MELANIE COWELL

I began my role at GCU Students' Association just before "Freshers' Week"—an orientation week for new students at the beginning of the new academic year comprising a series of fun welcome events. I realised that both the University and the Students' Association were vying for students’ attention with independent brand and communications strategies. This was confusing for students and an ineffective use of resources.

The following year I led a collaborate approach between the Students' Association and the University. I worked with the university's brand and student communications teams to identify a look and feel that represented both organisations and spoke to our students. My strategy was presented to and approved by GCU's Principal and Vice Chancellor.

I researched other institutions Freshers' campaigns, the latest design trends, and tapped into research the university was conducting on GCU's student demographic. I used the Students' Association's magenta and GCU's blue to create a vibrant gradient and selected a bold textured font that complimented the university's house font, Whitney.

Some considerations included: respecting both institutions' brand guidelines; that both logos should appear on all promotional materials; that elements should be adaptable for colleagues to create their own visuals; that some branded materials could be reused in subsequent years if they were undated.

I developed the brand for both print and digital applications, designing artwork and producing: lamppost banners, large format window signage, graphics for digital screens, social media and event promotion, website and app graphics, floor stickers, name tags, hoodies, Freshers' guides, tote bags etc.

Images:
1. Social media promotion
2. Branding on GCU campus
3. Mock-up of digital screens on campus
4. Mock-up of GCU Induction App and Facebook
5. Bingo Babes event promotion
6. Freshers' welcome/help team name tag and lanyard

The GCU Students' Association Teaching Awards is a chance for GCU students to thank and promote outstanding teaching and non-teaching staff members who have made a positive impact on their learning experience.

There are six awards staff can be nominated for and each awards is promoted independently so must have it's own identity within the Teaching Awards brand, which sits under the Students' Association brand.

I designed a logo that is bold and easily-recognisable, lends itself to any of the brand colours, can sit in the same space as the Students' Association logo, and can be updated with a new date each year.

I developed the brand for both print and digital applications, designing artwork and producing: social media and website graphics, posters for promotion around campus, certificates, award presentation slides, awards trophies, celebratory mugs and balloons.

Images:
1. Teaching Awards logo 2018/19
2. Poster promoting Terrific Teaching award
3. Social media graphic promoting awards event livestream
4. Social media graphic promoting nominations opening
5. Branded balloon for awards event
6. Celebratory mug

6 Degrees Vancouver: Are You Home? was a partnership between Simon Fraser University's Public Square and the Institute for Canadian Citizenship, which aimed to explore citizenship, inclusion and the notion of "home". The event took place over the course of one day, featured a number of relevant speakers, and invited audience engagement and discussion at “Open Exchanges”.

The 6 Degrees brand was designed by Puncture and had previously been applied to events in Toronto and The Hague. I was tasked with applying the 6 Degrees brand to the Vancouver event which took place in April 2017.

On the lead up to the event, promotional materials included: digital ads, web graphics, a homepage takeover, social media graphics and animated GIFs. For the events themselves, I designed, produced and installed: site maps, wayfinding signage, handouts, title slides, name tags, tshirts and a floor vinyl.

N.B. 6 Degrees brand guidelines provided by Puncture.

Images:
1–2. Wayfinding
3. Open Exchange sign-up tokens
4. Floor vinyl at Open Exchange
5. Press ad
6. Site map (front and back)
7. Name tags
8. Georgia Straight homepage takeover
9. Animated GIF

SFU (Simon Fraser University) Public Square's 2017 Community Summit: Who Needs Canada? aimed to facilitate a conversation about Canada's global relevance and how it can have the greatest impact internationally. The Summit comprised a series of eight events which took place between February 27 and March 8 2017.

As Design and Communications Coordinator, my task began with integrating Simon Fraser University’s brand with the "Who Needs Canada?" brand (designed by Burnkit). Working on a tight timescale, I sourced compelling imagery for each of the eight events, which I then applied to promotional materials.

On the lead up to the events, promotional materials included: posters, digital ads, web ads, a homepage takeover, social media graphics, animated GIFs and engagement postcards. For the events themselves, I designed and produced programs, information handouts, wayfinding signage, title slides and banner stands. Because some of the events were targeted to a largely Chinese audience, I worked with Mandarin speakers to adapt promotional materials to be read in Mandarin.

N.B. Who Needs Canada brand guidelines provided by Burnkit

Images:
1. Audience and stage at "The Middle East and the Refugee Crisis"
2. Wall of postcards
3. Engagement postcard (front and back)
4. Spread from Summit programme
5. Georgia Straight homepage takeover
6. Press ad
7. Web graphic + Mandarin version
8. Poster for "The Middle East and the Refugee Crisis"

Advice Renfrewshire was created as a resource for local people in need of advice. The idea is that customers can search for advice by category (e.g. money and debt, food, welfare benefits, legal, housing, health) and be directed to the relevant local or national organisation.

