Elemental Gems - Senior Capstone

emily snyderGDD Capstone

Fall 2011

Table of Contents

Problems Solved

Organization/Strategy

Typography

Graphic Elements

Imagery

Possible Outcomes

Primary Outcome: Website

Secondary Outcome: Poster

Elemental Gems is a campaign designed to increase individual well-being through the use of crystal energies. We hope to provide the audience with information about the properties of various crystals, advice how they can be used to enhance their lives, and testimonials from others who have benefited from crystal use. This campaign is not meant to persuade, but to provide a possible alternative path towards self-help through crystals, and we encourage viewers not to depend on our experiences, but to discover on their own which crystals have the most positive impact on their lives.

We believe in encouraging a shift in how the general public seeks help by promoting practices of self-help as an alternative to outside help. We hope that through this campaign, people will begin to take their well-being into their own control, ultimately increasing positivity and balance in their own lives and in society as a whole.

campaign

mission

Organization/Strategy

Identity

Color

Tone

Benefits

The Elemental Gems campaign will provide a wealth of information to the audience, including crystal energies and their physical, spiritual, and emotional correspondences, examples of ways to reap the full benefits of the crystals, and testimonies from crystal healers and users.

The target audience of this campaign is projected to be fairly liberal-minded and educated people. We hope to reach out to anyone looking to increase balance and enhance positivity in his or her life, but we know that it is unrealistic to campaign to people of certain mind sets, like the highly religious or conservative members of society. In addition, we hope to extend aid to people with specific problems that they hope to help relieve in a natural and alternative way.

strategy

intended audience

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elemental gemsdrawing well-being from the earth

mark exploration

type exploration

Identity








type exploration (cont.)

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Identity

HeadlineITC New Baskerville (Roman)ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZabcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz 1234567890

TaglineFutura Std (Light)ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZabcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz 1234567890

Process: C - 65, M - 55, Y - 60, K - 35PMS:RGB: R - 79, G - 82, B - 77

Process: C - 36, M - 14, Y - 16, K - 4PMS:RGB: R - 157, G - 185, B - 194

final identity

After a vast exploration of directions for identity, a purely type-based identity was decided upon. It was determined that because this is not a product being sold, but a collection of information being provided, a traditional logo or mark was not necessary, and the identity should remain a beautiful treatment of type. Additionally, a juxtaposition of serif and san serif fonts was chosen to create a balanced but intriguing interaction of letterforms. Further identifying characteristics will include graphic elements of hand-rendered crystals that will be explored later in the book.

why?

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Color

C - 25, M - 85, Y - 100, K - 20

C - 10, M - 55, Y - 40, K - 8

C - 10, M - 60, Y - 100, K - 0

C - 4, M - 24, Y - 40, K - 0

C - 10, M - 45, Y - 100, K - 0

C - 4, M - 18, Y - 40, K - 0

C - 40, M - 30, Y - 95, K - 5

C - 16, M - 12, Y - 38, K - 2

C - 65, M - 55, Y - 60, K - 35

C - 25, M - 20, Y - 25, K - 15

C - 70, M - 85, Y - 25, K - 10

C - 28, M - 34, Y - 10, K - 4

C - 88, M - 85, Y - 25, K - 10

C - 35, M - 34, Y - 10, K - 4

C - 90, M - 35, Y - 40, K - 10

C - 36, M - 14, Y - 16, K - 4

The color palette of the Elemental Gems campaign consists of striking but calming colors pulled from photos of crystals. Additionally, a large amount of white space and the tints of each color in the palette will be important in conveying the soothing attitude of the campaign.

The colors are pulled from photographs of amethyst, azurite, aquamarine, moldavite, imperial topaz, sunstone, and garnet, which are among the most powerful of healing crystals. Also, the nature of the colors is bold but not entirely saturated, giving the whole palette a more natural, earthy feel while maintaining high energy. The white space is indicative of the most popular healing crystal, quartz, and the clarity and cleanliness of the designs will mirror the clarity of a quartz crystal. Additionally, a warm gray will be used for anything that would otherwise be black, furthering the organic nature of the palette. Finally, the colors are indicative of chakras, which are very important in aiding access to information in my final outcomes.

color palette

why?

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Typography

ITC New Baskerville (Roman)ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZabcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz 1234567890

headlines

The typefaces for this campaign were meticulously chosen to convey an organic but clean feel. Baskerville, a serif typeface, was chosen for the headlines for its rounded letterforms that are a heavier weight, but are open and very legible.

Baskerville is considered an ‘transitional’ typeface, which complements the Elemental Gems campaign in that people following it should not remain stagnate but continue to grow through their use of crystals. Additionally, it has a feel of antiquity, like the crystals themselves, because it was designed in the mid 1700s.

why?

Futura Std (Light)ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZabcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz 1234567890

body copy

Futura Light was chosen for the subhead in the identity and the body copy because of its rounded, clean, and open nature, making it easily legible and pleasant to read.

Futura is based on geometric shapes, as are crystals. Although crystals are from the earth, they are compositionally perfect, forming in specific geometric patterns.

why?

