PROMPT
Redesign a brand identity for any local business in the Pacific Northwest.
RESEARCH
To understand my client's values, I researched Nationale and created a client brief that guided my design decisions.
Nationale is special because of the community it fosters between the artists they support and its loyal members who come for new publications or exhibitions.
It was important to research other competitor art galleries in the surrounding area to understand what makes Nationale stand out before crafting a brand statement.
CONCEPT & IDEATION
Striking a balance between neutrality and personality.
My initial "aha" moment that came out of moodboarding and mindmapping was being able to balance the two worlds that Nationale represented: an art gallery that is generally represented through more neutral branding and a quirky playfulness that came through their interior and book publications.
ITERATION
Developing different ideas that played on the concept of representing the "two worlds" that Nationale lived between.
I stuck to mainly neutral san serif typefaces to highlight that tension between both a playful yet serious tone.
My iterations eventually developed into two main directions that I continued to iterate on:
Slight Adjustments to simple type
Abstract blocks and shapes of parts that create a whole
DEVELOPMENT & REFINEMENT
Ensuring that every design concept and decision connected back to the brief.
At this stage, I had received conflicting opinions on which final direction I should pursue from guest critiques, peers, and my professor.
I was torn and didn't know what to do, but I was able to weigh each direction against each other by asking myself "Which direction connects back to the brief more strongly?"
The answer was clear to me: the typographic direction—while I got the sense of play + sternness through the second direction, I did not have a clear concept behind the shapes and what they represented.
REFLECTION
Follow your instincts (but the client brief first).
The answer is always in the client brief, but it's being able to look at my designs in different perspectives and approaches to come up with new and creative solutions. I learned and grew the most by continually asking my peers and professor for feedback, as well as being asked "Why did you make [this design decision]."
I learned that success for branding is being able to connect each design decision back to the client brief, rooting them in meaning and concept. Thus, I can confidently call Nationale a successful rebrand.
