its focus on "connection and togetherness".<ref name="Colossal2024"/>
In February 2025 the sculpture made its United States debut in New York City. It was installed at University Place Plaza, between 13th and 14th Streets adjoining Union Square, on 20 February 2025, presented by the Union Square Partnership in collaboration with the New York City Department of Transportation Art Program and Artmax / Andrew Logan Projects.<ref name="USQNYC2025"/><ref name="TimeOutNY2025"/> A smaller version was also shown in the ground-floor storefront window of 860 Broadway (the building that had once housed Andy Warhol's Factory).<ref name="USQNYC2025"/> <!-- The sculpture was reported to have been relocated into Union Square Park under NYC Parks' Art in the Parks programme in early 2026; restore with citation once a stable NYC Parks URL is located. A separate Love Continuum installation outside 4 Water Street was also reported but remains unsourced. -->
===''City Lights''=== In 2021, Alter created ''City Lights'' for Wembley Park's Winterfest light trail: a digital artwork displayed across LED banners along Olympic Way and culminating on London's tallest LED Christmas tree, a 25-metre walk-through structure carrying 100,000 kinetic lights.<ref name="Londonist-Wembley-2021"/><ref name="UAL-LCC-Alumni-2021"/><ref name="WembleyPark-News-2021"/>
===''Pointillist Bird''=== For the 2022 Summer Lights festival at Canary Wharf, Alter presented ''Pointillist Bird'', a three-metre suspended sculpture formed from 98 translucent coloured discs.<ref name="CanaryWharfMap"/><ref name="CWG-SummerLights-2022"/><ref name="TimeOutLondon2022"/>
===Collaborations=== * '''Karl Lagerfeld''' — Alter was the guest artist on the brand's Spring 2018 capsule collection, producing pixelated and pointillist graphics of the designer and his cat, Choupette, applied to ready-to-wear and accessories.<ref name="FashionNetwork2018"/><ref name="UAL-Lagerfeld-2018"/> * '''Hermès''' — Alter designed the double-sided silk scarf ''Drive Me Crazy'' (90 cm), depicting a motorcyclist's and a horse-coach driver's points of view, for Hermès' men's collection.<ref name="SCMP-Hermes-2021"/> * '''Tate''' — Alter has produced a long-running merchandise range for Tate.<ref name="UAL-LCC-Alumni-2021"/> * '''London Live''' — Alter was the artist for the London Live television channel, designing the brand identity and the five 25-second idents used at its 31 March 2014 launch;<ref name="Guardian2014"/><ref name="Campaign2013"/><ref name="DW-Oct2013"/><ref name="DW-Jan2014"/> his London-landmark graphics also appeared on double-decker buses and a 25-metre banner in Shoreditch.<ref name="DW-June2014"/><ref name="UAL-LCC-Alumni-2021"/>
==Publications== Alter is the author of the illustrated books: * ''London: Cityscape Timeline''. Prestel.<ref name="Prestel-author"/> * ''New York: Cityscape Timeline''. Prestel.<ref name="Prestel-author"/> * ''Dot Art: Sticker Seurat''. Prestel.<ref name="Prestel-author"/> * ''Dot Art: Sticker Van Gogh''. Prestel.<ref name="Prestel-author"/>
His pictogram skyline work was included in the anthology ''Visual Families: Graphic Storytelling in Design and Illustration'' (Gestalten, 2014).<ref name="Gestalten-VF"/>
==Selected exhibitions== * ''City'', Kemistry Gallery, London, 27 March – 3 May 2014 (solo).<ref name="CR2014"/><ref name="DW-March2014"/> * ''Love Continuum'', Kensington + Chelsea Art Week, Duke of York Square, London, summer 2024.<ref name="Domus2024"/> * ''Love Continuum'', University Place Plaza, Union Square, New York, opened 20 February 2025.<ref name="USQNYC2025"/><ref name="TimeOutNY2025"/>
==Recognition== Alter was one of the honoured artists at the Global Gift · Hainan Expo Selection Awards Ceremony and Design Gala, held in Haikou on 14 April 2026 as part of the sixth China International Consumer Products Expo.<ref name="Newsfile2026"/>{{Better source needed|date=May 2026}}