My task was to design a brand, starting with a logo. I wanted to create a solution that came across as friendly and approachable, yet trustworthy, clean and simple. Having presented to the client the logo and a visualisation of how the brand could be applied to their communications, I was then asked to provide a web-design company with a mock-up of how the brand could be applied to a website. 

The emphasis was on clarity and ease of use for the website design. The solution was a one page design that allowed all the information to be on the one page and be navigated using anchors and expandable menus and information boxes.

The Advice Renfrewshire website is now live and can be visited here.

Images:
1. Logo and brand colours
2. Example posters
3. Website homepage
4. Website visual mock-up

MyAccount is as online system that allows council customers to access their accounts quickly and easily, anytime, anywhere.

I created an approachable and simplistic identity that fits within Renfrewshire Council's existing corporate brand and compliments its website, where MyAccount is based. The identity comprises a number of icons that can be used to demonstrate the simplicity of using the service, and images that illustrate the convenience of the service in everyday life.

I designed information posters and leaflets for the public, web graphics, and a branded "self service" area within Renfrewshire Council's Customer Service Building.

Images:
1. Branded self service area for MyAccount customers
2. Plotted vinyl design
3. Logo, brand colours and icons
4. Information flyer designs

The Semple Trail is a walking trail in Clyde Muirshiel Regional Park that features winding paths through farmland, woodland and loch sides. The area offers wildlife and flora, history and heritage, and vistas of land, water and sky.

I was approached to design a leaflet that would provide basic information and a map of the trail for visitors to use and, in addition, a bigger brochure offering a more detailed insight into the area—from it's history to it's current restoration project. The overall aim was to promote the area to locals and tourists while showcasing recent restorations and efforts to make the area more visitor friendly.

I commissioned a landscape photographer, John Cooper, to take some stunning shots of the areas that would be covered in the content of both the brochure and the leaflet. While there was lots of interesting information to share with our audience, it was also important to let the area speak for itself so there was a big emphasis on photography.

Images:
1. Front covers of brochure and leaflet
2. Front cover of brochure
3–6. Example spreads from brochure
7. Front cover of leaflet
8. Outside spread of leaflet
9. Inside spread of leaflet
10–11. Fold out map inside leaflet

Light Fantastic was an exhibition curated by Paisley Museum's curator of science and assistant curator of natural history. "From the microscopic to the astronomic Light Fantastic embarks on a journey of discovery into the illuminating world of light."

The challenge was to bring together the scientific and the natural in the promotional imagery for this exhibition. I created a visual mash-up using a fantastic image of the Carina Nebula and images of jellyfish captured in UV light. I also designed text panels using imagery that helped to contextualise the information on each subject, and simplistic easy-to-read specimen labels.

Images:
1. Poster design
2. Roadside advertising
3. Introductory panels
4. Label
5. Text panel, labels and exhibit
6. Selection of text panels
7. Local newspaper coverage

Your Home Your Street Our Community was a Renfrewshire Council event that aimed to inform the public about the various council services and information resources available to them.

The event was held in Paisley Town Hall, where the event organisers wanted to set up a mock town where council services would set up, in the area of the town relevant to their service, to talk to people about how they can help. There was, for example, Sunny Street and Shady Street, a garden, a park, and various rooms from the home.

In order to visualise this we decided to create illustrated backdrops of the rooms, streets and areas. I commissioned and briefed an illustrator, Evannave Illustrates, who provided us with a stunning set of illustrations—bright, bold and attention-grabbing. We were working on a budget so I liaised with a large-format supplier to have PVC drops produced that we hung from backing boards.

In addition to the visuals for event itself, I also designed promotional materials and information for the day using Evannave's illustrations, including: posters, flyers, quizzes, banners...

Images:

1. Event poster
2. Inside spread of event programme
3. Outside spread of event programme
4. Quiz sheet
5–7. Photos from the event showing backdrops

Doors Open Day is a national weekend event that invites the public to discover some of the country’s most interesting buildings. Every year Renfrewshire Council provide children with a “passport” that guides them around the buildings on offer and helps them learn about local history.

In 2013, my brief was to design a Horrible Histories themed passport, Diabolical Diaries, which included illustrated stories and diary entries. I sourced a brilliant illustrator on iStock whose illustrations I was able to utilise and adapt to suit the content. The following year was a similar theme, Renfrewshire Rules, and included stories about famous people from Renfrewshire. In 2015 the theme was Culture Club and the aim was to introduce children to the concept of culture through stories about local clubs and organisations, past and present. I was able to use the work of the same illustrator and introduce some new characters of my own.

