I admit it – I’ve been remiss in updating this blog over the past few months. Part of the issue is just that I’ve been very busy. But of course that’s not the entire problem, as I am always very busy. I’ve also been having a hard time coming up with topics that are really crying out for analysis, or that warrant a full post. During the time I’ve been away from the blog, I have been more active on Twitter (follow @Rocdove). Twitter has proven to be a useful way to quickly get out a thought or share something interesting, but I’d also like to create content that goes a bit deeper than what I can manage in 140 characters.
So now I’m back, and returning with renewed vigor! I’ve decided to use the blog to not only write about design, but also to share small creative projects. I’m happy to post the first of these today – a new desktop wallpaper. I’ve been doing a lot of cycling over the past 6 months or so, and wanted to create a design that captured a little bit of the joy I feel on my bicycle.
Somehow the association between bikes and birds feels very natural to me. They’re both quick, they’re agile, they’re a little bit delicate, and they have hollow bones. It’s a very liberating feeling to know that I can get anywhere I need to go under my own power on a bike. That degree of freedom they impart reminds me of a bird on the wing.
Get the wallpaper:
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I recently completed a few design and identity projects for Beltway Technology Connections, a startup company in Washington, DC. BTC came to me looking for a new logo and a set of print collateral to go with it. I’m quite pleased with the end result of the logo project, but in the process of creating it a lot of good alternative designs were tossed away. As they would otherwise never see the light of day, I thought I’d post a little bit about my logo design project.
The finished product
The client left this project pretty open-ended. The primary design criteria was that it fit for both of the sectors they market to: federal government agencies and technology companies. Their first logo, which they had always viewed as something of a placeholder, depicted a sketchy line-drawing of the US capitol building – fine for government, but no connection to technology. My first set of sketches included some designs that played off the building idea, and others that took the logo in a more abstract or techy direction.
A sampling of BTC logo sketches
As I continued designing, I moved the sketching process into Adobe Illustrator. I still wasn’t creating polished and complete logos, but switching to the computer allowed me to give the client a better idea of what the final logo would look like. The need to keep the building became clear through this process – the client wanted a concrete symbol for government, and the building worked very well in that regard.
The color scheme was essentially set before the project began. I had already designed 2 or 3 marketing sheets for them, and developed a color scheme of red, light-but-saturated blue, and gray. As such, my main color decision was not which colors to use, but whether to use the full palette (ie, red/blue/gray) or only a subset (red/gray seemed to work the best here).
BTC Illustrator sketches
With the decision to use the building made, I realized that the “tech” side of the logo might need to come from the style. I hit upon the idea of placing the building mark inside a circular badge. Badge or button logos are a trend among tech companies. While trendiness on its own is not a good reason to make a design decision, in this case the “glowy badge” was able to draw the connection between a government building and the tech industry. But also, round emblems are common as logos for governement agencies. So the BTC logo can be read as a stylized update on a governemental crest.
Color, shading, typeface, and building-shape options
With the BTC logo completed, we shifted focus to GovTechConnect, BTC’s flagship product. GovTechConnect is an online directory that helps bring together government agencies with high tech contractors. We decided to keep the style similar to maintain a connection between product and company.
The beginnings of the GovTechConnect logo
The mark within the GovTechConnect badge was based on an early sketch of the BTC logo. A building symbolizes the federal government, while a gear represents tech as well as the concepts of work, efficiency, and industry. A few alternate designs and a little bit of tweaking later, the GovTechConnect logo was ready for use!
Design alternatives for the GovTechConnect logo
More options for the GovTechConnect badge. I
Thanks to BTC for this very enjoyable project, and for their cooperation in posting this little window into the process on the Rocdove blog.
Posted by: Brendan on Jan 17th, 2009 Filed under: Design, Rocdove
Jewelry at Egan Day is displayed in glass bell jars by Philly artist/glassblower Sarah Zwerling.
I mentioned Egan Day on this blog when they first opened a few months ago. The two owners, Kate Egan and Cort Day, have created a space that feels like a relaxed art gallery for jewelry. Their current selection includes work by the visionary jewelry designer Ted Muehling, as well as three other talented designers.
I uploaded their new website yesterday afternoon, and just added it to the Rocdove portfolio. We worked hard to design a page that matches the natural but elegant feeling of their store – in the end I think we succeeded.
If you live in Philly or are planning to visit anytime soon, go check them out. I recommend stopping next door at Monk’s for mussels and a beer when you’re done shopping.
I just finished taking down my old portfolio site – from here on, Rocdove will be the one place to find all of my design work. I liked the old site’s design (especially the interactive flash on the homepage), so I kept a little bit of it alive here.
I replaced the site itself with a brendan-locator. It’s got links to all the places people can find me (for example, this site). I’m pretty happy with the design of the page – check it out!
Posted by: Brendan on Oct 1st, 2008 Filed under: Rocdove
As of this very moment I’ve finished uploading the Rocdove website. Rocdove is a small design studio – a hub for all of my freelance design and animation efforts. Please take some time, poke around, and let me know if you have any projects that need a savvy designer or skilled animator.
True, the site may only be 10 minutes old, but I’ve already got a number of updates in the works. In addition to using this blog to post about interesting design finds and ideas, I’m planning to keep the content coming in other areas of the site as well. I’ve got more projects and some downloadable freebies in the queue, so stay tuned!
-Brendan
