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Design from a
creative briefDesigner and client must
work toward the same goal. Here’s
how to do that.
®
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When 30-year-old Jennifer Diamond quietly passed away of appendiceal carcinoma, a rare form of cancer, on July 23, 2002, she left behind family, friends and a gentle legacy of gracefulness and love. And she left her father
Harvey with a mission—“to share the knowledge gained from this experience with others.” So was born the Jennifer Diamond Foundation, which would be “dedicated to helping people win the fight against all forms of cancer.”
Soon after, designer Karen Barranco was retained to give Jennifer’s foundation a public image. The beautiful logo she made is a textbook lesson in how to design for a client—and work to a shared, creative vision. The process begins not on a computer but face to face with the client, for as long as it takes, listening, building rapport, understanding—and sharing—the mission. Here’s how she did it:
Design from a creative briefTo know if you’ve reached a design goal, you must first know what the goal is. Here’s where to start answering that.
Write it down The creative brief is the blueprint for the project. It is a collaboration of designer and client. It includes a project overview, goals, messages, audience description, budget, schedule, and so on. The act of writing all this down means that everyone has talked through and agreed on what the design is to embody.
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ListenWhen you meet your client, your most important tools are your ears. Hear who they are and what they’re saying. As you proceed together, talk about the goals for the design. (Which is different from what the design should look like.) Develop the creative brief. Keep it short. Use clear headlines and bulleted lists.
Project description The project description is a brief summary of what we’re doing and why. Because dragonflies had sym-bolic meaning to Jennifer and her family, the deci-sion was made at the outset that a dragonfly would be central to the image, so it was included here.
Meanings What is the symbolism of the dragonfly? Don’t assume you know. Listen to your client. Participate; fill in the gaps with research, but check your results with the client. Think in metaphors, which helps you avoid becoming too literal. Avoid clichés.
project DeScrIptIoN This identity will capture the true essence of Jennifer Diamond’s legacy to help people with rare cancers to be strong, informed and promote healing through mind and body connections and will set the tone for all future design applications. This identity will use the metaphor and symbolism of the Dragonfly as the “healing messenger,” intertwined with the following meanings:
powerfulThe Dragonfly is an important insect in legend, where they are creatures with supernatural powers.
prosperity and HarmonyThe Dragonfly represents the powers of light and transformation, and the ability to see through illusion. The dragonfly teaches a free and joyful sense of being.
InformedThe Dragonfly teaches us to apply the art of knowledge to our own questions and situations—to remember things are never completely as they seem.
Ability to be positiveThe shifting movement, energy, form, and color of its iridescent wings open vague memories, reminding us of alternative perspectives.
communicatorThe Dragonfly is the essence of change, the messages of enlightenment and wisdom. It also brings communication from the elemental world, nature spirits.
Dare to DreamThe Dragonfly is the doorkeeper who allows the gates to the dream dimensions to be opened through the breaking of the physical illusion.
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AuDIeNce• OrganizationtoIndividual–nonprofit• CoreTarget:Individualsandfamilymemberswithrarecancers• SecondaryTarget:MedicalCommunity• TertiaryTarget:privateandbusinesssectorspotentialdonors
GoALS/project oBjectIVeS•Positionasapremiumnon-profitorganizationoperatingin
a niche market.•Attractinterestandrespect.
MeSSAGeS•Conveyconfidence,trustedguidance,credibility,professionalism• Projectgrowth,stabilityandtrust• Timelessness /nottrendy• Conservative,reliable,tasteful,elegant,subtle• Understatedsimplicity,Cleanandsimplewithminimal“lines”• Feminine,softandwarmwithoutbeingtoo“girly”• Welcomingandapproachable• Sophisticated,nottoorich,though.Embossingmaybetoo
“extravagant”fornonprofit;wecandiscuss.
ApproAcHeS• Donotuseacronyms:JDF• Use“JenniferDiamondFoundation”• Donotinclude“inc.”• Doesnotvisuallyrelatetocancer• Minimalist/simplisticapproach• Horizontalformat(preferred)• Typographicalsolutionwiththeintegrationofasymbol/mark• Exploreusingthedragonflyasasymbol• Uptothreecolors,opentomore?• Mustbeusedincolorandb/w
Audience An image that has meaning to one group may be meaningless to another. Understand who the audi-ence is. Let your client guide you. Don’t assume you know the audience or what it is like. Keep in mind that the first audience is the client himself and his employees and volunteers. They must enjoy their logo and be proud of it and what it represents. Seriously.
