James Yang

My Major Studio project was to revamp the identity system of an existing Not-For-Profit Organisation. The Song Room provides important music and creative arts education for disadvantaged children all over Australia, which resonated with my, as I am passionate about quality education. I created a new identity, brand guidelines, and finally assets for a fundraising campaign, with a focus on a balance between fun and professional, and an appeal to people of all ages.

Along with the fundraising assets, I created an interactive poster that can be used to visually represent how close a fundraiser is to reaching its donation goal. The hand of the mascot can be moved around the tambourine, allowing donors to see the impact of their individual donations. The pieces were printed, cut, and glued onto foam board, to allow the pieces some depth and structural strength.

Part of the fundraising assets I created included guitar picks and guitar pick boxes. They carried the brand values and also reflect the practice of the organisation. Guitar picks are easy and cheap to produce, and have a functional purpose. Guitar pick boxes complement the picks, being able to carry many picks at a time. They are also a great medium for showing art, and really complemented the mascot of my identity.

The identity of The Song Room was designed around striking a balance between childlike, fun, and a refined professionalism. One of the challenges of the visual identity was to appeal to both adults and children, which made up the target demographics of the organisation. The mascot became a big part of that, with charming, nostalgic qualities for adults, and whimsical and friendly qualities for children.

My concept for the Melbourne Cinémathèque 2022 Season evolved from the idea of films being a reflection of their makers, giving an insight into the worldview and ethos of their respective creators. I had a heavy focus on mark making and experimentation for this project. I built the letterforms of the Melbourne Cinémathèque from light reflections on water that I photographed. The marks around the calendar were also made through this method.

Probably my favourite project of my degree, this was a hypothetical identity I created for an exhibition for the Earthworks Poster Collective. I took the unorganised, do-it-yourself, ragtag look and feel of the collective as the main inspiration of my identity. I used these same ideas for my event invitation and wayfinding system, for which I created a custom printed tape, which was a versatile and eye-catching visual asset. I used a monospaced typeface, for its visual and conceptual ties to the Earthworks, and really played into the negative space created when the text was justified when creating the identity.