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Graphic Elements

In order to maintain an organic feel, the majority of the graphic elements present in the Elemental Gems campaign are directly drawn or traced from crystals. The crystals chosen are ones that have beautiful terminations or naturally occurring patterns, in addition to strong metaphysical qualities and energies.

Additional graphic elements consist of drawn representations of each of the seven chakras. The chakras are incredibly important in crystal use through meditation, and each crystal affects certain chakras in specific ways. These elements will not be overly present in the majority of my design, but will be essential visual aids in the crystal guides.

chakras

crystal elements

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Imagery

The photographs of crystals in the elemental gems campaign will be particularly eloquent in lighting and design in that the crystals will be chosen for the unique terminations and colors that they possess. Each crystal will be photographed in a white photo booth to articulate the beauty of the coloration and markings of each crystal.

Tone

Elemental Gems exhibits a naturalistic and organic but clean tone, employing a large amount of white space in the majority of design elements. The inspiration for color is derived from natural photos, and the graphic elements are drawn from photos of crystals. The seven chakras and the four earth elements also play a role in determining branding and identity systems, and inspiration was drawn from existing alternative medication providers.

The campaign is marketed at people looking to enhance their lives naturally, but in a sophisticated way, therefore, many elements of the tone pull form these concepts.

color

graphic elements voice

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Possible Outcomes

The Elemental Gems campaign is meant to be a resource to people seeking an alternative means to self-help and well-being through the use of crystals. The positive foreseeable outcomes of this campaign work with the individualized mind-set of the American population, in which people can use our resources to become the creators of their own realities. We hope that upon discovering the information that we provide, people will work more towards a route of self-help and away from a dependency on outside help and over-medication. In addition, possible outcomes may include a deeper love for and connection to the earth. The Earth naturally creates each of the crystals featured in the campaign, and the help that people will receive from their energies will hopefully increase their love for our planet and Mother Nature.

positive

The Elemental Gems campaign will be one of the first of its kind, in that we will provide a more trustworthy database of information to viewers than previously in existence. This will include believer texts, ethnographic studies and scholarly insights concerning the use of crystals for self-help and alternative medication.

One possible negative outcome is that viewers will trust in the information provided too wholeheartedly, depending entirely on the power of crystals. This is not among the recommendations of Elemental Gems, and we hope that people do not worsen in medical problems or chemical mental imbalances because of treatment only through crystal use.Another possible negative outcome is that the information we provide will be treated with skepticism and slander, and we ask that the people seeking the services we provide approach the information with an open mind and retain that the correspondences that we provide consist of our experiences and the experiences of trusted others, and that each person discover their own path for crystal use.

negative

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trends in western medication

Problems Solved

With prescription aid becoming more easily available to the general public, America has turned into an overmedicated nation that seeks help almost exclusively from outside resources. Children have started taking daily medication at younger and younger ages and with more frequency. In fact, between the years of 2001 and 2005, the number of adolescents under the age of 19 taking anti psychotic medications rose 73 percent.

This is a problem for many reasons, for example, children are learning at a young age that they should not depend on themselves to solve their personal problems, and are taught to seek refuge in medication. Additionally, it is not yet certain what the long-term effects of introducing these brain-altering chemicals in the developing brains of children and teens are.

Elemental Gems strives to open the eyes of adolescents, parents, and adults to the possibility of self-help through crystal use in daily life, meditation, and crystal healing. We hope that through the information we provide, individuals will seek the aid of crystals as an alternative form of achieving balance, and although we do not recommend this in replacement of examination by trained medical professionals, we do hope that our campaign will encourage people to strive towards self-help through crystals as a supplemental aid.

why?This is an incredibly important goal of my campaign because it helps highlight the current problems with western reliance on prescription medication and the contemporary trend away from helping yourself. America originated as a nation that thrived on individuality and the idea that we create our own realities. My campaign will encourage people to work back towards those ideals.

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Benefits

holistic healingThe use of crystal energies is a valuable aid in practices of holistic healing such as auric cleansing and the alignment of chakras. Additionally, they can be extremely beneficial when used in meditation and as a means to move towards and maintain a life of holistic health.

Holistic healing is based on the idea that in order to fully understand something, you need to understand all of its parts. The earth for example, is comprised of a number of systems including air, land, water, plants, and animals. If any of the systems are to be sustained, the others need to be present, working together in harmony. It is the same way individual beings work; we are a combination of our physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual beings, and if one is not functioning at its best, the others suffer as well.

These ideas are not new by any means, in fact, from at least 5,000 years ago until the 20th century, holistic concepts and practices were the primary form of healthcare worldwide. It was in the 20th century that advances in science enabled the identification physical reasons for sickness and disease. This caused a shift in common thought, and allowed people to believe that it was possible to make unhealthy lifestyle choices without consequence, because if you did get sick, there was frequently both a discernible blame and cure. Even today, however, some medical cures are more harmful than helpful,

and a number of chronic conditions do not respond to medical treatments. This is often when people turn back to methods of holistic health and healing.