Messages A logo is a signature, not a marketing program. It does not need to “tell the whole story.” Nevertheless, it has a story to tell. The logo may picture the product or service. It may be only the name. But it will always convey an intangible—perhaps a vision or attitude or feeling. In this, it is similar to clothing; a red suit says something different from jeans. Write down every-thing you imagine. This is the artistic step. We must say visually what words alone cannot.
Approaches This step is more mechanical than artistic. Write down what can and can’t be done. This helps you and the client approach the conceptual stage with better clarity and focus.
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Get to workA dragonfly will be central to the logo. A dragonfly in real life is beautiful but complex, and the logo needs to be simple. One way to achieve simplicity is to use a silhouette. A silhouette must have just the right pose . . .
Side view It’s a beautifully engineered creature, but sticky little insect legs say bug, not warmth, femininity or welcome.
Front view What is this? It’s hard to tell at a glance, and you probably don’t want it crawling on you.
Top view This is the strong view. Simple, symmetrical, graceful. No legs, no body parts, all attention is on those wings.
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Get artisticThe logo must convey many intangible qualities. Fill in the silhouette, then begin working out lines and shapes; each small variation will “say” something different.
Angled edges Flattening the curves yields somewhat crystalline shapes. The idea is interesting, but here it appears heavy and masculine, which we don’t want.
Abstract Sharp points and flat head look too much like a nail or a plant. The tapered body, however, shows potential; it lightens the weight of the silhouette, a feminine quality.
Rotate Upright orientation is natural to our eye, because it’s the most like us. In this position, the dragonfly appears balanced, motionless, stable, “standing” like an object to be admired, almost as if we’re viewing a statue.
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Continuous line, simplified The complex, single line is replaced with a simplified line, which often yields bet-ter results but here does not. Yet while the single wings look nothing like a dragon fly, they do suggest an angel.
Abstract, outlined Pointed wings take the angel idea further. Four wings say dragonfly, but the image has now morphed into a symbol and is no longer an insect. The lines can also be seen as single wings in motion. The taper has returned.
Continuous line Single line makes a fluid image, sweeping and graceful, like a spinning ballerina. This image is light but fairly abstract—we’re losing the sense of a dragonfly—but its attributes are desirable.
PushBecause lighter is better, push that direction. Lighten it more by outlining the silhouette. Listen to what the lines are saying. As you work, pay attention to small improvements.
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Arms added Two curves become arms that are open in gentle welcome . . .
. . . and a circle becomes a head. The body is widened into a tapered diamond—which, of course, has its own symbolism—and the image has become beau-tiful. This sketch was shown to the client, who loved everything except one detail . . .
Converging lines are deleted because they reminded Harvey of the tubes that were attached to Jennifer at the hospital.
ExpandTwo lines and a circle are a breakthrough. The image not only has dragonfly symbolism but acquires that of an angelic figure, too, clearly feminine.
Flat head The wings are sleek and pretty, but the blunt “head” still looks like a nail. Although unfinished, key at this point is that the design has developed a clear direction.
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RenderRefine on the computer. A single line weight lends strength and posture and ties the two chief images—Jennifer and dragonfly—together.
Floating like an angel Tapered base conveys weightlessness.
Position of arms Open arms welcome; clasped “hands” portray care, watchfulness.
The finished symbol is a beautiful blend of images, simple, engaging, timeless, powerful. It connects on many levels—inviting, caring, confident, dignified, angelic and so on.
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TypeMighty Trajan, first inscribed in stone on Emperor Trajan’s column in Rome, has the dignity and stability that befits a premium cancer foundation.
The stable center Centered type reinforces the symmetrical symbol. Centering is robust, stable, motionless, which strengthens the sense of permanence.
Secondary typeface The simple forms of modern classic Futura Book are crystal clear and nearly style-neutral. Because of this, Futura makes an excellent complement to Trajan and many other typefaces as well. Note its panoramic letterspacing (left).
