THE CLIENT
Hugh Manatee, a Colorado-based rock band
THE BRAND
Self-described “Hughmans,” this sextet of musicians take a slower, kinder approach to life. The play on “humanity” in their name is a nod to the gentle, loving sea creature, the manatee. Hugh Manatee sees music as a powerful way to gather people together and celebrate the diversity of us all.
THE PROJECT
A logo design that captures the essence of this eclectic band and can be used for merchandise, online branding and more.
THE PROCESS
Diving with the Manatees
The Think Baseline design team began with a client deep dive, getting comfortable with the band, their music, and how they wanted the group to be represented.
From there, a lot of research on manatees took place. We got to know these animals, their unique traits, and identified the physical characteristics that made them most identifiable.
Since Hugh Manatee is a group that promotes global consciousness and love, we wanted to consider an element in the logo to tie that view into the design.
Getting Sketchy
This is where the brainstorming got put to paper. Sketching multiple options, evolving them, and trying different directions for client options, we started on the framework of the logo. When the sketches were ready for internal review, we chose the top three and began the digital design.
The Details
Along with the framework of the designs, we experimented with various style techniques including textures, fonts, fills, and photography. The design needed to support individual elements that worked well on their own or together.
THE CONCEPTS
Three different logo concepts were provided to the client, with three distinct type, graphic, and positioning options.
AND THE CLIENT CHOICE WAS…
The band unanimously decided on this iteration of the logo, which we think was a great choice!
HOW THIS DESIGN CAME ABOUT
We wanted a simple, strong design that conveyed a manatee and incorporated the fluidity water. Going for an “earthy” feel, the rounded shape behind the manatee also ties in the global aspect of Hugh Manatee’s brand.
Like the musicians we worked with, the manatee has a happy, easy-going demeanor that clearly shows a mood without becoming overly caricaturized. The unifying elements and themes here perfectly mirror the band’s theory of music being a universal unifier of humans.
Rather than taking the route of a solid color for the logo, we explored using abstract, elemental design as the background of the graphic and the font. This logo can be effectively used with either the designed background, or knocked out on a darker color.
The font used is actually a custom type treatment, designed to complement the manatee in its form and character. The mark and the typography can be used independently or together—always the sign of a strong logo.
Happy clients, happy music.
The band was thrilled with the final design. They are proudly sporting their new Hugh Manatee logo on everything from t-shirts to stickers to the band website. This was a really fun, exciting, and creative collaboration for the Think Baseline team.
Does your logo need a little love?
We’d be happy to help! Get in touch and we can schedule a brief, informal call with the design team at Think Baseline, and we can chat about your design needs.
