CB Creative Co.: Design

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Last month Sammy and I signed up for a local CSA. Ten weeks of locally produced produce and goods for like $350. She is really into that sort of thing, and I was good with it. So every Tuesday from 4pm-6pm you pick up your goods at The Little Fleet in downtown TC. We decided since we were already there picking up our stuff, we might as well make a night of it and have a drink or two and perhaps order some food.

Now as new parents we don't get out a whole lot anymore. Tuesday used to be Taco Tuesday at home and to a degree it still is. However, after a week or two of doing the pickup at Little Fleet we started joking about how it was our "wild night out" (we still have to get home to put the baby to bed by 6pm-ish lol). Taco Tuesday transformed over the last several weeks to Tremendous Tuesdays aka Wild CSA night.

I decided to make a little icon for the weekly "event". Below you can see how the logo evolved. Just follow the arrows! Wild nights baby.

In the spring of 2014 I was working as a production/sketch artist (thats what we called it) at what was then known as Britten Studios. The company has since changed its name to Britten, Inc. and prior to Studios it was known as Britten Media. I say all this to give credit where credit is due, and also to make sure people who were/are familiar with the old brand understand the new one.

In April I had been handed a project by the man himself Paul Britten, who is the founder and president of the company, as well as the Don Draper of the organization. This would only be the second project of this nature for me, and it was far larger requiring the coordination of a lot of people and assets.

The Miami Dolphins wanted a facelift for their sanctioned tailgate experience for the 2014-2015 NFL season and we were looking to win the work to get our foot into the NFL market. Hence, one morning while minding my own business a large manilla folder is dropped in my lap by Paul with a list of assets and a whole bunch of information. He told me to "...figure it out...".

What follows are all the experiential assets I designed or redesigned and what I contributed to the project as basically, senior designer. I coordinated a team of about 10 people between 3 different locations. I sat in on all the conference calls, gathered all the needs and information I could with Sales, organized that info and put it on a timeline and then reached out to people as needed to make sure that the work got done. Every morning I would check in with the team to see how everyone was doing and redistribute the load in necessary. It was important to be flexible in order to get everything done. To date, it is probably the most satisfying project I had the chance to be involved in, and also one of the most stressful!

I started with research which lead to a visual theme:

I then used that so all the elements had a uniform look. Let me be clear that at this point, we had no idea if the dolphins would be supplying their own artwork or not. Eventually when this went to production the Dolphins sent all their own original art, however the work my team and I did certainly sold the job!

There were more assets for the tailgate created than what I myself contributed including Florida's largest foosball table, but I am only showing the ones that I created myself and were included in the final pitch. Most of the work that was designed and produced was centered around large format 2D print, and a whole lot of truss structures. The company has since expanded its capabilities to be able to do almost anything.

Disclaimer: I only created the assets pictured. The deck that was presented to the client was styled by a marketing team that we were putting in place at the same time all of this was happening. We had also purchased another company with some talented 3D artists who handled some of the other elements and did some rendering to bring life to the design work. I was very relieved and happy to let Marketing polish the final deck and then do the pitch (I was present for the pitch of course)! I created or designed the ideas for Paul Britten, Britten, Inc. and the Miami Dolphins in 2014. I still work at Britten, Inc. today though in IT (which is a post for another time).

I remember sponsorship opportunities were very important to the Dolphin as well as all the pieces being mobile and storable because the stadium was shared with Miami University. Eventually the work was purchased and produced. I think it took a large portion of the summer to get it all done. There were a lot of last minute add ons. I remember the Dolphins sent a "grip strength" game like you'd see at a carnival or something, and I had to design a set of skins for it to cover up whatever it had been used for before hand. I remember being in the warehouse where all of this was being produced applying the decals to the game myself!

Definitely a wild experience. Photos do exist of the actual stuff that season that was produced and used, but I have no idea where they are. If i ever find them, then I will update with a post or add them to this post.

