GETTING STARTED
Jamie Ellul
This project began when the digital whizz-kids
at Mud won the pitch to design the new Grant
Associates website. We share a building with Mud
as well as the visual effects studio Fitzroy Hawk,
which also works for Grant Associates. Mud’s
discussions with the clients identified the need for
a new identity and we came on board to develop
that, while Fitzroy Hawk created some stunning
animations in conjunction with the new brand.
To add to the coincidence, Grant Associates,
a global landscape architecture practice, used to
occupy the building our three companies are in.
I think they liked knowing that we’re all under
the same roof, and although they might have felt
strange coming back to their old space at least
they didn’t need to ask where the toilets are.
We met the directors and associates to
understand how they work and what makes
them unique, and put together an expansive
competitor audit looking at visual identity, web
design and tone of voice in their category. Our
first recommendation to clients is always to create
difference. The trend in the sector is towards sans
serif all cap logotypes, dark colours and clean,
white websites. We suggested an approach that’s
opposite to all of this.
The new positioning statement for the brand
is, “We reveal the wonders of the natural world in
order to reconnect people and nature.” This getsacross their commitment to using creative ecology
in urban environments, reminding people that the
natural and man-made can exist harmoniously.DESIGNING THE IDENTITY
Jamie Ellul
Considering the incredible environments Grant
Associates create, the visual aspect of the brand
was important. We developed two creative routes:
one based on a typeface using ligatures to connect
the lettering; and the other a monogram lock-up
of the letters G and A (see sidebar on page 78,
Choosing the Right Concept).
Fitzroy Hawk was already developing the
3D particle animations when we began on the
branding, so we were able to build its work into
our concepts. Embedding the monogram into
the flowing organic elements was always part of
the plan, and Fitzroy Hawk rendered hi-res stills
for us to work with, which have been used inside
the brochure, stationery and in presentation
templates, mostly as branded imagery to break up
the pace of the photography.
We chose Metric by Klim Type for its modern
but timeless look – and more importantly
for its double-storey lowercase a. We used
the proportions of this letter to draw the GA
monogram, and when the monogram had been
approved, we went back and redrew the lowercase
a and g in Metric to give them the flattened
ascender and descender to mimic the logo. ThePROJECT
JAIME ELLUL
Creative director,
Supple Studio
Jamie founded Supple
Studio in 2013. He’s
worked with Apple,
Channel 4, Royal
Mail and the British
Heart Foundation,
is a D&AD award
winner, and a Fellow
of the Chartered
Society of Designers.MATT POWELL
Founder and creative
director, Mud
For over 15 years, the
Bath-based team
Matt leads has been
delivering websites
for clients including
Warner Brothers,
D Young & Co, the
Environmental Justice
Foundation and
Kudos Memorabilia.ADAM DOHERTY
Founder and creative
director, Fitzroy Hawk
Adam directs multi-
disciplinary teams
across motion,
interactive and
physical design.
Over his career he’s
designed for some of
the world’s best-known
brands including
Porsche, Sony, Nike
and The Louvre.