Elmwood: Logo Development

Using word mark I picked out typefaces to use as a base for my logo. I was looking for a clean simple sans serif typeface to maintain the focus on the actual word rather than the visual elements of the type. I wanted to keep the humour and power of the word as the main focus and strongest point.

 I then transferred this across and made a decision to go with Century Gothic.

I tried altering the type to create a simple image that reflecting the business.  I also tried with capital letters but made the decision to go all lowercase maintaining one clear level.

 I struggled with creating imagery out of these letter forms therefore I went back to look for inspiration from different visuals. I looked at illustration of scaffolding and close ups of the materials used.

 I really liked the shapes that it made once constructed and also the geometric shapes the materials created such as a circle. I realised that something quite suggestive imagery could be created with the shapes as it's circles and lines but decided to avoid this route as I didn't want it to be to crude just slightly humorous.

I then worked on created icons drawing inspiration from these sections in particular.

 I was finding it really hard to portray these elements in relation to scaffolding and didn't feel they were working as well as communicating the structure as much as they could.

I tried to strip it back and go back to basic form I had originally created. This top element was my favourite of the imagery as it was most significant, being the highest point in the structure. (the climax of the form)

Then going back to extending the 'l' as I had originally had, I combined the two.

I had struggled to make this form work before because it looked two much like a star and not really the joining of poles. I went back to the image and realised it didn't look like that in the image because of the extended poles going out. When I had included these poles before when experimenting they were the same lengths as the others and this hadn't worked. Therefore I tired extended poles and felt this worked a lot better and really showed the join, communicating the structure.

I had picked yellow and black due to the industrial look as well as the yellow foam that surrounds the poles and floor level.

I did mock ups of other colours to show in crit and get feedback:

I chose a flouresent orange as a it stands out and is like a calmer warning then red as well a being modern. I thought that this could be applied to the scaffolding itself so not only is the company recognised and the scaffolding become more attractive but it also make it stand out to people walking around.

I also tried bright red and white due to the the striped warning tape that is often wrapped around the poles to make them stand out to pedestrians.

 Then finally I tried a deep blue which is a more professional colour showing loyalty and reliability.