Caberfae Peaks is where I learned to snowboard. At just 15 miles west or so down M-55 from my parents cottage in Cadillac, MI this is what I consider my home hill. My brother and I over the years have rode just about everything there except I-75 as it never seems to be open for shredding. Either that or someone opens it for a moment and one guy pushes all the snow off of it and they gotta close it down again. If you are gonna go off-piste double black then you need to go committed and shred that shit. It's no place for snowplows and falling leaves. You either got it or you don't. But I digress.

This resort has a special place in my heart and holds a lot of wonderful memories for me. At some point they updated their signage and branding while I was just a kid. The logo is dated now and it definitely shows its age and is a head nod to the time period it was created in. I decided to redesign it to make it time-proof and that is what you see before you. The typeface is a nod to the past utilizing the font that appeared on my parents season passes in the 1978-1979 winter season. The peaks themselves are clean and modern and and identify themselves by position and color as north and south peaks.

This is Caberfae elevated. This is signage, branding, logos, etc that brings them into the now and creates a timeless logo that respects their past and present. Great graphic design can completely elevate and this in my opinion is a great example of that. Caberfae...let's talk and make this happen!

Another nod of the hat to my family and the life and times of growing up in that household. This concept came to me right after finishing the family crest. BOOM! Pure out-of-the-aether-type-shit! When I get ideas like this out of nowhere that flow and just come together quickly, and its quality shit, there is nothing I'd rather be doing. I love graphics that require zero explanation. This shit is dope.

So I took a Draplin class on Skillshare yesterday called Logo Design with Draplin: Secrets of Shape, Type and Color. Aaron Draplin is a dude who's work I really respect and enjoy seeing. He seems honest, blue collar, hard working, and above all he really has a passion for this shit. His resume is incredible and if I could choose to swap resumes with anyone it would be him. Coming up in the design world when he did; when snowboarding was still raw, and a brotherhood. I started riding back in like 1992 and so I got to be a part of that. but the scene was very different here in Michigan than it was out west, especially the PNW. In a world of narcissistic, attention-grabbing, social media bullshit, Aaron feels genuine and authentic. I appreciate that so much.

Anyway the class project was to design a family crest. It took me awhile to wrap my head around this one. Family means different things to different people. To me it really only means Mom, Dad, Shawn and Jenni. That's it. We have always lived far from any extended family and I basically didn't have any grandparents cause they were either dead or out of the picture.

My family was a standalone unit. It was an island of a nuclear family. We didn't have much in the way of traditions. But when I look back and think on my childhood it is clear to me that life revolved around one thing. Going up north to the cottage every weekend.

Up north was (and is) Lake Mitchell Cadillac where my folks have a very small cottage on the lake. When I was just a kid we spent every single weekend up there year round. Engaged in outdoor sports year round. I spent my entire summers up there while my Dad worked at a GM plant in Saginaw that was probably a hundred fuckin' degrees. My home hill is Caberfae, just 15 mins away where I learned to shred the gnar.

Every week, all year long, we were all workin' for the weekend. Looking to blast out of town to our own little slice of heaven for bonfires, badminton, water skiing, snowboarding, snowmobiling, croquet (don't fuck with me, I'm THE MAN at this shit), s'mores, boating, sunsets, and all things outdoors. The cottage is and was my favorite place and was easily the best thing that my parents and family gave me while growing up.

Colors on this bad boy are inspired by the old GM logo (blue) as well as the Detroit Lions whom my Dad watched every Sunday, while yelling at the TV. Sometimes that was the only place we could watch the games as they would get blacked-out for those that lived too close to Detroit because they didn't sell enough tickets to the game! We'd be up north outside the blackout radius, watching Barry Sanders juke the shit outta some poor linebacker. Meanwhile the team still manages to lose the game.

Life was and is still good.

