CIRCLES
CONFERENCE DESIGN PROJECT
The design challenge
Circles Conference is a four-day creative design conference by Circles Co., bringing together designers and filmmakers from around the globe. Learning from transformative thinkers and connecting with like-minded innovators, Circles provides a space where you’ll be challenged to push yourself in the creative process while drawing inspiration from those thriving in the industry. This event is held every year in Grapevine, Texas. Every year, this conference gets a fresh new theme. After the 2024 conference, they announced the addition of film. This was a project assigned to me in my Design Concepts course. We were asked to design a concept for the 2025 conference. The challenge was designing something that represented both design and film.
Logo Sketches & MOODBOARD
I wanted a sort of retro feel, and I was really inspired by these paper items and the art on them. Additionally, I liked these lamps, and the idea of making a series. In my sketches, I explore this as well as patterns, circles, and this popcorn bag. Ultimately, I felt the ticket and the lamp were the strongest directions.
Digital sketches -attendee badge
In my digital sketches, I started playing with color. This orange and cream really captured the retro vibe I was trying to achieve. Ultimately, I moved forward with the ticket concept because I felt it better represented design an film. The tickets themselves are a nod to film and nostalgia, and the printing/paper aspects of this design I felt represented the designers.
FINAL ATTENDEE BADGE
I really love the way these turned out! I added in the teal and purple to my color palette, and felt they complimented the orange well while still keeping the retro feel.
OUTDOOR SIGNAGe
Next I worked on outdoor signage. I had the idea to stack the tickets, and this worked well because I was able to use my full color palette, and add a bit of depth to the flat ticket design.
T-SHIRTS & TOTE BAGS
I love cheeky and novelty merch, so I designed this t-shirt with a silly message. I think that as designers or creatives of any sort, we are always trying to find the balance of silly and serious. I think the silly shirt designs add a bit of lightness to an event that can feel a bit intimidating. And it kept with my retro and nostalgic theme nicely.