==References== {{Reflist|30em|refs= <ref name="Guardian2014">{{cite news |last=Sweney |first=Mark |title=London Live reveals its bright lights for the big city |url=https://www.theguardian.com/media/2014/jan/14/london-live-local-tv-channel |work=The Guardian |date=14 January 2014 |access-date=19 April 2026 |quote=The branding has been developed by Israeli-born, London-based artist Yoni Alter, who is known for using bright, colourful imagery, with ad agency Kemistry animating the graphics.}}</ref>
<ref name="ES-Hatfield-2014">{{cite news |last=Hatfield |first=Stefano |title=London's true colours |work=Evening Standard |department=Television |page=13 |date=18 March 2014 |quote=Yoni Alter, the Israeli artist behind London Live's soon-to-be ubiquitous branding, has a typical London story. He came for a term on a college exchange from Jerusalem and stayed for the best part of a decade.}}</ref>
<ref name="Campaign2013">{{cite news |last=Durrani |first=Arif |title=London Live appoints Kemistry for brand identity of TV launch |url=https://www.campaignlive.co.uk/article/london-live-appoints-kemistry-brand-identity-tv-launch/1216689 |work=Campaign |date=17 October 2013 |access-date=19 April 2026}}</ref>
<ref name="Haaretz2014">{{cite news |last=Saar |first=Yuval |script-title=he:המעצב יוני אלתר צובע את הערים הגדולות |trans-title=The designer Yoni Alter paints the big cities |url=https://www.haaretz.co.il/gallery/art/design/2014-04-13/ty-article/.premium/0000017f-e108-df7c-a5ff-e37a98800000 |url-access=subscription |language=he |work=Haaretz |department=Galeria |date=13 April 2014 |quote=אלתר, בן 33, בוגר המחלקה לתקשורת חזותית בבצלאל, גדל בנווה מונוסון, הצעיר מבין ארבעה אחים |access-date=19 April 2026}}</ref>
<ref name="Colossal2014">{{cite web |last=Jobson |first=Christopher |title=Colorful city silhouette prints by Yoni Alter |url=https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2014/05/colorful-city-silhouette-prints-by-yoni-alter/ |website=Colossal |date=8 May 2014 |access-date=19 April 2026}}</ref>
<ref name="TimeOutLondon2022">{{cite news |last=Saville |first=Alice |title=A dazzling free summer lights festival is hitting Canary Wharf |url=https://www.timeout.com/london/news/a-dazzling-free-summer-lights-festival-is-hitting-canary-wharf-062422 |work=Time Out London |date=24 June 2022 |access-date=19 April 2026}}</ref>
<ref name="CR2014">{{cite web |title=Urban geometry: the colourful work of Yoni Alter |url=https://www.creativereview.co.uk/urban-geometry-the-colourful-work-of-yoni-alter/ |website=Creative Review |date=14 April 2014 |access-date=19 April 2026}}</ref>
<ref name="DW-Oct2013">{{cite news |last=Montgomery |first=Angus |title=Kemistry works up London Evening Standard TV brand |url=https://www.designweek.co.uk/issues/october-2013/kemistry-works-up-london-evening-standard-tv-brand/ |work=Design Week |date=17 October 2013 |access-date=19 April 2026 |url-access=subscription}}</ref>
<ref name="DW-Jan2014">{{cite news |last=Banks |first=Tom |title=Branding launches for London Evening Standard TV channel |url=https://www.designweek.co.uk/issues/january-2014/branding-launches-for-london-evening-standard-tv-channel/ |work=Design Week |date=16 January 2014 |access-date=19 April 2026 |url-access=subscription |quote=The identity will use the work of a new creative each year, and launches with a series of illustrations by Yoni Alter.}}</ref>
<ref name="DW-March2014">{{cite news |last=Banks |first=Tom |title=Yoni Alter's city |url=https://www.designweek.co.uk/issues/march-2014/yoni-alters-city/ |work=Design Week |date=14 March 2014 |access-date=20 April 2026 |url-access=subscription |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231224175344/https://www.designweek.co.uk/issues/march-2014/yoni-alters-city/ |archive-date=24 December 2023 |url-status=live}}</ref>
