http://webdesignledger.com/inspiration/a-showcase-of-beautiful-packaging-designs

http://www.behance.net/Gallery/Gness-Music-BrandingShowreel/91355

http://www.behance.net/Gallery/Retro-Toy-Packaging/41895

http://www.graphicalhouse.co.uk/

http://www.todo.to.it/

http://www.stone-soup.co.uk/

http://www.umbro.com/en_XX/

http://www.thefwa.com/

http://www.sublevel.us/

http://www.hellomonday.net/

http://www.rvlt.com/

To design a poster that will convey Undermind’s ideals, provoke thought, have provocative images but maintain some sophistication to differentiate from a more crude angles that could be taken when promoting disobedience. The images need to be controversial still however to stay in line with it’s own values and as well as to grab attention and stir interest.

Challenge: To convey a feeling  and get people to question and think about obedience and society and their motivations through a form of information design or data visualization.

II. Research and Brainstorming
see  two entries ago

V. Roughs
Previous entry

VI. Comps (Critique)

I decided to use data from Stanley Milgrim’s experiments and study on obedience to authority

My style always tends to lean toward a Dadaist feel and it worked especially well for the general brand idea being against the grain. It also appropriates propaganda, history, methods of indoctrination(bible coloring book, weeblo handbook) to make an oposing statement about their implications, which refelcts Underminds existence as a brand to oppose the idea of brands in general.  I had books contatining very fitting and provocative illustrations, so collaging and overlaying pictures from a 60s Cubscout handbook and the bible coloring book with a nazi rally from a history book and the images of a sheep (which is actually from the bible coloring book as well) worked well to bring attention to the obvious parallels between conforming to any  authorities, religious, societal, or otherwise and the implications of being governed by anything other than your individual conscious. The data wasnt’ as important as the images because presenting data is sort of contradictory because the presentatino of data claims an authority and influence in itself and is often used for agendas and propaganda and influence by institutions (not the point of my brand) which is why the footnote of the data is very secondary.  The imagery invited the viewer to investigate further, to the text, which tells enough to invite the viewer to a website should the person be intrigued by the ideas presented.

THe color palette was inspired by propaganda and the red along with the types/fonts used were chosen to play with the idea of authority through design, the authority in the type- The top type is reminiscent of money or a bank, engraving or something and the bottom part looks like a classic published book, people tend to believe what they read, particularly in print.

I put the milgrim quote in because it illustrates the idea but also has an optimistic and positive spin and is not a command. Telling people DO NOT OBEY or yelling THINK FOR YOURSELF is sort of hypocritical since it in itself is ordering the individual to do something. I hope the information,  quote and data presented will inspire some to think aobut these things and find motivation from withthin to examine them, since that is the point anyway.

http://www.visualcomplexity.com/vc/project_details.cfm?id=287&index=34&domain=Knowledge%20Networks

http://www.milgramreenactment.org/pages/results.xml?location=3&page=3&text=3

http://www.spring.org.uk/2007/02/stanley-milgram-obedience-to-authority.php

http://www.ulmus.net/ace/text/obedience_text.html

http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Anarchism

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portal:Anarchism

but relatively minimal to maintain “higher end” differentiation

Provocative

defy what is “sacred” (on who’s authority? why?)

ask a question

be unignorable

make a commennt

satirize convention/the expected

draw from propaganda and turn it around

DADAISTS

intellectual aspect——-> questitons, articulate quotes. philosophy angle, PROJECT the desirable  intelligent anarchist

make people question, out of their comfort zone, challenge standards, demand attention while avoiding looking juvenile

hold up a mirror

problems to draw attention to/questions to provoke/ideas to highlight

blind faith

obedience
gods and masters
cops
religion, god, commandments, sins, =tyranny,
police misconduct
capitalism
status quo: gender roles, religion, schooling, laws
“generally accepted”
institutions
oppression
cecnsorship
laws

design anarchy

defy any or all conventions, expectations and standards (medium as message, message in the rules the design breaks) but achieve the goals of promoting thought

focus on the individual

inspire a curiousity

Utilize information(design) by presenting relevant provocative data or challenging the masses trust of information in general and the manipulation of design to ensure that trust. (holding up a mirror)

http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/news/article-23391081-george-orwell-big-brother-is-watching-your-house.do;jsessionid=BA74379BD29F7C3BBD0A8B373A0DEA60

spin the propaganda angle

http://www.crestock.com/blog/design/german-propaganda-posters-from-the-20th-century-129.aspx

provocative.shocking. controversial. unforgiving.

