Working with Blackinton, we made it a mission to develop original designs for the upcoming 2017 Presidential Inauguration. Over the last 20 years, Blackinton and former clients saw a dip in originality and customization. The goal was to win those clients back with innovation and artistictly designed badges.
I knew the designs had to be different. They needed to have elements of story telling, craftsmanship and historical references that suited the specific agency. I started from the ground up with extensive background research, mood boards and illustrations. Sharing these with sales, we could achieve something the industry has yet to accomplish. Self expression and visual story telling in metal form.
Each design was outfitted with details for each agency/department. Connecting the subtle historical references with the customer was a critical strategy to get them to recognize the detail we were putting in. My mission was to have the customer be able to pick up on interesting and new details after owning the badge for weeks. No area was left undesigned.
Exploring new shapes and textures were a key component of the originality of these badges. Typically, badges are designed within the frame work of one of the main families of shape. (IE, oval or star). To break this tradition, I sought out new methods of machining and developed mood boards to help push our boundaries.
Designing a fleet of new badges for the Inauguration, opened the doors for unique assets. A perfect example of this is the creation of original bald eagles. The impact the eagle could have on the overall message and shape of the badge created a frenzy of excitement during initial mock ups.