Pen Room - Collateral Items

These were presented to the client, along with other collateral items for feedback prior to finalising the design elements.

Feedback was good at this point. The museum liked the simplification of the design elements over previously seen samples. They appreciated that their current literature isn't overly focused. Seeing the benefits of paring back the message, they would be able to engage their main target audience; families and school groups.

Pen Room - Collateral Items

The leaflet has gone through many revisions. I've been keen to use it as an opportunity to develop an overall style and concept that will be suited to all the collateral items.

Feedback from both the client, potential audience members and tutorial sessions has been influential. The design started off as too overly concerned with the heritage angle of the museum, without making the family target audience the focal point of the communication.

Reworking the large amount of copy on their current leaflet to more incisive and exciting paragraphs and bullet-points enabled a cleaner design. A sparing use of photography reiterated the family friendly elements of the museum.

Moseley Shoals - Flyer

Feedback from both the client and external sources was good. 

The typographic version was generally chosen as it was thought to be clearer than the purely illustrative version and the beach graphic style was liked when surveying the target audience group.

Some of the comments included:

"Makes me think of Brighton. Hints well at what the group does but without over-explaining"

"Instantly recognisable as to what the whole group is about, what they do and the types of other activities that are on offer"

"...it depicts a very friendly group and would entice me to find out more/go along and see what's what"

Pen Room - Identity

Further refinement of the chosen logo following feedback from both the client and tutorial sessions.

The final logo successfully communicates the museum's industrial heritage through the use of contemporary typefaces of the period, whilst also stating function through a handwritten typeface. The adaptability of the concept will be useful to offer a cohesive identity across the range of collateral items.

Pen Room - Identity

The range of logos were shown within context across a range of collateral items. These were presented to the Museum for consideration.

Definitely a learning experience. The presentation itself went well and they liked the work and were happy to take one of the designs forward, but would change the way I present a range of logos in the future.

Pen Room - Logo

Final selected logos to present to the client for consideration. Whilst each one reflects the heritage/purpose elements within the design, there's hopefully enough contrast within each to offer some choice to the client.

Moseley Shoals - Flyer

Worked up finals for presentation to the client.

Moseley Shoals - Flyer

The publicity flyer for the group was problematic.

Whilst the current flyer included all the information anyone would need, it simply had too much and wasn't best suited to the occasions where it was being handed out - monthly pub crawls by the Moseley Shoals. The text had to be to the point and inviting enough for people to want to find out more, rather than wading through an A5 side of 9pt text (which people out and about in the pub on a Friday or Saturday night didn't).

The group also doesn't really have a specific USP. People tend to use the group for a variety of purposes, be this a serious swim, splash about, sitting in the pool to chat or even just coming along to the pub afterwards.

Finally, there wasn't a clearly defined target audience. Whilst it was aimed at gay people, this included ALL gay people, of any sex or age - an incredibly diverse range of people.

Because of this mixture of messages that needed to be put across within the design, I chose to use a simple typographic and illustrative concept that used text and/or illustrative icons giving a clear indication of the the wide range of potential reasons for joining, whilst also inviting the viewer to find out more (through the groups website). The tone for the piece needed to be fun and jovial, getting across the social nature of the group.

Moseley Shoals - Logo

The chosen logo by the client group, shown here in its colour version and reversed out of solid. 

This was pretty much the universal choice from the group, with only one of two people choosing the other designs. It was felt this offered an idea of movement in water, without being specific to an activity (i.e. swimming) and offered a more 'modern' image than the others.

Pen Room - Logo

Digitised versions of the logos below. Some are more suitable than others.

Pen Room - Logo

After tutor feedback, back to the drawing board to some extent to look at some of the other directions I was going with the initial roughs. Looking at more organic, handwritten or hand drawn marks.

Pen Room - Logo

Digital vectorised versions of the a range of logos chosen to present to my tutor.

Pen Room - Logo

The Pen Room currently uses a range of identities with different styles used at the point of entry, throughout the museum and on their marketing materials.

I was keen to create a cohesive brand identity that would be easily adapted to the various touchpoints, whilst also hopefully clarifying their purpose to potential visitors. Their current identity (through its various forms) offers a calligraphic rendering of the museum name along with a pen nib. I feel this is confusing as to their purpose. They're not a museum for calligraphy, or handwriting, but the industrial production of pen nibs - a viewpoint shared with the museum when discussing the purpose of the identity at the briefing stage.

I was keen to get this industrial heritage side across within the identity and move it away from the more specialist calligraphic rendering whilst still showing a pen nibs purpose.

Looking at period packing within the museum was a good influence, as were grotesque fonts of the late 1800's, which I felt spoke of the industrial heritage of the period whilst also appearing quite contemporary.

Moseley Shoals - Logo

Narrowing the logo design to a number of choices to present to the client group for feedback and selection. This final selection was made in relation to comments from external sources and tutor feedback. I was keen to have a range of options for the client, each with a slightly different feel or emphasis. 

These were presented in colour to the client group for feedback and selection of a final design if possible.