BAD NEWS BROWNS BRANDING
OBJECTIVE
I was tasked with designing a logo for a streetwear brand that was influenced by wrestling. Seeing as how I love both of those things, the challenge was both exciting and daunting. I was up for it.
WORK DONE
Client: Bad News Browns
Role: Art Direction and production.
PROCESS
The brand wanted a character/icon to be the mascot for the brand, so we explored those first. We were playing around with the idea of a mascot that felt like an old wrestler/fighter from the early 20th century. The idea was to have something obviously influenced by the past but to be a cool icon that could live presently. A Steamboat Willie influence with a big mustache and tough hair part is the direction that we agreed on. With this first round, we knew we were heading in the right direction but more exploration was needed.
PROCESS (CONT.)
I tilted the head a bit, so you could see more dimension in the mustache. We also wanted him to look a little tougher than the first round. The first round almost looked like a little kid wearing a fake mustache, so I tried making him look a little more worn down without being overly busy/illustrative.
PROCESS (CONT.)
In the end, we landed on this guy. I added a simple scar to weather him a little bit and some shine to the hard part in the hair as a detail to show that he's still a gentlemen. He looks like he's ready to wrassle.
FINAL THOUGHTS
This was a fun project that let me illustrate a little bit more than normal branding projects. The constraints included having an icon that could tell a story with it's face without being overly detailed. I'm very happy with where we landed on this.