Dr. Tim's Dilemma
Tim Mountain, DVM of Tallahassee's own Animal Medical Clinic
was faced with a problem that many long-time small business face.
His faithful old sign had indeed served him well but it was time for change. The redwood faces had been puttied and re-painted at least one too many times. Something had to give. This is where we came in.
The Sign post while not exactly true were sturdy as ever and structurally sound. By only re-facing the sign we were able to keep the structure of the sign and save some expense.
A NEW FACE
When a sign-maker is allowed to design a logo it is a special day. I relish every opportunity. Often graphic designers are so caught up in producing art for print that they rarely consider the unique demands for effective sign layout. Dr. Mountain would have a design with full rights that will work for signs, print and web. When Dr. Mountain asked if I had any ideas my response was, I am silly with them.
What I am about to share with you is a glimps of my creative process. In the following conceptuals or thumbnails you can see how one idea frequently spins another one off. It is one of the most delightful yet frustrating parts of my work. Knowing when to turn it off is difficult, there is always that urge to do just one more.
From the very beginning I felt that a whimsical, nearly child-like approach should be taken because many feel as though their pets are their children. It is not the pups nor Dr. Tim alone that I ultimately wished to please. I wanted to touch an emotional chord with the pet owner who needed help.
As these concepts were presented to Dr. Tim, he kept pulling me back towards a more professional look. A simple line drawing of a dog and cat would be the foundation of the new brand. I employed only curved lines to give the drawn characters a soft appeal and utilized a type-face designed by the late Mike Stevens. It is a workhorse of a font, legible enough for body text yet with enough flair, making it perfect for display as well. These two design ploys added that touch of whimsy, and the clean layout retained the dignity that Dr. Tim's AMC has earned.
At last a winner is SNIFFED OUT
Going Dimensional
At the close of last year we purchased a new piece of machinery which would allow me to
do some dimensional letters and graphics in-house. All of the elements of Dr. Tim's AMC sign were cut on the CarveWright machine from 1/2 inch thick PVC. While it is no heavy duty CNC router, it proved perfect for this application. To see the CarveWright in action watch their TV spot.
Below are some shots of the project's
components while in production along with the finished piece.
