There have only really been a few design projects that I’ve been apart of that has held strong emotional ties. And honestly, it’s these projects that push me to the absolute brink of creativity. Case in Point: the promotional branding plan for ABEA. (African-American Artists
Beginning to Educate Americans About
African-American Art
.) This was all in part of an assignment for my Visual Resources class. Visual Resources is The Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design’s own design firm dedicated in serving the community with solutions and work at a price way lower than most local firms. Students must have a grade point average of 3.5 or higher and be voted in by faculty to participate in VR. It’s an extremely unique class and in my opinion, a very important learning process in any educational career. But I’m getting off topic…..
It was Thursday morning and Della Wells and Mutope’ Johnson came to our class to present their plight. Della was the founder of the ABEA and was a key figure in the organization’s cause. The problem was that the ABEA was the only organization of its kind in all of Wisconsin and they had trouble gaining attention to their message. They wanted to reach out and gain better exposure within the arts scene of Milwaukee. They had everything working for them in terms of contributing artists, various gallery shows and consistent support from a number of patrons of the arts community. But it needed to be pushed in another direction to appeal to a broader audience. They came to VR to see if we might be able to craft some creative ideas.
Immediately, I connected to their quandary. Maybe it was the way they presented their case, but it sparked a jolting emotion within me. I had never felt this driven or focused to create a solution in all of my design career. Now I was able to see the benefits of how design and marketing could save the future. I set upon crafting an answer through design for their question as soon as I got out of the meeting.
Below are a few ideas that I had come up with to better suit their organizational problems. First, I felt that they would do much better operating on a level of general mass awareness through nightlife events. Gallery shows are fine, but I was presenting them with this idea of taking their work to bars, clubs and popular hang outs around the city. Plugging them into a system that is already inhabited with the general public would better their chances in gaining a wider following.
Make a scene. Make a difference.
:: This was a nightlife event used to celebrate the work involved with the ABEA. This would be held in moderately upscale bars and clubs and would feature DJ’s as well as meet and greets for artists within the organization to show their work and meet with the general public. The idea to treat it more like a party than a stale art showing. Make it fun and exciting. Make it feel like you HAVE to be there.
Art for Lunch.
::The Milwaukee Public Market is a breeding ground for commonplace during any busy workday. Patrons of the downtown-working environment converge onto the market on a daily basis to seek lunch and sustenance. Here, the ABEA can hold a makeshift gallery showing with artists on hand to answer questions and explain their work. Maybe they can have their own little bake sell too. This would give everyday people eating lunch at the market to become exposed to what the ABEA had to offer.
:: This was created to add a guerilla-advertising element to their cause. By flyering these cheaply made Xerox “lost and found” flyers around, people would be acquainted to specific art pieces in an environment that more street level and immediate. The picture would show the piece and the text would describe the artist and the intent. The tear off tabs would lead people to the ABEA website.
:: Pretty self-explanatory. This would be a great way to create an online community to keep everyone informed of events, gallery showings and other organizational get-togethers. It would also prove to be powerful marketing tool, as it would create a better online presence.
ABEA TV.
:: This is one facet of advertising and marketing that I am extremely obsessed with. I love the idea that it is so easy to direct, edit, produce and put forth your own videos on the web. I thought that the ABEA would benefit from having a bi weekly 3-5 minute webisode show portraying gallery events or artist showcases. Not only would this be a unique vehicle in expounding the ABEA identity, but it would be available to anyone in the world at any time.
