Project Overview
The AGDA Mentoring Program is dedicated to bringing together experienced design professionals with those that are seeking career guidance, professional advice & design business skills. The program aims to promote and nurture the sharing of real-world skills with the benefits of a collaborative design community.
Amber Bonney, The Edison Agency founder, is a dedicated AGDA member , Victorian Councillor and a passionate advocate for the program and it's benefits to the AGDA membership community.
Project Commissioner
AGDA (Australian Graphic Design Association)
Project Creator
Team
Project Endorser: Nic Eldridge, AGDA CEO
Head of Strategy and Creative Director - Amber Bonney
Design Director - Brian Rodrigo Llagas
Senior Designer - Mathew Symons
Designer - Jasmine Tsan
Illustration/Image Making - Jasmine Tsan and Mathew Symons
Social Content Creation - Jasmine Tsan and Mathew Symons
Project Brief
Over the past 3 years as program leader, Amber has crafted the program structure to evolve with changing needs of AGDA members and the AGDA council values, purpose and vision. In reviewing the previous year's program structure and design collateral, AGDA decided that 2019 was the year to relaunch the program with a new communication strategy, program design and visual language system. The Edison Agency helped facilitate the identity refresh with one that reflected the diversity and inclusivity of the program.
Project Innovation/Need
Since its inception in 1980’s, AGDA has been actively fostering meaningful peer-to-peer relationships within the industry. These strong local and international community connections works towards strengthening and unifying the entire industry. 2019 is the year to disrupt the status quote and honour the creative people who have dedicate their time to organising, connecting, mentoring and learning. This is the year of contrasts, colour and rejuvenation - using design to harnessing the goodwill and optimistic intent underpinning the AGDA Mentorship Program and its place in the creative community.
Design Challenge
The Mentorship program aims to support emerging design professionals through practical career guidance and support to help them grow. Through the sharing of real-world career challenges and ambitions, each mentee has the opportunity to share their story and create a new pathway to help achieve their goals.
The idea for the new identity system is centralised around using the distinctive asset of AGDA’s iconic ‘A’ and connecting it with the ‘M’ for mentoring to creates a word-mark acronym ‘AM’ -a visually succinct message of self-empowerment. The new design system allows for flexibility in its application – appealing to a broader audience of both potential mentor’s and mentee’s. The “I AM” acronym creates an opportunity for language that directly speaks to the program benefits and has unique visual distinction through its aesthetic simplicity:
- “I AM…sharing”
- “I AM… progressing”
- “I AM… growing”
- “I AM… connecting”
The letter forms themselves are each unique and dynamic in nature - connoting the diversity of people, talents and experiences in the AGDA design community. The vibrancy of the colour palette and textural images used within the forms celebrates the human potential of the AGDA Mentorship program.
Future Impact
We continue our journey through the experienced lenses of mentors and mentees to help shape the future of our design community through:
- Collaboration
- Learning
- Diversity
- Community
- Growth
- Positive Change
The AGDA Mentorship Design System is a reflection of a broader social narrative - the deep human desire to belong and to feel connected. The design language celebrates diversity and momentum through a fresh and bold design aesthetic. This system was only recently implemented in early 2019 and will continue to evolve and adapt itself across all communication touch-points in Victoria with a vision for implementation on a national level in coming years.
The big picture for ‘AGDA - I AM” is to create visual distinction and recognition as a foundation program for AGDA - one that not only servers the developmental needs of the Australian design community but has a greater propensity to increase AGDA's membership base and unify the community as a whole.
Systems - Commercial
Commercial projects recognises that design is the means to create meaningful experiences for users, create value for people and drive profit for businesses.
All systems are designed to serve a purpose – and that purpose is to serve people. Systems design optimises systems performance by systematically focusing on the human component - human capacities, abilities, limitations and aspirations.
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