Main typeface It’s seen a lot of use in recent years, but Trajan is timeless—strong, permanent, a direct connection to the ancient past. Its default letterspacing is like the engraved column, above. It can be looser but should not be tighter than this.
foun
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Spring greens Vibrant colors are pretty but too “new” and inap-propriately active to use here. The solution is to desaturate, which replaces hue with gray and yields muted, dusty tones. Note above that the original colors were eye-droppered from the image.
Subdued blues The client prefered to use blue, which sug-gests lightness, healing, medicine. Desaturated blue was applied only to the logo, not the type. The colors work naturally together because they’re analogous (side by side on the color wheel) and mainly gray.
Too bright
Desaturated
ColorA colorful dragonfly suggests bright, spring hues, but they would be too active. Muting the colors conveys softness, professionalism, trust.
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Our report cardAs we have seen, the creative brief gives everyone goals to work toward. And now that we’re done, it provides the measure by which to judge the outcome. Keep in mind that many goals —“professional,” for example—are subjective, and that the client gets a vote.
Does the logo meet the goals? From the creative brief . . .
• Captures the “true essence of Jennifer Diamond’s legacy to help people with rare cancers be strong, informed and promote healing . . .”
• Attractive to “individuals and family members with rare cancers, plus the medical community and donors”
• Dragonfly This central feature is clearly visible in the outcome.
• Conveys “confidence, credibility, professionalism”
• The image is that of a “premium non-profit organization.”
• It “attracts interest and respect.”
• Conveys “stability, trust, credibility”
• Appears “timeless, not trendy”
• It’s “conservative, reliable, tasteful, elegant, subtle.”
• It’s “feminine, soft and warm without being girly.”
• It’s “welcoming and approachable.”
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President
Harvey Diamon d
Vice President
Matthew Diamon d
Secretary
Rachel Farle y
Treasurer
David Jackel
Board of Dir ectors
Harvey Diamond, Chair
Matthew Diamon d
Rachel Farle y
Marshall Gelfand
1880 Century Park East 16th Floor Los Angeles, CA 90067 phone 310 551 0800 fax 805 379 291 3
www.jenniferdiamondfoundation.org
1880 Century Park East 16th Floor Los Angeles, CA 90067 phone 310 551 0800 fax 805 379 291 3
www.jenniferdiamondfoundation.org
1880 Century Park East
16th Floo r
Los Angeles, CA 9006 7
Harvey Diamond
President
1880 Century Park East, 16th Floo r
Los Angeles, CA 9006 7
phone 310 551 080 0
fax 805 379 291 3
harvey@jenniferdiamondfoundation.org
www.jenniferdiamondfoundation.org
Envelope White logo on the printed flap is an impressive touch that draws full attention to the message it wordlessly conveys. Manufacturing the full-bleed flap requires that the envelope be printed flat, then assembled.
LetterheadLight colors and small, light type convey a sense of peacefulness and dignity. Top logo and bottom address are far apart, but centered alignment keeps them connected. Key personnel are on the far left; wide line spacing sustains the airiness.
Letterhead, envelope and business card are designed as a package; note the logo and type are the same size
on all three pieces.
Business cardVertical format heightens the sense of a floating angel. Aligned-left copy repeats that on the enve-lope and letterhead.
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Article resources
Typefaces
1 Adobe Garamond Italic
2 Frutiger Roman
3 Futura Book
4 Trajan Pro
Images
Images: iStockphoto
5 (6980328)
6 (7339555)
Colors
PMS 550
PMS 7539
7
8
Harvey Diamond
President
1880 Century Park East, 16th Floo r
Los Angeles, CA 9006 7
phone 310 551 080 0
fax 805 379 291 3
harvey@jenniferdiamondfoundation.org
www.jenniferdiamondfoundation.org
7 8
1 2 3 4 5 6
Special thanks to the ever-impressive Karen Barranco for allowing us to morph her beautiful work into a design lesson. Developing an image of this caliber is neither as easy, nor as linear, as a condensed, 1–2–3 article makes it appear and often involves nail biting and sleepless nights. And, of course, a true brand is about much more than a logo. Nevertheless, the principles shown here are correct and in good order and have a lot to teach us.
