FINSLEY GATE WHARF

UK
2021

A British National Heritage Site, the once abandoned industrial site along the Liverpool canal is now a functioning restaurant, museum and nature center. I was hired to design the entire site’s branding, digital platforms and interior design.

Tools

PHOTOSHOP
ILLUSTRATOR
INDESIGN
PREMIERE PRO

Role

RESEARCH
STRATEGY
ART DIRECTION
UI/UX DESIGN
INTERIOR DESIGN
INTERPRETATION DESIGN
SOCIAL MEDIA

Logo variations

Mobile Version

HOW IT WAS MADE

The Brief

Create the entire brand identity, website, social media and marketing materials for the newly refurbished historic site.

The Challenge

Conserving the original essence of the historic site while making it accessible and and attractive to a wide range of audiences. The design and voice had to be consistent throughout the multi-purpose site.

What I did

I created a brand identity that is true to the historic essence of the site while incorporating a modern touch through the digital and marketing materials.

Research & Development

Since this is a National Heritage historic site, I had many references to take from to create a fresh new brand that had touches of a rich, historic past. The site was once a working forge and a steel factory during the industrial revolution. I based my decisions on colors, typography, textures, photo treatments and design based on the early 20th century. I also was inspired by the canal and the culture of highly decorative canal boats which can still be seen passing by the wharf today. We wanted to keep the branding true to its historic past while still being sophisticated and modern.

Strategy

Our goal was to create a space that celebrates the cultural heritage of Burnley, UK and where people can come together. We came up with a tag line that celebrates coming together and celebrating. The site is a place where people can eat, celebrate together, listen to live music, enjoy the natural habitat and even a working museum forge!

Site Map

Site maps help to organize the user’s and client’ needs in the form of pages and their distribution. Together with the client, I identified the necessary pages where content, products and forms would live.

Wireframes

Wireframes are the blueprint of any construction. This is where we make structural decisions & layout the content. This includes the placement of products, promos, forms, CTAs, etc.. After a few revisions, we got the framework down and were ready to go into production.

Art Direction

I created a brand identity that was trendy, professional and bold. My reference was Barbra Kruger meets 90’s Calvin Klein. I used black and white photos that were nostalgic of former fashion campaigns and clean white space to give it a medical feel. I sourced images of multi-ethnic models and used relevant language during the Black Lives Matter movement.

Mock Ups

After finalizing the wireframes I apply the content and branding elements to create high-fidelity mock ups. This is where the strategy and graphic design meet. Once I finish arranging the graphic elements, I send it to the client for final approval. Once we test the site and make any last adjustments, I constructed the website myself.

And Voilà!

We created a minimalist, fashion forward brand identity for web, mobile and social media platforms. The look and feel is hip and relevant with the targets values. The website displays designer sunglasses and provides eye health services.

JAMAICA OPTICAL

NYC
2020

Jamaica Optical is a one-stop shop that offers eye exams and fashionable sunglasses in New York City. Our goal was to create a hip fashion-forward web experience and social media presence targeting fashionable young adults. Contracted work made for Robert Gerov Media