the circular directory publication
services
year
client
industry
Art direction
Graphic design
2022
MA Project
Consumer goods
Publication
objective
Create a resource that makes it easy for consumers to know where to go and make informed decisions on sustainable goods.
results
Created a mock up for a print and digital business directory.
brief
As the directory is championing local business’ I want it to visually emote the area it is from. The visual identity was very important in this project, from colour to typography choice I wanted the directory to exude Norwich.
process
Colour
I started with visual geographical research capturing the sights of Norwich City.
I used Adobe colour to create colour palettes from each photo.
From the colour palettes produced from the images, I pulled out the most recurring ones to create a palette for Norwich which will inspired the colours in the directory.
Typography
Type style in the city is mostly Serif, there is also 3D processing, making it emboss or deboss.
I looked for a way this could be replicated digitally and in paper print form. Letterpress printing leaves an impression in the paper by pressing into the paper from one side. This process can be replicated digitally as well.
Imagery
For imagery I liked the idea of a less literal approach, a more subconscious and emotive visual where the users will know what the image is of without it being defined. E.g. seeing a blurry yellow M and knowing it’s McDonald’s.
After some experiments this style felt very artistic and would work for creative cities like norwich, manchester and London but not everywhere. I decided the cover art needs to be reflective of the city instead of having a blanket artistic style for all cover art.
Iconography
I looked for iconography that harmonised with existing recycle icons and was in line with the visual aesthetic of the directory.
I chose a simple and modern line drawing style, this felt favourable for whatever background colours I use in the publication.
The Directory
To create the Artwork, I created Moodboards of different layouts I liked from the Adobe stock brochures and books list.
I then shortlisted the layouts and matched them with the pages I need to create for the directory.
I then created a series of thumbnails using PowerPoint experimenting with various layouts for the cover.
I then started translating these into colour and image visuals using an image of norwich castle I created using photoshop.
Once I settled on a cover design I liked, I trialled covers for coventry and manchester, seeing how the design would work across varying colours and images.
When the final design was chosen, I used this as a halo to guide the design decisions for the rest of the directory. Before each design you will see the Moodboard images that informs it.
Once happy with all the designs I used Adobe photoshop to create all the artwork.
