Logo design
The brief set by copy editing professional Penguinalia was clear, open to interpretation, and thoroughly engaging - my favourite kind of project. The client commissioned me to produce a logo design that would broaden the appeal of his services and more crucially, underpin the core values of his brand identity and working ethos. The client wanted to convey an effortless sense of professionalism that refrained from slick superficiality, a friendly and straightforward but critical methodology, and most definitely a passionate and personal approach to work.
From the earliest point of development it was clear that including a penguin motif in my concepts would be inescapable and that I should do so as subtly and tastefully as possible. The client's penchant for the birds would afford the brand its personality and friendliness without question, so the welcome challenge I faced was how to creatively incorporate one without cheapening or weakening the identity.
A metaphor devised by the client became a key factor in the logo evolution. He described his treatment of client projects as demonstrating the same level of care an adult penguin shows its child - a very cherished relationship. This alone prompted a new visual dynamic in my work; a consideration of element sizing, balance and interplay. A narrative that I would attempt to encapsulate as gracefully as possible.
Unusually I considered form and theme synonymously as I devised this logo, resulting in a deep exploration of ideas that kept the dialogue between the client and I constant. I moved from bold, light-hearted designs through to beautiful, understated, corporate-esque ones, and ultimately arrived at something perfectly composed from both camps. Seeking also to address the field of copy editing for contextual relevance the final logo design uses a traditional serif type for the title and strapline, and a unique emblem offset to the right which delivers the key penguin rhetoric. A pair of inverted commas - their tails tailored to form beaks and heads - hang in close proximity to one another above the title text. Their placement and sizing represent the aforementioned parent/child relationship and their colouration is again inspired by the birds. Because the emblem is so measured in its composure and reasoning it is strong enough to support the brand in isolation.
T-shirt challenge