CARRIE SUCHARSKI | INTERACTIVE MEDIA DESIGNER
IMD465
Senior Project Design ▪ Ameeta Jadav ▪ Summer Quarter 2005
Branding Concept and Style Guide ▪
Logo
Concept
The
following document explains the design choices for the logo of Elephant Trax. The main reason for creating a
logo is to convey a feeling and/or represent a specific message. The logo is
key to creating a first impression and is a catch-all.
Imagery
For
the Elephant Trax logo, I want the viewer to immediately feel like they are in
the wild with one of the jungle’s most powerful animals, the elephant. The
elephant represents many things to me: the ability to remember everything (in
my case, musical notes and scales), and the sound of the elephant’s call as an
instrument or music. The way the elephant stomps its feet when it walks is also
music. It is the beat of the jungle. The elephant keeps the other animals in
rhythm with nature. Another characteristic of the elephant that has a lot of
meaning is his ivory. Often elephants are hunted for their ivory to produce
art, for example, piano keys. I do not endorse the hunting of elephants for
ivory, but the symbolic meaning of ivory is important because it is often
associated with piano keys. This is important because my music uses pianos in
two different ways – one way is the use of the actual piano sound. The other way
the piano is used is for its keyboard, which I use to layout and apply
harmonies to drums, bells, strings, and other various instruments.
For
my logo, the most prominent element is the image of the Elephant. Inside of the
elephant (on his back) are 3 big stars, which represent the 3 tattoo stars that
I have on my back. Another important element of the elephant is his stance –
his trunk is pointing upwards, which shows that it is a strong elephant, and is
possibly the alpha male of his herd. Additionally, when the trunk is pointing
up, it means that he is using his trunk to make a call. This is important
because it means that my music is active and strong.
The
next most prominent element is the sun. The sun represents many things: energy
in general as well as the energy that my music conveys, the cycle of life, and
passion. The sun is also a guide for the animals, as the sun’s path
leads/dominates animals’ migration paths. Another element in the logo is the
“base” – which represents a solid foundation and the elephant’s shadow. The
elephant is walking on a solid foundation which represents its roots, or the
elephant’s own origin (of life). This is important because the elephant is a
very important symbol to many cultures, especially with tribal music and
rituals. The sound of the elephant’s call is often represented through the
sound of the trumpet. This idea along with the noise of an elephant stomping
its feet are also conveyed through my music, and provide the foundation, or
roots, of my style.
Type
For
the font, I choose a futuristic type called “Nostromo.” The reason I choose
this blocky and futuristic font is because the other elements in the logo are
very curvy and nature-like. However, I needed this particular font in order to
portray the technology that is used to make my music. For half of my music
collection, the sound is very natural and harmonious. However, there are other
songs in my catalog that sound very synthesized and futuristic, so I could not
leave that element out of the logo.
Logos
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Style
Guide
The
following table represents the colors that are used in the logo and within the
website’s style guide and formatting.
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Hex Code: 00551A |
Dark
Green Logo
Use: Green represents the jungle, nature, and peacefulness. Website
Use: Table Borders |
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Hex Code: F9F400 |
Bright
Yellow Logo
Use: Represents the sun, light, and energy. Also
representative of yellow birds within the jungle. Website:
Strong Page Headings |
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Hex Code: FFF99D |
Light
Yellow Logo
Use: Used in the outline of the Elephant Website
Use: Page/Body Text and Scrollbar accents |
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Hex Code: EF9C00 |
Bright
Logo
Use: Represents fire, energy, halos Website
Use: Links |
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Hex Code: 000000 |
Black Logo
Use: Provides a dark background to make the other elements
“pop” into focus. Black is also used because my music is very mysterious as
it does not have words. Website
Use: Page Background Color |
Font Treatment
The
following fonts will be applied to each style (content, headings, links,
disclaimer text, etc). A series of fonts will be used in case a user does not
have the first font available on their machine, so that the browser can default
to the second font.
Body
Text: Tahoma, Trebuchet, Verdana, 12 pixels, Light Yellow
Links:
Tahoma, Trebuchet, Verdana, font size variable, Bright Orange
Scrollbar:
Dark Green and Light Yellow