ABOUT

Overview: Most charity brands look the same, designed to be credible in front of sponsors. Community-based non-profit Apart of Me, wanted to stand out with an identity based on their beliefs (helping young people feel less alone when their world is turned upside down, through the healing power of creativity).

Monks developed an identity with co-creation & creativity at its core, from the dynamic animated logo taking on the names of the community (a part of me, you, him and her), to backdrops created in art therapy – the identity in itself a visual journey through grief, self-discovery and wayfinding.


FULL STORY

Background: Apart of Me is a charity dedicated to help young people (11-18 years old) through grief and trauma. They have an app of the same name, another called Nadiya, which helps Ukrainian children with war trauma; and run a peer-to-peer support program. Apart of Me’s approach enables young people to access tools within themselves to connect with, and support, others. Ultimately, their mission is to help young people feel less alone when their world is turned upside down, through the healing power of creativity.

Challenge: At launch, the brand was synonymous with their first app. However, the second app had muddied the brand hierarchy. The client also felt their look & feel was geared more towards donors, teachers and parents than end users. Or as they put it, “Young people that are grieving don't need to see images of other young people grieving and sad. They already know what that feels like.”

The charity needed an umbrella brand, based on their beliefs, that would talk directly to young people without alienating their wider audience, and span across all their activities.

Primary Audience: Young people 11-25 who have experienced ACE (Adverse Childhood Experiences), primarily loss of loved ones, and/or abuse and neglect, parental substance abuse, mental illness etc.

Secondary audiences: Parents & carers, Schools & professionals, Donors

Design solution:

Grief often leaves young people feeling ‘apart’, separate from the world, their former self, and even those who could help. Healing starts with becoming ‘a part’ of something bigger. Our approach to the charity’s new brand identity mirrors this journey. It begins with the original hand-drawn logo. A symbol of the raw, personal nature of grief. But in its animated form, the ‘me’ transforms into handwritten signatures unique to the young people who are ‘a part of us’.

To draw the eye to our content, we use graphic pathways, hand-drawn, organic and imperfect, reflecting the nonlinear nature of healing. While each pathway is unique, they all lead toward connection and growth.

The colour palette reflects this emotional depth. Our primary colours are Nightfall (almost-pitch-black) and Daybreak (very-nearly-white), symbolising the tension between the inner storm and the inner light, and reflecting the fact that there are no true black & whites, no simple answers, no ready-made solutions. The secondary colours, vibrant yet gentle, span almost the entire colour wheel, reflecting how Apart of Me offers a space for every feeling.

Illustrations mirror this delicate balance and contrast, combining the raw and the refined; the unfinished and the complete.

The colourful, hand made backdrops were painted in art therapy workshops with young people connected to Apart of Me. This infused the brand with hidden layers of depth and emotion. Co-creation has been an essential part of the rebrand journey, and the image library is set up to be ever-evolving through future workshops.

The primary typeface Fenul is inspired by an anatomy book. With a human touch and strong character, it adds depth and meaning. In contrast and for balance our secondary typeface, Raleway, offers simplicity and balance in contrast.

Furthermore, we developed five ‘cornerstones’ inspired by the five principles of healing. Distinctive shapes were extracted from the logo’s negative spaces and used for framing and highlighting.

Deep thought, collaboration and consideration has enabled us to create a brand that is truly reflective of the charity and its work. There is a constant, almost hidden, thread of connection running throughout it. Much like the unseen bonds that tie us together in grief and, of course, in healing.

“This is the brilliance of Monks: weaving profound meaning into every detail.” - Apart of Me blog post