About Karen we can say this—that if we were in need of a designer, she would be on our short list of people to phone. See more of her work—and read about her process—on her Web site, www.specialmoderndesign.com. Visit the Jennifer Diamond Cancer Foundation at www.jenniferdiamondfoundation.org.
®
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Before & After magazine Before & After has been sharing its practical approach to graphic design since 1990. Because our modern world has made designers of us all (ready or not), Before & After is dedicated to making graphic design understand-able, useful and even fun for everyone.
John McWade Publisher and creative directorGaye McWade Associate publisherDexter Mark Abellera Staff designer Before & After magazine323 Lincoln Street, Roseville, CA 95678 Telephone 916-784-3880 Fax 916-784-3995E-mail mailbox@bamagazine.com www http://www.bamagazine.com
Copyright ©2009 Before & After magazine ISSN 1049-0035. All rights reserved
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sign
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BA
mag
azine.co
mB
efore&
After
iX
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from
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U
Wh
en 30-year-o
ld Jen
nifer D
iamo
nd
qu
ietly p
assed aw
ay of ap
pen
diceal carcin
om
a, a rare fo
rm o
f cancer, o
n Ju
ly 23, 2002, she left
beh
ind
family, frien
ds an
d a gen
tle legacy of
gracefuln
ess and
love. An
d sh
e left her fath
er H
arvey with
a missio
n—
“to sh
are the kn
owled
ge gained
fro
m th
is experien
ce with
oth
ers.” So w
as bo
rn th
e Jenn
ifer D
iamo
nd
Fou
nd
ation
, wh
ich w
ou
ld b
e “ded
icated to
h
elpin
g peo
ple w
in th
e fi ght again
st all form
s of can
cer.”So
on
after, design
er Karen
Barran
co w
as retained
to give
Jenn
ifer’s fou
nd
ation
a pu
blic im
age. Th
e beau
tiful lo
go sh
e m
ade is a textb
oo
k lesson
in h
ow to
design
for a clien
t—an
d
wo
rk to a sh
ared, creative visio
n. T
he p
rocess b
egins n
ot o
n
a com
pu
ter bu
t face to face w
ith th
e client, fo
r as lon
g as it takes, listen
ing, b
uild
ing rap
po
rt, un
derstan
din
g—
and
sh
aring
—th
e missio
n. H
ere’s how
she d
id it:
Design
from a creative b
riefTo know
if you’ve reached a design goal, you must fi rst know
what
the goal is. Here’s w
here to start answering that.
Write
it do
wn
The creative brief is the blueprint for the project. It is a collaboration of designer and client. It includes a project overview
, goals, messages, audience
description, budget, schedule, and so on. The act of writing
all this down m
eans that everyone has talked through and agreed on w
hat the design is to embody.
®B
efore&
After
BA
mag
azine.co
mU
i
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f 0680
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Design
er and
client m
ust
be on
the sam
e page.
Here’s h
ow.
Design from
a
creative briefD
esigner an
d clien
t mu
st w
ork toward
the
same goal. H
ere’s h
ow to d
o that.
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AU
DIE
NC
E• O
rganization to Ind
ividual – non p
rofi t• C
ore Target: Ind
ividuals and
family m
emb
ers with rare cancers
• Secondary Targ
et: Med
ical Com
munity
• Tertiary Target: p
rivate and b
usiness sectors potential d
onors
GO
ALS/P
RO
JEC
T OB
JEC
TIVE
S• Po
sition as a p
remium
non-p
rofi t o
rganizatio
n op
erating in
a niche market.
• Attract interest and
respect.
ME
SSAG
ES
• Convey confi d
ence, trusted g
uidance, cred
ibility, p
rofessionalism• Project g
rowth, stab
ility and trust
• Timelessness/not trend
y• C
onservative, reliable, tasteful, eleg
ant, subtle
• Und
erstated sim
plicity, C
lean and sim
ple w
ith minim
al “lines”• Fem
inine, soft and w
arm w
ithout being
too “girly”
• Welcom
ing and
app
roachable
• Sophisticated
, not too rich, though. Em
bossing
may b
e too “extravag
ant” for non profi t; w
e can discuss.
