The Bartlett Spokane Branding

The Bartlett fundraiser is underway and things have been going great so far. We have less than two weeks left, so be sure to mark your calendars for the 21st at noon if you are planning on pitching in. My LAST blog about The Bartlett raised a little bit of controversy which I moved over to facebook and people really jumped on board in the conversation about music and it’s value. We are seeing a lot of interesting, differing opinions on the topic…which I WELCOME and love to hear. I think a conversation is crucial because it’s exactly how awareness is raised and how change begins. Musicians need to be more transparent about their needs and I think people will in turn show a little more generosity and grace. One of the reasons we are even starting this business is because we have been on the musician end of this world and we see huge holes in how it operates. We just want to be a part of filling some holes and making things better for listeners and performers.
 
But before I get too rambly, this post is supposed to be more about design than activism. (I really have to reel myself in these days!)
 
Since I finished the logo for The Bartlett I have been working on other branding elements and thinking through how I want to define our image visually. Our friend Eleanor Lonardo from Seattle is an amazing photographer and as I started looking through her portfolio I got this vision of making our branding have kind of a lifestyle type vibe like you might see for a clothing company or a car commercial. I knew I didn’t want to do my usual hand-draw illustration type thing, I wanted us to have a different image than just the “Karli-look”. I also want each part of The Bartlett to reflect from the inside out our commitment to collaboration and community. That sounds really cheeseball but I’m gonna roll with it because it’s true. I want people to see ads or posters from us and obviously think of something other than a music venue, I want them to think of culture and progress and youth. So, when I was looking through Ellie’s stuff keeping these things in mind, her images just started speaking to me. You know, sometimes you have seen art and then you look at it again after going through something or learning something and it jumps out at you different? This happened to me.
 
Having Eleanor’s photographs to use for this project have been amazing, especially since at this point we have no real aesthetics to photograph. As our process continues we are excited to bring her out to photograph some of the actual space and operations for future images. For now, it’s amazing to have some photographs that represent our vision and ideas. Check out more of Eleanor’s work on her site.