Years ago I had this awesome domain name thecasualathlete.com. I used to post workouts and whatnot. It was back when I thought I might be a trainer or a strength coach. I still think about that sometimes. At any rate I didn't have the domain set to auto renew and I ended up losing it. This domain that originally cost me $12 jumped to like $1500. I didn't have that kinda skrilla (still don't) and obviously I didn't renew it. Someone else owns it now and is making it work for them. Nothing lasts forever. There were a couple old logos for it, but the one I liked best was a kettlebell wearing a tie.

I was making a bunch of shapes and playing with my symbols palette and this just sort of happened. I like the feel of it. It's comfortable. Feels like it could work just about anywhere placement-wise. Reworked the old CB logo just slightly to make the gaps fatter so that at smaller sizes you can still see the details (and see them better). The CB logo has been around for awhile and I don't think I'll be getting rid of it anytime soon. It was inspired by professional snowboarder Sébastien Toutant back in 2014. He had a dope logo of his own with his initials on his helmet. As soon as I saw it I had an idea for my own initials. The rest is history.

Yesterday while on a walk I thought back to my Dad's old bowling team - Brown's Pork & Beans. In the bowling season of 1974 -1975 they were league champs in the Midnight Special League. I texted him to make sure I recalled the name correctly, and he sent me the team photo of him with his two buddies. Straight dope.

I got back to my desk and wrote down the name so that I could think on it. I get home from work and hang with Sammy and the baby for a bit before we put her to bed. Once back downstairs I start sketching and have the general idea laid out within a couple minutes of noodling in my notebook. Came into work today and banged it out. It's easy to do this stuff when you are excited about the possible results. I'm feeling the flow again and it's nice. Gotta run with it for as long as I can! Blocks DO happen!

I have lived in MI my entire life. Thankfully I have been able to travel a decent amount the last 5 years or so. Before that I had only really done the standard issue annual family trip to Florida. People in Michigan seem to love that state. I don't know if it's a peninsula thing or what. I think MI is second only to FL in number of registered boaters. Maybe that's it?

Anyway, it was years before I realized that MI really only has 2 seasons and that's what this icon is all about. Orange cones, and snow. Both clad in gray because we only average about 55 days of sunshine a year in the mitten. Mind blowing.

I'm fortunate to live in one of the more beautiful areas of Michigan, but I have always looked west to the oceans and mountains. It's where my heart lies. As long as I can remember I have been told and felt in my heart, that out west (particularly California) is where I belonged. All the states out west hold a special place in my heart as I have tried to visit them all.

"The left coast is the best coast!"

"Dreams come true in the west!"

Sammy and I are hoping to make a move soon to the wild west for a new adventure together. Until then, don't think we don't know how good we have it here in Northern Lower MI. I still get plenty of waves in the water and hot laps on the hill!

In the fall of 2018 this was the stock-style logo that kinda got me rolling again. I moved over to IT at my current employer for a lot of different reasons, but I still had the itch. Now I know that it's something that is never going to leave me. When I started drawing I wasn't sure where it was going. I was just having fun. Before you know it, it's a friggin' cat and you are trying to figure out a word to place underneath it.

Another trail run vision. No idea where it came from but at the top of the last hill it popped into my head. Maybe it was all the maple trees? I'm not sure. This was also on the old trail at the old apartment. A lot of good time spent on that trail. Some good ideas.

I mean, this is just plain funny. I don't know where the inspiration comes from. It just happens. Enjoy it!

Luke Cage meets Van Life. I saw this image in my head while I was out trail running one day at Sammy and I's old apartment. I loved that trail. Right out the back door, 2.2 miles of dirt and forest. Mix in some hills at the right time. I live out in the woods now, but I miss that trail. Anyhow, this icon to me made me think of always moving forward. I used to spend a lot of time in the past but Sammy has helped me realize how unproductive that is. Learn and move on. Adapt and grow. Forward. Always.