AP
PR
OA
CH
ES
• Do not use acronym
s: JDF
• Use “Jennifer D
iamond
Foundation”
• Do not includ
e “inc.”• D
oes not visually relate to cancer• M
inimalist /sim
plistic ap
proach
• Horizontal form
at (preferred
)• Typ
ograp
hical solution with the integ
ration of a symb
ol/mark
• Explore using
the drag
onfl y as a symb
ol• U
p to three colors, op
en to more?
• Must b
e used in color and
b/w
Au
die
nce
A
n image that has m
eaning to one group may be
meaningless to another. U
nderstand who the audi-
ence is. Let your client guide you. Don’t assum
e you know
the audience or what it is like
. Keep in mind
that the fi rst audience is the client himself and his
employees and volunteers. They m
ust enjoy their logo and be proud of it and w
hat it represents. Seriously.
Me
ssag
es
A logo is a signature, not a m
arketing program. It
does not need to “tell the whole story.” N
evertheless, it has a story to tell. The logo m
ay picture the product or service. It m
ay be only the name. B
ut it will alw
ays convey an intangible—
perhaps a vision or attitude or feeling. In this, it is sim
ilar to clothing; a red suit says som
ething different from jeans. W
rite down every-
thing you imagine. This is the artistic step. W
e must
say visually what w
ords alone cannot.
Ap
pro
ach
es
This step is more m
echanical than artistic. Write
down w
hat can and can’t be done. This helps you and the client approach the conceptual stage w
ith better clarity and focus.
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Listen
Wh
en yo
u m
eet you
r client, yo
ur
mo
st imp
ortan
t too
ls are you
r ears. H
ear wh
o they are an
d w
hat th
ey’re sayin
g. As yo
u p
roceed
togeth
er, talk ab
ou
t the go
als for th
e design
. (W
hich
is differen
t from
wh
at the
design
sho
uld
look like.) D
evelop
th
e creative brief. K
eep it sh
ort. U
se clear h
eadlin
es and
bu
lleted lists.
Pro
ject d
escrip
tion
The project description is a brief sum
mary of w
hat w
e’re doing and why. B
ecause dragonfl ies had sym-
bolic meaning to Jennifer and her fam
ily, the deci-sion w
as made at the outset that a dragonfl y w
ould be central to the im
age, so it was included here.
Me
an
ing
s W
hat is the symbolism
of the dragonfl y? Don’t
assume you know
. Listen to your client. Participate; fi ll in the gaps w
ith research, but check your results w
ith the client. Think in metaphors, w
hich helps you avoid becom
ing too literal. Avoid clichés.
PR
OJE
CT D
ESC
RIP
TION
This identity w
ill capture the true essence of Jennifer D
iamond
’s legacy
to help p
eople w
ith rare cancers to be strong
, informed
and p
romote
healing throug
h mind
and b
ody connections and
will set the tone for
all future desig
n app
lications. This identity w
ill use the metap
hor and
symb
olism of the D
ragonfl y as the “healing
messeng
er,” intertwined
with
the following
meaning
s:
Po
werful
The Drag
onfl y is an imp
ortant insect in legend
, where they are creatures
with sup
ernatural pow
ers.
Pro
sperity and
Harm
ony
The Drag
onfl y represents the p
owers of lig
ht and transform
ation, and
the ability to see throug
h illusion. The drag
onfl y teaches a free and joyful
sense of being
.
Inform
edThe D
ragonfl y teaches us to ap
ply the art of know
ledg
e to our own
questions and
situations—to rem
emb
er things are never com
pletely as
they seem.
Ab
ility to b
e Po
sitiveThe shifting
movem
ent, energy, form
, and color of its irid
escent wing
s op
en vague m
emories, rem
inding
us of alternative persp
ectives.
Co
mm
unicator
The Drag
onfl y is the essence of change, the m
essages of enlig
htenment
and w
isdom
. It also bring
s comm
unication from the elem
ental world
, nature sp
irits.
Dare to
Dream
The Drag
onfl y is the doorkeep
er who allow
s the gates to the d
ream
dim
ensions to be op
ened throug
h the breaking
of the physical illusion.