Holistic healing is not meant to serve as a one-time-fix, and does not necessarily focus on physical health. In fact, in holistic healing, doing something such as taking an aspirin for a headache is comparable to disconnecting the ‘service engine’ light on a car simply because it is blinking. The light is there to serve as an indication for another bigger problem, which is also often true with small physical discomforts like a headache or stomach. These are frequently merely indicators of an imbalance between the parts of the being, and holistic healing uses physical symptoms as guides to direct attention to the real problem.

The true practice of holistic health is a lifestyle shift and constant journey moving towards living better, practicing healthy habits and striving for wholeness. This can be as simple as consciously thinking more about small daily choices. As a society, we are well aware that nicotine, alcohol, and drugs have a negative impact on our health, but we seldom consider the affect that things such as sugar, caffeine, or even a negative attitude can have on our well-being. Additionally, it is important to consider everything that we ‘consume,’ in both a physical and mental capacity, realizing that our mental attitude is constantly growing and receiving information from which to build.

why?Providing a short overview of holistic healing is critical to my campaign in a way similar to the information in the “trends in western medication” section. The main difference between the two, and the reason for including both, is that it is not enough to simply describe a large scale problem without offering a solution, especially when calling for the support of individuals through change that they are expected to employ. The content that I have presented in regard to holistic healing demonstrates a viable option for a solution that is possible to implicate immediately and with ease on an individual basis. Additionally, this section provides a route to alternative healing and self-help that has not only withstood the test of time, but can also be verified personally with little to no risk or commitment. For example, by using holistic healing methods successfully to be rid of an ailment as simple as a headache (like the activation of pressure points, etc.) instead of immediately taking an aspirin, even the most skeptic of visitors to my sight might return with an open mind regarding the use of crystals as a means towards healing and well-being.

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Without a doubt, the most effective way of communicating the Elemental Gems campaign in its entirety was through the use of an informational website, however the design of the aesthetic and information required a bit more thought. In order for the site to be successful, the information had to follow a careful progression, slowly building towards educating the user about specific, and sometimes hard to believe, capabilities of crystal healing and crystal energies. In order to accomplish this, the first two categories in the global navigation were, ‘why crystals?’ and ‘history.’ This provided an outlet to introduce the concept of crystal healing to the user in a way that is not overwhelming and contains statistics, historical examples, and fairly simple calls to action which directly benefit the user, building a trustworthy relationship with them as they navigate further into the site.

After the user warms up to the idea of crystal energies and healing, they will continue on to seven simple methods for the incorporation of crystals into daily life, which include the explanation of the practices in addition to personal anecdotes, strengthening the trust and relationship between the information and the user, and showing that growing to fully appreciate the power of crystals is not something that requires full belief in immediately, but is itself a relationship that takes time to develop, through personal experience and further exploration of the crystal guides, additional resources and testimonies of others included on the site.

site planning

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In addition to the careful planning of the sequence and presentation of the information in the site, a system of aesthetic elements was created to convey peacefulness, tranquility, and cleanliness while maintaining an organic feeling meant to advocate the connection between crystals and the earth in relation to self-discovery, growth and well-being. In order to accomplish this, the overall design is very clean and open, featuring a lot of white space and although a full spectrum of colors is used, they are muted and prominence is brought to only one color at a time. Additionally, the use of the crystal illustrations on a number of the pages promotes a natural, home-made feeling, corresponding perfectly with the idea of self-help.

home page

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secondary pages (informational)


secondary pages (guiding)


crystal pages

Secondary Outcome: Posters

self-medicate

When I began the final round of revisions to the promotional posters for my campaign, I found myself extremely stuck and not enthusiastic about the design I had previously drafted. Having put its completion to the wayside for a few weeks, I decided that it was probably a better decision to start from scratch. After trying many patterns and overlays of the crystals in a manner similar to the first one that I rejected, I had a burst of inspiration, which lead me to the creation of the self-medicate poster.

About halfway through its design, however, I started to second-guess both the content and the title, because from a distance, this design would appear in favor of the excessive use of prescription medication. After consulting with a number of my peers, however, I came to the conclusion that although at first glance the poster might be deceiving, it actually emulates the message I am trying to convey with my campaign perfectly upon closer examination. The crystal illustrations literally take the place of the prescription formerly held by the capsule, conveying a shift in means of relief from ailments. Additionally, I titled the poster with a hyphen in between the two words, which ties to the repetition of words in my campaign like self-help, well-being, etc. This calls the viewer to consider the use of alternative healing methods and creates a new meaning for self-medicate, implying that the individual person has the means to medicate and heal themselves.

For both this poster and the chakra alignment posters, I had a hard time choosing between the white background, which works seemlessly into the branding of Elemental Gems, and the dark background which makes the colors pop and the crystals more visible. After consulting with a number of my peers, I decided to include both in the campaign, because I feel that the white background better reaches a completely different audience than the bright colors on dark gray, and both will be useful in conveying the message of Elemental Gems to the most people possible.

Secondary Outcome: Posters

chakra alignment

Elemental Gems - Senior Capstone

Documents

Transcript of Elemental Gems - Senior Capstone