A+ Self-Branding PPP Boards

Abbas+ Self Branding

Abbas+

Evolution Revolution

The aim was to refine and reevaluate existing selfbranding and collateral for myself. The current selfbranding has been firmly established with existing clients, interviews and portfolios to strong feedback and reputation, so it doesn’t make sense to change it.

Abbas Mushtaq:

Personal Professional Practice 21/05/14

Brief

The aim aim this year is to refine, progress and tighten up my personal identity in order for it to be more dynamic and less clumsy in places such as portfolios, and loose material such as letterheads.

An important aim also is establish a personal website presence.

The logomark is strong, clinical and (hopefully) memorable, or at least different to much of what is around at the moment.

There is still area for improvement, particularly in terms of brand application, in terms of portfolios and website.

Evidence

Photographic, and physical evidence of refined collateral, such as business cards and letterheads.

Photographic evidence into the development and progress of print, and digital portfolio, along with website .

#01

Reference Imagery

George Lois

Abbas+ Self Branding

“The life of a designer is a life of fight. Fight against the ugliness. Just like a doctor fights against disease. For us, the visual disease is what we have around, and what we try to do is cure it somehow through design.”

Massimo Vignelli –

Abbas Mushtaq:

Personal Professional Practice 21/05/14

“The life of a designer is a life of fight. Fight against the ugliness. Just like a doctor fights against disease. For us, the visual disease is what we have around, and what we try to do is cure it somehow through design.”

John Watters –

“I always see business cards where the person writes down ‘Graphic Designer’ under their name. Why not just put down ‘Excellent Graphic Designer?”

Massimo Vignelli and George Lois are huge personal idosl of mine, and when thinking of concepts for my self-branding the above quote came to mind and I feel it perfectly captures my own ethos and motivations within design - simply improve the life of others in any small way.

Blood Type & Medical Material

As inspired by John Watters - A strong personal connection with the branding, and immediate idea of exploration I had was my own blood type is A+. Which is a symbol of something being of the highest quality excellent.

I want my brand identity, and future design practice to be almost like a doctors surgery, clients come to my office and I help them get better. Visualising this notion helped to define the identity.

Consequently, my blood type and Massimo’s quote created a natural route of research into medical material and connotations of the + as a symbol and metaphorical meaning were carried out. In the aim of extending the brand and it’s relationship with clients.

#02

Contextual Research

Clinical Branding

Abbas+ Self Branding

The concept of health, and my A+ blood type formed a natural direction of research into branding that references medicine and health in a clincial manner.

The above project by designer, Duane Dalton is a beautiful example of medicine references used effectively for a personal identity.

I wanted to form an identity in a similar vein, but perhaps not so clear, its medicinal in it’s references.

International Swiss Style Design

Modernist, and reductive design has become an increasingly essential part of my design practice and sensibilities.

To further extend my own design character and an aura of reassurement of meditative design - I have looked into Swiss Style, and considered design for reference.

Abbas Mushtaq:

Personal Professional Practice 21/05/14

Client Connection

I wanted to create branding that had some layer of interactivity, and unique qualities determined by specifically who I was in a meeting, or contacting. I looked into design products that succesfully make use of interactivity in a logical manner.

Tokyo Design Conference 60 design material is a constant influence, as is classic manuals and log material from manufacturer, Braun.

#03

Development & Process

Abbas+ Self Branding

Abbas Mushtaq:

Abbas+

Abbas+

Abbas+

Abbas+ Initial Visuals

The primary aim for the project was to work on, and refine a purely typographic logo, but also lent itself well to a stamp style application further extending the notion of “A+”.

For this purpose, the majority of design development was spent figuring out the correct typeface for the identity, all focused on sans-serif, highly communicative characterits.

Personal Professional Practice 21/05/14

Abbas+

Final Solutions

The final solution is extremely simple, but bold in it’s simplicity, and hopefully memorable.

I chose to work with Aperçu Bold, I am inspired and fascinated by modernist Swiss design, but I feel simply branding myself with Helvetica, is a little icey and route one. I went with Aperçu Bold, for it’s high legibility, and also humanist curves, adding some personality and a friendly aura to the identity.

The logo is designed with thick, and spaced out stroke widths allowing scaling with no reduction in clarity.

Especially when shrunk. A vital consideration in todays digital, web orientated design practice.

#04

Concept & Final Solution 01

A+ Concept

Health Positivity Progression* Collaboration*

Abbas+ Self Branding

A+ Concept

Evolution Revolution

Grids have been tightened up, line weights have been given thicker and thinner weights to add more of a hierarchy, and more breathing room.

Black and white monotone versions of the loose correspondence material has been designed, in order to be more cost-effective and photocopy/fax ready.

Business cards have been redesigned, with a different production process of triplexed cards, along with a new redesigned digital, and print portfolio.

Abbas Mushtaq:

Personal Professional Practice 21/05/14

Abbas+

Business cards now make a much stronger relationship with the client through the back of the business cards now saying “Abbas+” instead of “Abbas+You”.

Abbas+You is much more impersonal, the added space allows me to simply write down the name of any studio or individual I come in contact with, and make a much stronger personal connection. As seen above, with Leeds based design agency GOLDEN used as an example.

#05

Final Solution 02

Abbas+ Self Branding

Meetings Planner

Meetings Planner allows me to form close relationships with clients and good organisation, an area I’ve found difficulty in with freelance projects.

Abbas Mushtaq:

Personal Professional Practice 21/05/14

Cost-Effective & More Alternatives

Black and white monotone versions of the loose correspondence material has been designed, in order to be more cost-effective and photocopy/fax ready.

Giving a copy to the client in meetings allows professionalism in contact, and a copy for the client means they have notes and awareness moving forward.

#06

Final Solution 03

Abbas+ Self Branding

Stronger Relationships

As you can see in the image, business cards form a strong relationship with loose material such as the invoices and letterheads now.

A small correction, but I feel a strong and relevant one.

In the first draft, the layout and copy underneath the invoice did not match that of the business card. With the redesigned version you could actually cut out a business card from within an invoice, or letterhead as it is exactly the same.

Abbas Mushtaq:

Personal Professional Practice 21/05/14

Triplexed Cards

The original draft of business cards made use of edge printing, this process has been removed in favour of a more traditional and cost effective method of triplexed business cards.

This method is achievable with hand-made cards, Edge-printing is very difficult and time consuming. They also now have a more subtle use of the red accent something I wanted to reduce down.

#07

Application & Context

Abbas+ Self Branding

www.abbasmushtaq.co.uk

Website Abbas+XXXXX

Abbas Mushtaq:

www.abbasmushtaq.co.uk aims to again, be reductive and minimal in it’s aesthetic while pushing the concept of +.

When website is loading the + sign spins, and the + sign is used to create a feeling of collaboration with every brief. For example, the above mock-up shows the Talia Welka Branding brief, this could be displayed as Abbas+Talia Welka.

This not only creates strong collaboration, but makes the term “Abbas”feel like a brand name.

Digital Portfolio

Personal Professional Practice 21/05/14

In todays contemporary design practice, a digital portfolio is essential, perhaps more so than a print portfolio so both mediums of presentation have been considered with slight alterations in format between the two.

The focus is always on the work, with little copy.

Print portfolios contain slightly less copy, as it is assumed these will be presented in person and so can be explained verbally as the client follows.

#08