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Ge
t to w
ork
A d
ragon
fl y will b
e central to
the lo
go. A d
ragon
fl y in real life is b
eautifu
l bu
t co
mp
lex, and
the lo
go n
eeds to
be sim
ple. O
ne w
ay to ach
ieve simp
licity is to u
se a silh
ou
ette. A silh
ou
ette mu
st have ju
st the righ
t po
se . . .
Sid
e vie
w It’s a beautifully
engineered creature, but sticky little insect legs say bug, not w
armth,
femininity or w
elcome.
Fro
nt vie
w W
hat is this? It’s hard to tell at a glance, and you probably don’t w
ant it crawling on you.
Top
view
This is the strong view
. Simple, sym
metrical,
graceful. No legs, no body parts,
all attention is on those wings.
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Ge
t artisticT
he lo
go m
ust co
nvey m
any in
tangib
le qu
alities. Fill in th
e silho
uette, th
en b
egin
wo
rking o
ut lin
es and
shap
es; each sm
all variation
will “say” so
meth
ing d
ifferent.
An
gle
d e
dg
es Flattening the curves
yields somew
hat crystalline shapes. The idea is interesting, but here it appears heavy and m
asculine, which
we don’t w
ant.
Ab
stract Sharp points and fl at head
look too much like a nail or a plant. The
tapered body, however, show
s potential; it lightens the w
eight of the silhouette, a fem
inine quality.
Ro
tate U
pright orientation is natural to our eye, because it’s the m
ost like us. In this position, the dragonfl y appears balanced, m
otionless, stable, “standing” like an object to be adm
ired, almost as
if we’re view
ing a statue.
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sign
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esign fro
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U
Co
ntin
uo
us lin
e, simp
lifi ed
The com
plex, single line is replaced with a
simplifi ed line, w
hich often yields bet-ter results but here does not. Yet w
hile the single w
ings look nothing like a dragon fl y, they do suggest an angel.
Ab
stract, o
utlin
ed
Pointed w
ings take the angel idea further. Four w
ings say dragonfl y, but the im
age has now m
orphed into a sym
bol and is no longer an insect. The lines can also be seen as single w
ings in m
otion. The taper has returned.
Co
ntin
uo
us lin
e Single line m
akes a fl uid im
age, sweeping and graceful,
like a spinning ballerina. This image is
light but fairly abstract—w
e’re losing the sense of a dragonfl y—
but its attributes are desirable.
Pu
shB
ecause ligh
ter is better, p
ush
that d
irection
. Lighten
it mo
re by o
utlin
ing th
e silho
uette.
Listen
to w
hat th
e lines are sayin
g. As yo
u w
ork, p
ay attentio
n to
small im
provem
ents.
®8
of 15D
esign fro
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riefB
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U
Arm
s ad
de
d Tw
o curves becom
e arms that are open
in gentle welcom
e . . .
. . . and a circle becomes a
head. The body is widened into
a tapered diamond—
which, of
course, has its own sym
bolism—
and the image has becom
e beau-tiful. This sketch w
as shown to
the client, who loved everything
except one detail . . .
Co
nve
rgin
g lin
es are deleted
because they reminded H
arvey of the tubes that w
ere attached to Jennifer at the hospital.
Ex
pan
dTw
o lin
es and
a circle are a breakth
rou
gh. T
he im
age no
t on
ly has d
ragon
fl y sym
bo
lism b
ut acq
uires th
at of an
angelic fi gu
re, too, clearly fem
inin
e.
Fla
t he
ad
The wings are sleek
and pretty, but the blunt “head” still looks like a nail. A
lthough unfi nished, key at this point is that the design has developed a clear direction.
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U
Re
nd
er
Refi n
e on
the co
mp
uter. A
single lin
e weigh
t lend
s strength
and
po
sture an
d ties
the tw
o ch
ief images—
Jenn
ifer and
drago
nfl y—
togeth
er.
Flo
atin
g lik
e a
n a
ng
el Tapered base
conveys weightlessness.
Po
sition
of a
rms O
pen arms w
elcome;
clasped “hands” portray care, watchfulness.
