I've been tidying up files and sorting through my laptop lately. Along the way I have come across some old 'logos' I 'designed' voluntarily in university. Now I'm maybe being a little harsh on myself and perhaps a little overly sarcastic, because I really thought at the time these were quite creative, although absolutely chaotic.
I studied at the University of Hertfordshire towards a bachelor of arts in Film and Television production, so graphic design wasn't my area of expertise anyway. In my spare time I took part in a few different societies and clubs too. One of these groups was a new student union society that I helped found in 2013 - the Acapella Society! I became their promotional officer and was in charge of logo, poster, and t-shirt design, along with social media, and general promotional events around the campus. It was a huge success and we won the student union award for being the best new society on campus that year and gaining the most new members, beating the drama society who had won for many years in a row!
Now, although I've always had a creative mind, I've perhaps lacked certain technical skills in a few areas. That doesn't stop my from diving into a project and learning along the way. In this particular point of my life I had done art in school but knew little about truly effective design. I also struggled to grasp the concept of subtlety, and that less is more! Some call it the 'too much gene'. I certainly have the too much gene as you can see...
However, there was certainly a particular style and theme I was going for. One thing that is clear when I look through the development of these designs is that I knew what I wanted, and I just had to filter my ideas down! I was designing for a fresh hot new society that already had gained a huge amount of interest from students, and membership was continuing to grow like crazy! I wanted the new logo to look exciting, hot, young, and fun. It had to be eye-catching, show a clear musical message, and look good on a t-shirt!
Well we're six years now since this experience at the University of Hertfordshire. For four of those years I have been worked for an exhibition and design company and have learnt a lot about design and marketing. So I couldn't resist but redesigning this logo just as a fun exercise and see what I could create now with my new knowledge of design (and perhaps better sense of style)!
Take a look below at what I've popped together this evening, keeping some of the main elements/theme, and colours which reflect and work with the UH Student Union logo. I'm feeling quite happy with the bold and bright lettering, especially as white on black. I couldn't let go of the flames though, and those who were in this society with me will appreciate this as a nod to the original and a little bit of nostalgia for us all! I have to say I like how this has turned out and I'd wear it on a t-shirt now. I have checked the student union website and seems that society finished long ago unfortunately so they'll have no use for a new logo.
It lives on in my memories and now, in this blog post too!
