AW Psychology needed brand design that elevated them in their space.
As a business AW Psychology assesses the needs of young people in education, and shares these assessments with local authorities and schools. It’s an important service with a focus on guidance and nurturing strong relationships with schools and young people.
A key factor in the creative development of the project was researching and avoiding local and industry clichés: lighthouses, trees, Greek “psi” symbols, hands, are a few.
Similarly important was the use of colour once a logo form was decided as the market was packed with drab corporate greys, purples and obvious blues and greens.
A range of icon concepts that blended local plant life and wildlife were explored. The feathered buds of a rush (Sefton is thought to be derived from the Old Norse sef, meaning “rushes”) was adapted to resemble a bird in flight for a local and hopeful solution.
Within the concepts a more hand-drawn style was explored to communicate the human nature of the business.
Ultimately we landed on a stylised North Star icon to symbolise the patience and guidance central to AW Psychology’s work. This was then explored further based on the client’s preference for a rotational, repeating symmetry.
After roughly 20 different iterations we agreed on the pictured solution. By keeping the star in the negative space, it always draws the eye in.
The geometry is precise and thought out with a few hand tweaks to soften certain edges. The symbol is also left slightly open to feel like it has a slight burst.
On colour, the client was clear from the start of the project: they wanted a range of colours as part of visual identity. We opted for a vivid blend of celestial colours as seen here.
While colour is not integral to the logo design, as you can see it is a key piece of their identity / brand design.