The
fi nish
ed
symb
ol is a beautiful blend
of images, sim
ple, engaging, timeless, pow
erful. It connects on m
any levels—inviting, caring,
confi dent, dignifi ed, angelic and so on.
®B
Am
agazin
e.com
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re&A
fter i
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esign fro
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rief1
0 of 15
Type
Migh
ty Trajan, fi rst in
scribed
in sto
ne o
n E
mp
eror Trajan’s co
lum
n in
Ro
me, h
as th
e dign
ity and
stability th
at befi ts a p
remiu
m can
cer fou
nd
ation
.
The
stab
le ce
nte
r Centered type reinforces the
symm
etrical symbol. C
entering is robust, stable, motionless,
which strengthens the sense of perm
anence.
Se
con
da
ry type
face
The simple form
s of m
odern classic Futura Book are crystal
clear and nearly style-neutral. Because of
this, Futura makes an excellent com
plement
to Trajan and many other typefaces as w
ell. N
ote its panoramic letterspacing (left).
Ma
in typ
efa
ce It’s seen a lot of
use in recent years, but Trajan is tim
eless—strong, perm
anent, a direct connection to the ancient past. Its default letterspacing is like the engraved colum
n, above. It can be looser but should not be tighter than this.
FOU
N
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sign
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agazin
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rief1
2 of 15
Ou
r rep
ort card
As w
e have seen
, the creative b
rief gives everyon
e goals to
wo
rk toward
. An
d n
ow th
at w
e’re do
ne, it p
rovides th
e measu
re by w
hich
to ju
dge th
e ou
tcom
e. Keep
in m
ind
that m
any
goals
—“p
rofessio
nal,” fo
r examp
le—are su
bjective, an
d th
at the clien
t gets a vote.
Do
es th
e lo
go
me
et th
e g
oa
ls? F
rom
the
crea
tive b
rief . . .
• Captures the “true essence of Jennifer
Diam
ond’s legacy to help people with
rare cancers be strong, informed and
promote healing . . .”
• Attractive to “individuals and fam
ily m
embers w
ith rare cancers, plus the m
edical comm
unity and donors”
• Dra
go
nfl y This central feature is
clearly visible in the outcome.
• Conveys “confi dence, credibility,
professionalism”
• The image is that of a “prem
ium
non-profi t organization.”
• It “attracts interest and respect.”
• Conveys “stability, trust, credibility”
• Appears “tim
eless, not trendy”
• It’s “conservative, reliable, tasteful, elegant, subtle.”
• It’s “feminine, soft and w
arm w
ithout being girly.”
• It’s “welcom
ing and approachable.”
®B
Am
agazin
e.com
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re&A
fter i
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rief1
1 of 15
Sp
ring
gre
en
s Vibrant colors
are pretty but too “new” and inap-
propriately active to use here. The solution is to desaturate, w
hich replaces hue w
ith gray and yields m
uted, dusty tones. Note above
that the original colors were eye-
droppered from the im
age.
Su
bd
ue
d b
lue
s The client prefered to use blue, w
hich sug-gests lightness, healing, m
edicine. D
esaturated blue was applied only
to the logo, not the type. The colors w
ork naturally together because they’re analogous (side by side on the color w
heel) and mainly gray.
Too bright
Desaturated
Co
lor
A co
lorfu
l drago
nfl y su
ggests brigh
t, sprin
g hu
es, bu
t they w
ou
ld b
e too
active. M
utin
g the co
lors co
nveys so
ftness, p
rofessio
nalism
, trust.
