Brand/Visual designer based in San Francisco. Graduated with a BFA in Graphic Design from California College of the Arts. Currently looking for a full-time brand/visual designer position.

About Me

Differentiation has evolved from a focus on “what it is,” to “what it does,” to “how you’ll feel,” to “who you are.” While features, benefits, and price are still important to people, experiences and personal identity are even more important.

The Brand Gap, Marty Neumeier
Mark

PROJECT OPTIMISM



Branding, Campaign Design, Student Project

A campaign that advocates the benefits of optimistic thinking to millennials


70% of millennials are unhappy with their current life, and project optimism believes that this can be

changed with positive thinking. its central vision is “positive thinking leads to positive results”.By connecting visual cues for “happiness” that is common with millennials (i.e. bright colors, aesthetic simplicity) with the message of hope and optimism, this organization aims to promote the benefits of thinking positively to a generation that has been statistically proven to be highly prone to depression.

Challenge

Optimism is a core component of my beliefs, so I wanted to find a way to best express the benefits of this often misconstrued way of thinking. The biggest challenge was to visualize Project Optimism’s highly abstract central tenet: “Positive thinking leads to positive results.”



Process

What I was really trying to do here was create a behavior change, so I researched habit-building activities. Rather than sticking smiley faces everywhere, I concluded that what people needed was an environment that created an atmosphere of positivity and change for the better.



Solution

Rather than go with a literal solution, I went in the opposite direction: as abstract as possible. My goal was to create an atmosphere, so I made use of color and simple geometric shapes to create imagery that could live as both giant wall graphics for the duration of the event as well as bits of collateral for people to bring home afterward.





Mark
(c) Cooper Kao Design