Brand Language01The ProjectThis was a group project for which my classmates and I were to create a brand and individually design products for it, taking into consideration the parameters we set up for ourselves in creating the brand language. The brand which we created was to be based on Viktor Schreckengost’s work. The brand was intended to carry on the legacy of Viktor.

Every adult in America has ridden in, ridden on, drunk out of, stored their things in, eaten off of, been costumed in, mowed their lawn with, played on, lit the night with, viewed in a museum, cooled their room with, read about, printed with, sat on, placed a call with, enjoyed in a theater, hid their hooch in, collected, been awarded with, seen at a zoo, put their flowers in, hung on their wall, served punch from, delivered milk in, read something printed on, seen at the World’s Fair, detected enemy combatants with, written about, had an arm or leg replaced with, graduated from, protected by, or seen at the White House something created by Viktor Schreckengost.

Called an “American da Vinci” by so many that discover him, the breadth and depth of his work is staggering by any measure. A pioneer of modern American industrial design, prolific sculptor, painter, and ceramist, his works are sought by and held in major private and public collections across the United States and around the world. His accomplishments have been recognized through dozens of awards including the National Medal of Arts awarded by the President of the United States, the country’s highest award in the arts.

Schreckengost’s crowning achievement was his creation of the first industrial design education program in America in the 1930s. For nearly 70 years, he trained generations of leading industrial designers. The impact on the country’s economy far exceeds $200 billion. His impact on the quality of our lives is immeasurable.

viktor’s legacy//history

The Legacy of Viktor Schreckengost

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Martha Stewart::upscalequalityutilitariancrafty

Ikea::D.I.Ysimpleuniversalfunctionaldesign for the masses

Dyson::precisionmechanicalaestheticinnovativecutting edge

After researching Viktor’s work and his history, it was necessary to research other brands and decide where we wanted Viktor’s brand to live in relationship to other successful brands on the market. We evaluated and researched all of these brands and decided which of their attributes were appropriate for our brand and how we were going to make it unique.

Crate & Barrel::D.I.Yfemininedomesticperceived luxurytraditional

Mark Newson::simpleversatileorganicsculpturalelegant

Eames Office::originalpioneers

Apple::cleanminimalistsoft squares

Karim Rashid::eliteradicalin your facesculpture

01 competitive landscape

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Brand Goals:://Economy over luxury//High perceived value yet accessible//Innovative but for mass production//High brand width//Balancing form and function with an emphasis on sculptural and emotional aesthetic

After establishing these goals for our brand, we were able to place Viktor on a positioning map with the competing brands.

VIKTOR

Ive

Utility

Low

Low High

HighCost

Expressive Pragmatic Accessible

Indi

vidu

al

Reach

the brands essence//concepts

We established the essence of the brand as “reach.” We chose this word because it can be interpreted in alot of

various ways and encompasses much of what Viktor stood for. “Every child should have a pedal car and every housewife should have a nice dinnerware set” -Viktor Schreckengost. Reach can indicate this idea of reaching for something new and

innovative. It can also evoke the idea of reaching many individuals. We chose the adjectives: expressive, pragmatic,

accessible, and individual as words to go along with the term reach, i.e. expressive reach, accessible reach, etc.

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01

After the research phase of the process, we began concepting. Within my concepts, I mostly focused on houseware products that related to Viktor’s work aesthetically and conceptually. I also generated some logo design concepts, as well. The logo concepts are abstractions of Viktor’s initials and also reference some of the forms found in his ceramic work.

01 chosen direction//three lines

The concept I pursued as a final direction is a tea set that is coated in a heat sensitive glaze. When the water inside of the kettle and cups is hot, a graphic appears on the outside of the vessel, indicating to the user when the water is at a good drinking temperature.

After evaluated the products that my classmates and I were interested in pursuing, we established three different lines for the brand.: kitchen, home decor, and ride-ons. We chose one of the four adjectives to put emphasis on within each line. For instance, a kitchen product should be pragmatic above expressive, accessible and individual., thus, pragmatic is the term we put emphasis on within the kitchen line. We also chose color palettes and a form language that evokes the feeling we wanted our audience to perceive from each line.

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RIDE ON

HOME DECOR

KITCHEN

Victor Schreckengost Color Swatches

RIDE ON

HOME DECOR

KITCHEN

Victor Schreckengost Color Swatches

RIDE ON

HOME DECOR

KITCHEN

Victor Schreckengost Color Swatches

Kitchen

Home Decor

Ride-ons

PRAGMATICSTABLESTRUCTURALSIMPLECLEANNEUTRAL COLORS

EXPRESSIVEORGANICEMOTIONALSCULPTURALWARMER COLORSHOME DECOR

INDIVIDUALCHARACTERACCESSIBLESATURATEDPLAYFUL UNIQUEFRESH

Tee.Tee combines the tea kettle and the tea pot. It is sold with a metal dish which sits on the stove, protecting the kettle from high temperature, but still allowing the water to heat. The kettle then functions as the pot when it moves to the serving tray. Tee is the German spelling of tea, thus the name refers back to Viktor’s studies in Vienna.

01 final design//function

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Cold HotTee is coated in a heat reactive glaze. As the water inside heats up, the color on the base of the kettle fades upward as a secondary indicator that the water is hot.

The wooden whistle causes the kettle to make a more low-pitched “train -like” sound, rather than a typical high pitched sound.

The cups are also coated in this heat reactive glaze, indicating to the user when the tea is at the right drinking temperature or when the water needs to be reheated.

The lip of the cup is designed in such a way that it is comfortable for the user to drink from all three sides, whether they are right-handed, left-handed, or want to drink from the front of the cup. This form also lends itself nicely to act of pouring which is why the form also functions well for the kettle.

function//color ways

Ready to serve

Time to reheat

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For the final presentation of the brand and all of the lines, each of us created a package for our product and had them on stage as we presented.