Big Fun is a local music festival that takes place in the brutal, cold month of January. In contrast to Winnipeg's winter, I wanted the brand to be bold and lively. Inspired by bus seat graffiti, I used Sharpie on acetate to create this style, scanning and editing the various attempts.
After many sheets of logo versions, I compiled the best characters from each attempt. Once the logo was finalized, I created the festival’s identity, including business cards and posters.
Synonym specializes in both art consultation and event planning/management. Much like the word itself, Synonym bridges two concepts through meaning, pairing artists of multiple disciplines with a wide range of spaces. With this in mind, the logo needed to be flexible in order to work with many artistic styles.
The logo is a solid square that can be applied over any image, protecting the legibility of the type. The logo type is an altered version of Courier New, with a diagonal line placed within the “O”.
When applied to two images, the square logo gains a diagonal line that simultaneously splits and connects the different works. This line acts as a bridge and is used throughout Synonym’s branded materials.
To enhance my sponsorship of the 2013 Rainbow Trout Music Festival, I created a series of posters to display in the festival's port-a-potties. With a different poster for each stall, I was able to give the festival goers a unique and enjoyable port-a-potty experience during each visit.
Manitoba Film & Music supports the growth and prosperity of the film and music industries in Manitoba. To recap their achievements in 2011 and 2012, MFM approached a design firm where I held a lead designer position to create their annual report.
After developing the theme “Behind The Scenes”, we went on location with photographer Mark Reimer to capture the inner workings of local film productions and venues. For further insight into the industries, and MFM's role in helping them grow, quotes from prominent figures in film and music were laid over the duotone images.
As a bilingual publication, the front and back cover are interchangeable, with one language on either side. To create unity between both covers, I edited the photo to flow naturally across the spine.
While at ClarkHuot/Cocoon, I was lead designer for a rebrand of Akman Property Management. I was responsible for ensuring that Akman Property Management's new look reflected the company's newly defined traits: trustworthy, modern, and professional. Akman Property Management provides services to rental property owners, condominium owners, and residential tenants.
During my time as Creative Director at Vantage Studios & Print Shop, I designed this annual report for the Winnipeg Committee for Safety. The visual theme for the annual report is "layers". This theme was executed through the use of overlaying colours, varying paper widths and custom architectural photography shot by Steven Ackerman.
For Royal Canoe's debut LP, Today We're Believers, I was asked to design a cover that would reflect the band's collective love of summer in Winnipeg. Royal Canoe's music is explosive and colourful, which helped guide the album's look and feel. Royal Canoe provided two artworks by Danny O'Connor and requested that I combine both images, adding additional textures and elements. The result was an image representative of the feeling the band had hoped to portray.
The Winnipeg Juno Host Committee for the 2014 Juno Awards needed a brand that spoke to the excitement and pride that Winnipeg has for its rich music history and music community. ClarkHuot/Cocoon was hired to create the visual identity for the events during the week of the Juno Awards. I was part of a small team tasked with developing the creative concept and tagline. Once established, it was my job as lead designer to create the brand universe for We Speak Music, including logo, typography, photography and motion. When the brand became public, I had become creative director at Vantage Studios & Print Shop where I oversaw the design of the microsite.
Inspired by a suburb of the same name in Melborne, Australia, Fitzroy embodies character, simplicity, and above all, great food. When the restaurant's owners came to Vantage Studios, I was excited for the opportunity to create their brand. From logo, stationery and typography, to menu and signage design, Fitzroy's brand is clean and functional. With a simple design, visual spacing is an essential detail and became an integral part of Fitzroy's brand.
When it came to online materials, I oversaw the design of the website in addition to ensuring that Fitzroy had all of the necessary tools needed for a consistent social media presence – including a vertical version of the logo that fits nicely in a square.
