Narrative Industries Web Consultancy created the branding for Spiral, an online learning resource and part of the Social Learning Network’s range of services. Spiral is aimed at the pupils and takes a more collaborative approach to helping pupils learn. The design had to work for youth but retain the authority of a learning product. It had to be something they wouldn’t mind having on their phone but would also work on printed literature & large scale whiteboard presentations.
The name, Spiral, was already decided and provided the key to our design solution. While the idea was not to look like “education” we decided to embrace the learning aspect and combined maths, art & science (and even a bit of history) by employing the classic concept of the golden ratio.
The golden ratio is a mathematical equation that occurs throughout nature. It is directly connected to the Fibonacci sequence, the proportions of the human body, the shape of a snail’s shell, the curve of a storm cloud, and so much more that it’s almost magical. It also happens to create beautifully proportioned spirals.
Even the brand colours followed the same tenet and were derived from the visible spectrum: Red Orange Yellow Green Blue Indigo and Violet. The use ot such simple colours helped create a playful tone for the brand.
The flat style graphics was a deliberate decision because we had long felt the trend for shiny bevels and faux-3d had passed. This proved to be fortuitous when Apple launched iOS7, with its flat style graphics, validating our prediction of the design trend.
The client was very happy with the result which ticked every stipulated box and few more for good measure: a very strong contrast between their own product and that of their competitors, a cohesive brand identity that is a talking point in itself, and an instant resource of golden ratio themed visual imagery, meaning they never had to call on overused stock photos to create impressive presentations.
Narrative (previously THBOOM!) provides a wide range of creative services to help us change the way people do business on the internet, including photography, video & motion graphics, branding and, of course, web design.