Creating Visual Identities
Both audio and visual experiences play a key role in how I work and create.
Music has always been more than background noise for me. It’s a tool for focus, a way to shift my mood, and a core part of how I experience my everyday life. At the same time, I’m deeply visual. I care about how things look, feel, and communicate emotion.
This project started as a simple idea: what if my playlists had a cover that visually matched the audio?
First, the problem.
I tried a few different playlist covers from art I found on Pinterest or just solid colors. The solid colors didn’t convey enough emotion, and I struggled to find art that was cohesive while being visually communicative of the music in the playlist.
Back to square one.
Cohesive Colors
My best projects always start with a color palette. I searched Pinterest for some cohesive color palettes with enough variety to design multiple playlist covers. Then, I chose my favorites. I love soft neutrals, so these were perfect.
First Attempts
I pulled out my iPad and just started drawing the first things I thought of for each genre. Indie music is calming and organic, which makes me think of all things outdoors. Pop music is bright and energetic, which brought me to burst of stars. Since I play the piano, I will always think of sheet music when listening to instrumental music. Lastly, my christian playlist is a peaceful sanctuary. That led me to symbols of peace like the dove and olive branch.
First Drafts
I quickly realized that my sketches were a little too illustrative, and not my natural style. I looked over my sketches again and chose simple elements of each one that I wanted to be in the final design. I headed over to Adobe Illustrator and began designing.
Indie became flowers, pop became a sun, instrumental became a record player, and christian became an olive branch.
One Small Edit
My creative juices were flowing and I fell in love with my first drafts. However, the strokes on the sun did not match the styles of the other designs, and I needed to change that.
The End Result
These designs serve every purpose they needed to. They accurately represent how each playlist feels to me, and are cohesive in color and design: exactly what I needed to an aesthetically pleasing playlist.
The flowers feel calm and beautiful, just like indie music. It calls to the outdoors and brings my creative ideas to nature.
The sun feels bright and happy. When I listen to pop music, that’s the kind of mood I want to be in. I want to be working fast and enjoying the process.
Instrumental music is classic. A record player showed just that. This playlist is perfect for when I am writing and need to really focus.
Lastly, my christian playlist. The olive branches are universal symbols of peace, and this shade of green is my favorite. It creates a holy space.
Individual visual identities for my individual playlists.
Check out my other case studies here on my website – everything from design to strategy.