Images:
1. Covers of three passports
2–8. A selections of spreads
9. Certificate of completion
10. Outdoor advertising
11–12. Photos of children on the day

iSave is a credit union initiative aimed at school children to encourage good saving habits for life.

The brief was to design a visual identity that would encourage support from key stakeholders including head teachers, P7 teachers, and in particular P7-S1 pupils and their parents/guardians. It was advised that particular attention be paid to the initiative’s primary audience, the P7 pupils, in that the identity should not be too masculine or too feminine, too young or too old. 

A focus group session flagged up that some pupils may feel excluded from the initiative if they don’t have much money to save. To tackle this, a logo was created which illustrates a pile of loose change. This visual conveys that pupils can save as little as the loose change in their pocket, and that lots of littles can add up to be a lot. A colour palette was created which would appeal to both parents/guardians and pupils. Shades of blue will appeal to parents/guardians as blue evokes a sense of calm, trust and confidence. Yellow and orange will appeal to the pupils as these colours evoke a sense of youth, boldness and positivity. These colours are also abstract shades of the colours of coins: silver (blue), copper (orange), brass (yellow).

Images:
1. iSave logo
2. A selection of materials for children and parents

Drawing with Scissors was a travelling Matisse exhibition that visited Paisley Museum. I designed promotional materials for the run up to the event which involved following strict guidelines on the use of "Blue Nude II".

Images:
1. Poster, flyer and ticket
2. Poster
3. Front and back of flyer
4. Front and back of ticket
5. Interpretation panel for entrance to exhibition

No Harm Done is a public-awareness campaign for child protection. The aim of the campaign was to encourage people to think about what they are seeing and hearing and to call the police or council if they are worried.

We consulted with social workers on the types of calls they receive from members of the public and conversations they have had with neighbours, family and friends after instances of child abuse and identified that in the majority of cases, many people have seen or heard something suspicious but weren't sure whether to take action.

Andrew Lowe, chairman of Renfrewshire Council's Child Protection Committee said:  "If we are worried about how someone is behaving in public, we must ask, 'What are they like behind closed doors?' If you are at all worried about a child, please contact social work services. If you think a child is in danger, call the police. It won't do any harm and you don't even need to give your name. But your call might make all the difference to a child. Maybe you feel what you know isn't important but snippets of information can build into a bigger picture of abuse or neglect."

Our solution was to present a number of scenarios that most people will have found themselves in. The scenarios were written as internal monologues to illustrate the thought process people might go through when observing or listening to something they find a bit questionable. Each situation could either be completely normal or an indicator of abuse; we wanted to let people know they should get in touch in any case, no harm done.

I illustrated each of these scenarios in a hand-written style to get across the personal element of the campaign, and incorporated illustrations to make the visuals engaging and easy to follow. The campaign was rolled out across outdoor advertising locations and in bars and venues in and around the area.

Images:
1. Poster: scenario 1
2. Poster: scenario 2
3. Poster: scenario 3
4. Phone box advertising
5. Train station 4-sheet

As part of the promotion of the Semple Trail, organisers wanted to involve children and get them excited about visiting and learning about the area.

I designed a children's booklet using quirky nature-themed illustrations along with photos of particular species of animals or insects . I organised the information into five categories to help the children make the most of the passport: think, do, find, identify and learn. I also designed a simplified map to help illustrate the areas featured in the content. I also incorporated a "rubbings" spread for children to use to take nature rubbings.

Images:
1. Front cover
2–5. Example spreads
3. Map on back page

As the name suggests, A Young Person's Guide to Foster Care is an information pack aimed at young people going into foster care. I was given the information and asked to present it in an engaging manner for 10–16 year-olds.

Due to such a wide age range, it was important to find an illustration style that was young enough for the 10 year-olds but mature enough for the 16 year-olds. I used bright, bold illustrations of young people that featured as characters throughout the pack, and symbols and speech bubbles to break up the content.

Images:
1. Front cover
2–5. A selection of spreads

A selection of posters and 4-sheets designed for various events in Renfrewshire over the past three years. These are ordered most recent first.

Images:
1. Gesture art exhibition (2016)
2. The Nutcracker (2015)
3. Jurassic Adventures (2015)
4. The Why?sman art exhibition (2015)
5. British Cycling National Youth Circuit Championships (2015)
6. The Museum of Light (2015)
7. Butterfly Kiss (2015)
8. Sma' Shot Day (2014)
9. The Museum of Light (2014)
10. Lau (2014)
11. Sma' Shot Day (2013)
12. Sunday Shopping in Paisley (2013)