<ref name="DW-June2014">{{cite news |last=Gosling |first=Emily |title=Yoni Alter's bright take on London |url=https://www.designweek.co.uk/issues/june-2014/yoni-alters-bright-take-on-london/ |work=Design Week |date=25 June 2014 |access-date=20 April 2026 |url-access=subscription |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250817154407/https://www.designweek.co.uk/issues/june-2014/yoni-alters-bright-take-on-london/ |archive-date=17 August 2025 |url-status=live |quote=The Israeli-British artist has lived in London since 2006, having studied in Jerusalem Academy of Art & Design before taking on an MA at London College of Communication.}}</ref>
<ref name="Designboom2015">{{cite web |last=Reed |first=Trevor |title='Shapes of Cities' by Yoni Alter presents signature buildings from iconic metropolises |url=https://www.designboom.com/design/shapes-of-cities-yoni-alter-09-10-2015/ |website=Designboom |date=16 September 2015 |access-date=19 April 2026}}</ref>
<ref name="MyModernMet2013">{{cite web |last=Hosmer |first=Katie |title=Shapes of global cities defined by colorful silhouettes |url=https://mymodernmet.com/yoni-alter-shapes-of-cities |website=My Modern Met |date=20 February 2013 |access-date=19 April 2026}}</ref>
<ref name="PrintMag2017">{{cite web |last=Aszman |first=Amanda |title=Designer of the week: Yoni Alter |url=https://www.printmag.com/designer-of-the-week/designer-week-yoni-alter/ |website=Print Magazine |date=1 October 2017 |access-date=19 April 2026}}</ref>
<ref name="EmbassyIL-LoveContinuum">{{cite web |title=Love Continuum: Yoni Alter at the Kensington and Chelsea Art Trail |url=https://embassies.gov.il/england/en/news/yonialterlovecontinuum |publisher=Embassy of Israel, London, Ministry of Foreign Affairs |date=2024 |access-date=20 April 2026}}</ref>
<ref name="Colossal2024">{{cite web |last=Mothes |first=Kate |title=In London, all you need is 'Love Continuum' by Yoni Alter |url=https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2024/07/yoni-alter-love/ |website=Colossal |date=2 July 2024 |access-date=19 April 2026}}</ref>
<ref name="Domus2024">{{cite web |last=Brandoli |first=Lucia |title=Yoni Alter's typographic artwork is dedicated to love |url=https://www.domusweb.it/en/news/gallery/2024/07/04/yoni-alters-artwork-reminds-us-that-all-we-need-is-love.html |website=Domus |date=4 July 2024 |access-date=19 April 2026}}</ref>
<ref name="TimeOutNY2025">{{cite magazine |last=Rahmanan |first=Anna |title=This brightly whimsical new interactive sculpture is now in Union Square |url=https://www.timeout.com/newyork/news/this-brightly-whimsical-new-interactive-sculpture-is-now-in-union-square-022125 |magazine=Time Out New York |date=21 February 2025 |access-date=19 April 2026}}</ref>
<ref name="USQNYC2025">{{cite press release |title=Union Square celebrates the essence of love, welcoming bright and whimsical sculpture "Love Continuum" by artist Yoni Alter |url=https://www.unionsquarenyc.org/usqnews/love-continuum-union-square |publisher=Union Square Partnership |date=20 February 2025 |access-date=19 April 2026}}</ref>
<ref name="FashionNetwork2018">{{cite news |title=Karl Lagerfeld creates capsule collection with Yoni Alter |url=https://uk.fashionnetwork.com/news/karl-lagerfeld-creates-capsule-collection-with-yoni-alter,962423.html |work=FashionNetwork UK |date=2018 |access-date=19 April 2026}}</ref>
<ref name="UAL-Lagerfeld-2018">{{cite web |title=Karl Lagerfeld announces MA Graphic Media Design grad as guest artist for Spring 2018 season |url=https://www.arts.ac.uk/colleges/london-college-of-communication/stories/karl-lagerfeld-announces-ma-graphic-media-design-grad-as-guest-artist-for-spring-2018-season |publisher=London College of Communication, University of the Arts London |date=4 April 2018 |access-date=19 April 2026}}</ref>
<ref name="UAL-LCC-Alumni-2021">{{cite web |title=LCC graduate creates digital artwork for London's largest LED Christmas tree |url=https://www.arts.ac.uk/alumni-and-friends/stories/lcc-graduate-creates-digital-artwork-for-londons-largest-led-christmas-tree |publisher=University of the Arts London |date=8 December 2021 |access-date=19 April 2026}}</ref>