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rief1
3 of 15
President
Ha
rvey D
iam
on
d
Vice P
resident
Ma
tthe
w D
iam
on
d
Secretary
Ra
che
l Farle
y
Treasurer
Da
vid Ja
cke
l
Board of D
irectors
Ha
rvey D
iam
on
d, C
ha
ir
Ma
tthe
w D
iam
on
d
Ra
che
l Farle
y
Ma
rsha
ll Ge
lfan
d
18
80 C
en
tury P
ark E
ast 1
6th
Floo
r Los A
ng
ele
s, CA
90
06
7 phone 3
10 5
51 0
80
0 fax 8
05 3
79 2
91
3
ww
w.je
nn
iferd
iam
on
dfo
un
da
tion
.org
18
80 C
en
tury P
ark E
ast 1
6th
Floo
r Los A
ng
ele
s, CA
90
06
7 phone 3
10 5
51 0
80
0 fax 8
05 3
79 2
91
3
ww
w.je
nn
iferd
iam
on
dfo
un
da
tion
.org
18
80 C
en
tury P
ark E
ast
16
th Flo
or
Los A
ng
ele
s, CA
90
06
7
Ha
rvey D
iam
on
d
President
18
80 C
en
tury P
ark E
ast,
16th
Floo
r
Los A
ng
ele
s, CA
90
06
7
phone 31
0 55
1 08
00
fax 80
5 37
9 29
13
ha
rvey@
jen
nife
rdia
mo
nd
fou
nd
atio
n.o
rg
ww
w.je
nn
iferd
iam
on
dfo
un
da
tion
.org
En
velo
pe
White logo on the printed fl ap is an
impressive touch that draw
s full attention to the m
essage it wordlessly conveys. M
anufacturing the full-bleed fl ap requires that the envelope be printed fl at, then assem
bled.
Lette
rhe
ad
Light colors and small, light type convey a sense
of peacefulness and dignity. Top logo and bottom
address are far apart, but centered alignment keeps
them connected. Key personnel are on the far left;
wide line spacing sustains the airiness.
Lette
rhe
ad
, en
velo
pe
an
d
bu
sine
ss card
are
de
sign
ed
a
s a p
ack
ag
e; n
ote
the
log
o
an
d typ
e a
re th
e sa
me
size
on
all th
ree
pie
ces.
Bu
sine
ss card
Vertical format heightens
the sense of a fl oating angel. A
ligned-left copy repeats that on the enve-lope and letterhead.
®B
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agazin
e.com
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4 of 15
Article
reso
urce
s
Type
face
s
1 Adobe G
aramond Italic
2 Frutiger Rom
an
3 Futura Book
4 Trajan Pro
Ima
ge
s
Images: iStockphoto
5 (6980328)
6 (7339555)
Co
lors
PM
S 550
PM
S 7539
78
Ha
rvey D
iam
on
d
President
18
80 C
en
tury P
ark E
ast,
16th
Floo
r
Los A
ng
ele
s, CA
90
06
7
phone 31
0 55
1 08
00
fax 80
5 37
9 29
13
ha
rvey@
jen
nife
rdia
mo
nd
fou
nd
atio
n.o
rg
ww
w.je
nn
iferd
iam
on
dfo
un
da
tion
.org
78
12
34
56
Sp
ecia
l tha
nk
s to th
e e
ver-im
pre
ssive
Ka
ren
Ba
rran
co fo
r allo
win
g u
s to m
orp
h
he
r be
au
tiful w
ork
into
a d
esig
n le
sson
. D
eve
lop
ing
an
ima
ge
of th
is calib
er is n
eith
er
as e
asy, n
or a
s line
ar, a
s a co
nd
en
sed
, 1–2–3 a
rticle m
ak
es it a
pp
ea
r an
d o
ften
invo
lves
na
il bitin
g a
nd
slee
ple
ss nig
hts. A
nd
, of
cou
rse, a tru
e b
ran
d is a
bo
ut m
uch
mo
re th
an
a
log
o. Ne
verth
ele
ss, the
prin
ciple
s sho
wn
h
ere
are
corre
ct an
d in
go
od
ord
er a
nd
ha
ve
a lo
t to te
ach
us.
Ab
ou
t Ka
ren
we
can
say th
is—th
at if w
e w
ere
in
ne
ed
of a
de
sign
er, sh
e w
ou
ld b
e o
n o
ur
sho
rt list of p
eo
ple
to p
ho
ne. S
ee
mo
re o
f he
r w
ork
—a
nd
rea
d a
bo
ut h
er p
roce
ss—o
n h
er
We
b site, w
ww
.spe
cialm
od
ern
de
sign
.com
.
Visit the Jennifer D
iamond C
ancer Foundation at w
ww
.jenniferdiamondfoundation.org.
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&A
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rintin
g formats
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mag
azine.co
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efore&
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fore
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