http://dwardmac.pitzer.edu/Anarchist_Archives/index.html

http://flag.blackened.net/

billboard subversion

http://www.urban75.com/Action/factory.html

http://www.urban75.com/Action/flypost.html

http://www.urban75.com/Action/media.html

http://www.spunk.org/resource.html

Typography: experiment with the masses trusts of certain typefaces

make a balance between blunt,  higher end, and provocative and illustrative of the point.

http://www.october15thsolidarity.info/artauction

handmade for sincerity

http://www.printmafia.net/pm/index.html

Quotes : http://redclasspride.deviantart.com/art/Anarchist-Poster-58679928

http://www.shavedneck.com/LAetc/index.htm

IX. Design Narrative

DESIGN GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

To brand; an idea.  inspiration. awareness. conscious. intellect. perception. philosophy.  a call to action, branding an organization/an ideology, individuality/inspiration/community not a product. Fighting the agendas of the traditional brand with a new kind of  brand. A “counter brand” or anti-brand/  instead of trying to sell people something or even sell a specific idea, the brand’s purpose is to inspire and provoke the individual to examine what or who controls them,  to question that influence/authority/power, to think for themselves and ultimately to stand against extrinsic forces and be driven solely from within. : I want the brand design to inspire individuals to examine their motives, obedience and freedom and to provoke a questioning  and of authority, systems, expectations, customs and culture in general, and instigate (and ultimately assist in) challenging those customs.

I hope for the brand/logo design to convey these feelings but in a more intellectual and subtle way than would be expected from something with an anti-authoritarian ideology. I want the design to convey a focus on the intellectual aspect, for it to be ambiguous enough to be intriguing and not abrasive, but to also stay provocative and  symbolically related to it’s ideals.

DESIGN REASONING AND OUTCOME

I decided on a sheep and a brain, they are very loaded images with many connections to the brand’s overall feel and subject matter
The sheep= the masses, blind obedience, vapid, empty.(implication=DONT BE these things) sheep = also cute and inviting which aids in my hope for a differentiated non abrasiveness, is additionally associated with sleep Undermind is looking awaken something in people, so the sleep metaphor also works there.  Black sheep= the individual, The brain: Free thought, individual, internal/intrinsic, self governing, controls the individual,  the individual’s primary natural governing agent is their brain, intellect, philosophy, education, awareness, consciousness. . etc. Both shapes are also reminiscent of a fist, a widely accepted symbol for defiance.
I knew I wanted to hand write the typeface for emphasis on individuality and so that the flowing marks would tie in with the curves of the illustration/brain and also contrast nicely against the geometric background.

I resolved the logo ultimately by including the background, it solved the color and design problems I was having and also added another relevant symbol to the logo.The design in the background is reminiscent of a black flag which is a symbol of rejection of authority (anarchy and/ not or abiding by any flag or nation) and also brings to mind censor bars(censorship being a very relevant debate in relation to regulations and individual freedoms.) I kept it black and white because of the black flag/censor/black sheep imagery as well as wanting to keep it subtle and more elegant or mature than something more colorful and in your face.

UNDERMIND

Pushing boundaries of branding, what can be branded, challenging what a brand is and contradicting the nature of the traditional brand.

Branding; an idea.  inspiration. awareness. conscious. intellectual. perception. philosophy, branding a call to action, branding a organization/ideology/individuality/inspiration/community not a product. Fighting the agendas of the traditional brand with a new kind of  brand. A “counter brand” or anti-brand/  instead of trying to sell people something or even sell a specific idea, the brand’s purpose is to inspire and provoke the individual to examine what or who controls them,  to question that influence/authority/power, to think for themselves and ultimately to stand against extrinsic forces and be driven solely from within.