<ref name="CanaryWharfMap">{{cite web |title=Summer Lights 2022 — Map |url=https://canarywharf.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/Summer-Lights-Map-2022.pdf |publisher=Canary Wharf Group |date=June 2022 |format=PDF |access-date=20 April 2026 |quote=Pointillist Bird — Yoni Alter — Wren Landing.}}</ref>
<ref name="CWG-SummerLights-2022">{{cite press release |title=Canary Wharf's Summer Lights display is back for 2022 |url=https://cwg.com/press-release/canary-wharfs-summer-lights-display-is-back-for-2022-100622/ |publisher=Canary Wharf Group |date=10 June 2022 |access-date=20 April 2026 |quote=Yoni Alter has taken inspiration from the pointillist movement of the 1880s... a 3-metre-wide pointillist bird, made of 98 colourful translucent discs suspended in mid-air on wires.}}</ref>
<ref name="Londonist-Wembley-2021">{{cite news |title=Winter at Wembley Park looks absolutely magical |url=https://londonist.com/london/christmas-in-london/winter-at-wembley-park-looks-absolutely-magical |work=Londonist |date=2021 |access-date=20 April 2026}}</ref>
<ref name="WembleyPark-News-2021">{{cite press release |title=Winterfest returns to Wembley Park with illuminating launch event on 25 November |url=https://wembleypark.com/news/winterfst-returns-wembley-park-will-illuminating-launch-event-25-november/ |publisher=Wembley Park |date=2021 |access-date=20 April 2026 |quote=London's tallest LED tree, which stands at 25-metres high and features 100,000 kinetic lights... giving visitors a first look at the specially created 'City Lights' artwork by Brent-based artist Yoni Alter, which will adorn the tree.}}</ref>
<ref name="KM">{{cite web |title=Israeli artist Yoni Alter's colourful graphic designs |url=https://www.kingandmcgaw.com/stories/yoni-alters-colourful-graphic-designs |website=King & McGaw |access-date=19 April 2026}}</ref>
<ref name="SCMP-Hermes-2021">{{cite news |author=SCMP Style Reporter |title=Style Edit: jazz up your autumn wardrobe with the new Hermès men's collection |url=https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style/luxury/article/3148963/style-edit-jazz-your-autumn-wardrobe-new-hermes-mens |work=South China Morning Post |department=Style |date=20 September 2021 |access-date=20 April 2026 |quote=Designer Yoni Alter's double-face scarf features bold colours in pop art spirit... Alter plays with multiple layers, reliefs and colours of a motorcycle and a team of horses.}}</ref>
<ref name="Prestel-author">{{cite web |title=Yoni Alter — Author page |url=https://prestelpublishing.penguinrandomhouse.de/Author/Yoni-Alter/p635182.rhd |publisher=Prestel Publishing |access-date=19 April 2026}}</ref>
<ref name="Gestalten-VF">{{cite book |title=Visual Families: Graphic Storytelling in Design and Illustration |publisher=Gestalten |year=2014 |isbn=978-3-89955-540-0}}</ref>
<ref name="MoMAStore">{{cite web |title=NYC Skyline Model |url=https://store.moma.org/products/nyc-skyline-model |publisher=MoMA Design Store |access-date=19 April 2026}}</ref>
<ref name="Newsfile2026">{{cite press release |title=2026 Global Gift · Hainan Expo selection awards ceremony and design gala held in Haikou |publisher=Newsfile Corp |date=April 2026 |url=https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/293133 |access-date=19 April 2026}}</ref> }}
==External links== * {{Official website|https://yoniishappy.com}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Alter, Yoni}}
Category:Living people Category:1980s births Category:Year of birth missing (living people) Category:21st-century English artists Category:21st-century English male artists Category:21st-century Israeli artists Category:21st-century Israeli male artists Category:Alumni of the London College of Communication Category:Artists from London Category:Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design alumni Category:Designers from London Category:English contemporary artists Category:English graphic designers Category:Israeli contemporary artists Category:Israeli designers Category:Israeli emigrants to the United Kingdom Category:People from Central District (Israel)