Home / About // the studio

Twenty years, two names, the same two people showing up.

We started as San Diego Web Partners and became Pixel Studio West once "pixel" — the one thing every piece of graphic and web work has in common — felt like the more honest name. What didn't change: a small studio that answers its own email.

The mark

Our logo is built the same way we build everything else: a scatter of individual pixels that resolve into place. It dates back to our San Diego Web Partners days — sdwp.com is still live and still ours — and it's still exactly what "Pixel Studio West" is supposed to look like.

// how we work

No hand-offs, no account managers

Every project runs through one of us, start to finish. Tell us what you're picturing, and we'll figure out what it takes to build it — realistically, and on a timeline that isn't padded with a layer of overhead you're paying for.

We talk it through

A short conversation about what the site or design needs to do, for who, and what "done well" looks like for your business specifically.

We build in the open

Drafts and previews along the way, not a single reveal at the end. Course-correct early, cheaply, before it's load-bearing.

We stick around

Hosting, updates and small changes after launch — from the same two people who built it, not a support ticket queue.

// the team

Meet Roark & Michael

Software Engineer · Graphic Designer

Roark

Roark handles the build side of the studio — custom website development, application software and the graphic design work that pairs with both. He also builds Pixel Studio West's own software, including Graffx and the long-running Data ASAP! product.

Outside client work, he's usually deep in a side project: a new app, a fresh render, or a piece of music.

Electronics Technician · Musician

Michael

Michael brings the technical and hands-on side of the studio — the practical, get-it-working expertise that keeps hosting reliable and projects grounded in what actually holds up over time.

When he's not troubleshooting, he's playing music — a habit that shows up in how carefully he listens to what clients actually want.

// a short history

From San Diego Web Partners to Pixel Studio West

20+ yrs ago

San Diego Web Partners

The studio began designing and hosting websites for local businesses under our original name.

Along the way

Data ASAP! takes shape

Our flagship product was built to bring Microsoft Access databases online — and has been refined and revamped ever since.

Recently

Renamed to Pixel Studio West

A name change that better reflects the work: pixel for graphics, studio for the craft, west for home.

Now

Building Graffx

A free-to-try graphic design app, live on Windows with macOS and Linux versions on the way.