This brand would also be pushing many boundaries with a “brand’s” connotation/feeling corporate and regulating and almost a close relative to an administration or government itself, UNDERMIND would produce anti-authoritarian (and thus anti-governement) products/publications, essentially promote illegal conduct and even provide outlets to or even actively  organize acts of anti-authoritarian defiance whether or not it falls within current laws in restrictions (in fact preferably would not fall within restrictions since that is the point.)

Such a service/organization getting a Brand and identity would be risky, seemingly contradictory, and provocative, but being branded would allow Undermind to inspire a larger audience and hopefully be able to compete with the traditional “brand” in general  by promising distinct sincerity since it has no agenda like most other brands.

Medium as the Message: The existence of  Undermind as a brand would be a criticism of “the brand” (more or less big companies/ media control/ hegemony)  in itself: Message: Don’t do/think/believe something just because someone/ad/system/brand/society told you to; examine agendas. Undermind has no agenda other than inspiring people to question power and think freely which is a very unconventional agenda.

I want the brand design to inspire individuals to examine their motives, obedience and freedom and to provoke a questioning  and of authority, systems, expectations, customs and culture in general, and instigate (and ultimately assist in) challenging those customs.

I hope for the brand/logo design to convey these feelings but in a more intellectual and subtle way than would be expected from something with an anti-authoritarian ideology. I want the design to convey a focus on the intellectual aspect, for it to be ambiguous enough to be intriguing and not abrasive, but to also stay provocative and  symbolically related to it’s ideals.

Logo/Design
I decided on a sheep and a brain, they are very loaded images with many connections to the brand’s overall feel and subject matter
The sheep= the masses, blind obedience, vapid, empty.(implication=DONT BE these things) sheep = also cute and inviting which aids in my hope for a differentiated non abrasiveness, is additionally associated with sleep Undermind is looking awaken something in people, so the sleep metaphor also works there.  Black sheep= the individual, The brain: Free thought, individual, internal/intrinnsic, self governing, controls the individual,  the individual’s primary natural governing agent is their brain, intellect, philosophy, education, awareness, consciousness. . etc. Both shapes are also reminiscent of a fist, a widely accepted symbol for defiance.

Differentiating
The subtle take on anti-authority would differentiate from competitors (and also attract a wider and more serious audience.) Undermind would further be differentiated from competitors because it is all encompassing, it  is not an artist like obeygiant, or a local group, but an umbrella symbol of free-thought, anti authority, challenging power and also that it would provide an outlet to take action/ organize acts of defiance for the interested “customer”. Instead of stopping at inspiring realizations about freedom and power or at the provoking of subversion, and calling to action, the “company” would go further and offer networking and ways to take action or expression and would not be solely with graffiti, street art, culture jamming or any one specific approach but offers all and any ways. Most of all, it is differentiated in being a brand at all, nothing with a similar agenda would “brand” it since branding is directly contradictory to the ideology and I am hoping to use that fact as a message itself,  as well as hoping to counter the influence and power of brands in general on a level that could compete, instead of rejecting their tactics, use them against them.
Target Audience:

Older teens/young adults/college age/even the 30 somethings, primarily aimed for US/Canada, Westernized countries, lower and upper middle class, seeking alternative lifestyles, the philosophically and intellectually curious

Competitors:
All anarchist/anti authoritarian/ libertarian or (related philosophies) collectives, record labels, production companies, newsletters, publications, groups, networks and artists. The nature of my brand makes them less competitors and more related communities and possible opportunities for working together. . .

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_anarchist_organizations List of anarchist Organizations

http://woostercollective.com/ Wooster Collective (street art)

http://banksy.co.uk/index.html Banksy

http://g7welcomingcommittee.com/ Record label

http://obeygiant.com Shepard Faery/ Mike Giant

https://www.adbusters.org/ Adbusters Culture Jamming Mag