Subscribe by RSSUIUC Logo Design
Published on August 19th, 2009
One of the things I love most about designing for an advertising agency is logo design. You don’t normally get to do that with in-house design and it’s definitely what I’ve been craving all these years. Logo design may not seem like much of a challenge when someone looks at the end result, but often the simplest designs pose the greatest challenge. When I design a logo I try to create a unique, clean and lasting identity for a company. Something that looks good really tiny and blown up for a sign or a billboard. Something that works in black and white as well as color. Something that tells a story about what the company does. Who they are. What makes them stand apart…in a single graphic.
Such was the case when Umpqua Indian Utility Cooperative (UIUC) came to Creative Images for their logo. UIUC is one of our sister companies—we’re both owned by the Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe of Indians along with nine other businesses. UIUC is the first utility in the Northwest both owned and operated by a Native American tribe. UIUC feeds BPA preference power to the Seven Feathers Casino Resort, Creekside Restaurant and the Seven Feathers Truck and Travel Center.
The Cow Creek Tribe maintains strong ties with the eagle and you can find the symbol in many of its affiliated businesses. Therefore, it was a natural direction to pursue in the development of their utility company’s logo.
As with all of my other logo design projects, I started sketching. I began to explore ways to create a relationship between their Native American heritage and the utility service they provide. I tried different ways of incorporating electrical voltage into an eagle feather. I explored the feather as the filament in a light bulb. I combined electricity with wings and eagle heads. I placed an electrical charge through a common Native American design. I also departed from their heritage completely in a few options.
My creative director chose a few of his favorite concepts and asked me to develop them more. Above you can see the evolution of the lightning in the feather, the eagle’s electric wings and the eagle head and lightning combined to make a circle.
We then completed the evolution and presented the four designs to the client in two color options.
They immediately narrowed it down to the feather and the circle options, but eventually decided on the eagle head in the circle.
I then designed several letterhead options for them and they chose this design on linen paper. We printed both horizontal and vertical business cards for them since they couldn’t decide which they preferred.
Project Team Included:
- Creative Director: Gary G.
- General Manager: Paul Z.
- Client Services Director: Sande D.
- Graphic Designer: Karly Barrett
What do you think of their choice? Is there a different direction that you wish I had explored?