2020, you are a pip.
I have been working from home since forever, but suddenly the rest of the world is too. We are learning a new way to live in the era of COVID-19, and smart businesses are responding in all kinds of ways. As a brand designer, I thought a good place to start is my own brand.
Even though I've tweaked the Andiamo brand over time, I have not done a full overhaul since around 2006. (Read more about the evolution of the Andiamo brand.) So - how to start?
In contemplating what an evolved brand image for Andiamo might look like, I focused on a simple message - "Design is Good". I personally find inspiration from anything that is well-designed - a mug, a chair, a house, a television ad, a coffee label. Good design improves our daily lives in countless small ways and that is something to celebrate.
Andiamo 2006-2020
The brand I've been using for the last several years centered on a bold ampersand in a circle in a palette of orange and gold. Originally, I chose the ampersand for a few reasons - a) I love ampersands, b) "and" is the first three letters of Andiamo, and c) it's a symbol of what I try to provide to my clients - extensive list of services from a single resource. As in, we do branding AND print AND digital AND illustration AND... you get what I mean.
So - I'm keeping the ampersand, and I'll keep the circle too. Continuity is important. But I started giving thought to how this mark could be updated to reflect a new era in business. The original mark is centered, thick lined, incorporates two similar tones, has multiple interesting spaces within the shapes and is traditionally balanced.
The new Andiamo brand icon
With this new iteration above, I went for a simplification of the ampersand mark. The palette focuses on a single bold color now - a rich magenta tone. A slimmer font provides elegant lines, and a strategic placement of the ampersand within the circle creates unique white space. It's off center, but still balanced. And like the previous logo, the arm points forward into space.
In all these ways, this new mark embodies what we all need to be doing right now in our businesses: Identifying what works and adapting that strength to meet a changed world.
Below I've added on the word forms, placing the ampersand as the "o" in Andiamo. This new brand visual models streamlining, adapting, and simplifying.
Introducing the new Andiamo Creative brand identity
New brand, new times
Once the world has tackled this virus - and I have to believe that will happen - what will this world look like? Will we be forever changed? Will we all carry small bottles of hand sanitizer in our pockets for the rest of our lives like Great Depression era survivors burying their life savings in the back yard? This is yet to be seen. What will remain constant is people's efforts to make the best of things. Design will be a part of that.
After all, Design is Good.
By the way, the website is new too! 😀