I've spent some time in Seattle. Love the PNW. Love how easy it is to get around in Seattle and all the mountains to the north and Rainier to the south. An alpinists dream! I've also found people to be pretty friendly there. It's a good vibe. I used Seattles skyline for the inspo for this stock logo. It's good to make stuff even if it's just for no reason.

This is a mix of a couple different things from my childhood. The old mercury motors blackmax logo stylized to look like Dad in his prime! Photos of my dad with his long hair, receded hairline and beard. His classic aviators. Racing in his Checkmate with the hammer down, only the lower unit of the motor in the water, chine walking his way across the lake. He's still a bad ass. Just a bit older now.

A trip to visit my son in Sitka Alaska in March 2019 inspired this little piece. He was featured in a video for Sitka Whalefest and has a huge love for all things science and nature. This was just a combination of all those things coming together and influencing me this morning.

Sitka is truly a beautiful place! Scores of snowboard magazines back in the day always said that Alaska was like supersizing everything. It's a really unique, rugged place. You can go vertical all fucking day there. When I think of AK, i think of the most rugged terrain on earth. I think of Travis Rice and John Jackson sending it 100ft over a fucking crevasse. Sickest feature I have ever seen in a video. I think of mountains rising right out of the ocean and PNW forests on steroids. It's a beautiful place and I've heard you can leave AK, but it never leaves you. So true.

Johnny. My wife's closest cousin. She's got a big Southside-Chicago family. Johnny was the eldest of 4 kids and died during a second battle with cancer. I think he was like 23 or something. Way too soon. I didn't really know him well as I came on the scene after he was already sick. Dude always had a good attitude though. PB&J's for days. Cool as the flip side of a pillow. Neff beanies on the daily. I always had the feel that he was the one that kept his crazy siblings in check. Now that he is gone something feels out of balance in that family. I did this as a little dedication to him for his mother and my wife. His death hurt everyone. For me, doing this wasn't no thang and honestly, when you feel the inspiration the shit just flows. I worked from a photo and according to the fam and friends, I captured his essence. I feel real humbled by that. He was a brother, a son, a life in this world.

I was just happy that his mother loved it and it made her happy. Parents aren't the same after they lose a child. I like to think I helped the sun shine a little that day for her.

I dunno what the point of this thing was but I just felt like making it. I ended up using it as album art for a beat on Soundcloud. Stuff just pops in your head and you gotta put it down.

A logo concept for a trail system here in the TC region. It wasn't really requested, but it was something that came to me while brainstorming on some other related work. It was inspired by something, but I cant remember it now. Maybe I was subconsciously thinking about Sega or something when I did this. You never really know how or what is influencing you on those deep levels. It just sort of happens if you let it flow. If I try to push too hard then I lose it. Best to just let it flow.

This was a concept that never got off the ground for a t-shirt line. I thought it was pretty dope at the time but it was apparently not in the cards. No big deal.

I'm Chris Brown

Education

Michigan State University

Delta Community College

School of Hard Knocks

Experience

Senior Designer

Graphic Artist

T-Shirt Artist

My Skills

Graphic Design

Photography - Landscape & Action

Coding

Work Ethic

Awards Won

Happy Customers

Projects Done

of Photos Made

WHAT CAN I DO FOR YOU?

Branded Environments

Responsive Web Design

Graphic Design

Creative Direction

Photographic

Unlimited Support

WHAT PEOPLE SAY ?

___ Loukas Bethea, FRESH Surfboards Great Lakes. ___

WHAT PEOPLE SAY ?

___ Sam Brown, Wife of Chris ___

WHAT PEOPLE SAY ?

___ Cole Swinehart, VP of IT, Britten, Inc. ___

WHAT PEOPLE SAY ?

___ Brian Caughell, Information System Architect, Britten, Inc. ___

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_ Loukas Bethea, FRESH Surfboards Great Lakes. _

_ Sam Brown, Wife of Chris _

_ Cole Swinehart, VP of IT, Britten, Inc. _

_ Brian Caughell, Information System Architect, Britten, Inc. _