Every good story begins with a great location.
TASK: To create an identity for Florida's state park system using a visual system and style guide.
IMPLEMENTATION: I dropped "State" from the name of the park system because a shorter name helped strengthen the brand's remembrance. The park system includes historical and cultural sites, and market testing showed that for most consumers a state park implied a natural area. I created an entirely typographic mark to allow individual parks to create a stamp that could be applied to business cards and other materials as a way to compliment the main identity with their own sub-brand.
There are two parts to the Florida Parks brand system: the signature and the sub-brands.THE SIGNATURE: The signature is the main brand element. It is a connective agent that stands alone, but at the same time does not overshadow its constituents. It represents the fact that Florida Parks is not just a name—it is the passion and values that reflect the spirit of every park and every person, that come together to make a brand that stands up and stands out.
THE SUB-BRANDS: The stamps are the sub-brand elements. They represent individual character, a defining feature of each park that is unique and only used by that park. The stamps allow each park to feel important, without sacrificing the power the main brand holds.
BUSINESS CARDS: The business cards were designed as a folded card, allowing park rangers ample room on the inside to write notes or place special event stickers. The design on the outside wraps around to the slogan "Great adventure starts here," giving the viewer an enticing taste of what to expect from the park system.
ENVELOPE & LETTERHEAD: The envelope showcases the wildlife and activity icons featured in marketing materials for the park system. The letterhead mimics the style of the business cards, with a wraparound design featuring the slogan.
THE STYLE GUIDE: The Florida Parks identity style guide evokes the spirit of the park system by recognizing both the historical and cultural identity of the parks, as well as the natural. The physical form of the book takes shape as a field journal, and the bottom of the french fold pages pops out to provide useful navigation. Inside of the folds are old topographic maps of parks. On each page a specific park is featured with a small bio and larger black and white photograph.
