There comes a time in life where you have a full circle moment. This project was one of those moments for me. Over a year ago, I started a business filled with hope and optimism. Due to unforeseen events, 6 months later I was forced to close that business and was absolutely devastated. I have put my heart and soul into it. Believing in the future of Redding and revitalizing downtown, I didn’t know that a year later I would be allowed to collaborate on a project with an absolute dream client. When the call came to work for The McConnell Foundation, I jumped at the opportunity. Sometimes when you trust that it’s all going to work out, beauty truly comes from ashes. This project became deeply personal as I poured my life into it over the past month.
Today we’re taking you behind the design process as we share the new work in our portfolio for The McConnell Foundation.
Keep reading for the full process after the jump!
Moodboard
Inspired by the surroundings and texture of The McConnell Foundation, we focused on woods, greens, and a natural palette. It’s currently popular, but on point with their existing identity as we created an additional identity for the event. We love the plays of transparency, overlays, and simple hand lettered marks within the moodboard. It provided strong direction for the final identity and was well loved by the client. (The McConnell Foundation is a private independent foundation located in Redding, California. As a Northern California broad-based funder, grants are awarded to 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations, public education, and government entities. They are behind many of the stunning landmarks in Redding, the Land bridge in Yosemite, and are beginning to issue grants abroad.)
Rough Logos
These were 5 of the logo options presented to the client. Our final logo choice had movement, a contrast with flat and 3D forms, solid shapes and bold use of line. Playing with layovers over foliage images there was depth added to the mark.
Collateral
When creating collateral for this event, I wanted to create something that was stunning, valuable, and truly showed belief in Downtown Redding. I didn’t want to be limited to simple typography, but rather embrace the idea of a historic line drawing with the contrast of type within the identity and adding a stroke, giving it a hand lettered feel. By adding landmarks throughout Redding, it reminded of what is going well, speaking of hope and future in the people of Redding.
If you’ve ever been in Redding, you know our natural resources are stunningly beautiful. Each attendee to the event received a note stack placed on a birch plywood backer with a matte black brad. It was an updated take on the foundation’s interior and stunning environment they’ve built at Lema Ranch. The wooden texture added permanence and weight to the stack.
Are you a business looking to build out your brand, have the largest impact and step up your game? We currently have client openings for the fall. We’d love to hear from you!
Contact us here.