Logo Design & Animation
// Van Life Style
The mobile lifestyle retailer wanted to update their brand assets with a fresh take on their logo.
Role
As the lead marketing and creative strategist for the brand, I was responsible for all aspects of the updated logo design in Adobe Illustrator and animation in Adobe After Effects.
Strategy
Though the execution left something to be desired, I genuinely liked the romantic concept of the van and sunset that formed Van Life Style’s original logo. Using that as a jumping off point, I thought about ways to refine the look and, most importantly, further drive home the core of the brand and its offerings using visual iconography. After all, VNLF wasn’t a van maker or seller, but rather, a brand selling van life products and accessories. So while the van was a big part of the experience, ultimately it was the lifestyle the brand was selling, so it was important to bring aspects of that to the design.
Rugged natural landscapes, the freedom of the open road and the beauty of outdoor experiences were all elements I wanted to evoke with the design, bringing in a mountain range and setting sun to give a greater sense of place, scale and majesty. When it came to the van, I opted to illustrate the classic VW Bus, an iconic and instantly recognizable travel van that evokes sun-soaked road trips and surf holidays.
When it came time to animate the logo, I delved further into the idea of outdoor experiences and phenomena and developed the concept of driving through the night under a bed of stars and seeing the first light of dawn break the mountaintops. Animation was done primarily in Adobe After Effects with all vector elements done in Adobe Illustrator.
Outcome
The updated logo successfully elevated the brand’s visual identity, giving a more professional look and feel to their website, social media profiles, video content, and more. The full color logo was delivered on time and on budget along with simple, 1-color alternate versions for light and dark backgrounds (JPG, PNG and AI formats) as well as the 6-second animation(MP4 and MOV formats). The brand was so happy with the partnership, they contracted me to develop a series of video ads for an upcoming brand campaign.