South Africa Office of Tourism // Mailer WIP

South Africa Office of Tourism // Direct Mail Piece WIP

This mailer will feature the work of South African designer and illustrator Elio Moavero, inviting viewers to an exhibition of his work at the B Gallery in Columbus, Ohio in a show sponsored by the South African Office of Tourism. The mailer will follow the SA Office of Tourism brand guidelines, while also including Moavero's work; marrying the wild spirit of the brand and the fun, psychedelic vibes of the artist. Followed is a WIP of the direct mail piece.

A glimpse into my Pinterest Board for Moavero, where I was collecting some of my favorite pieces and bits of information I could use for the mailer.

The first mood board consists of images of Moavero's work that I'm interested in including in the mailer, as well as the general vibe of his work that I hope to communicate in the piece, while still following the brand guidelines. The gorilla, lady, dinosaur, and satanic choir images are the ones that I am most excited to include.

The second mood board is my inspiration around the actual design of the mailer, including its layout, design elements, and die-cut. I am thinking about how I can incorporate the die-cut into my existing pattern assets, to create a fresh feel on a recurring asset in the brand.

Rough detailed sketches of the front and back cover of the mailer, and variations.

Rough detailed sketches of the other two outside panels: the "You're Invited" Panel and the Business Reply Mailer. I was playing with the idea of using either the Dinosaur or Gorilla illustration for Panel A, but after continuing my sketches I decided on the Gorilla because I found a better fit for the Dino elsewhere...

That is, chomping on my die-cut! I really wanted to take the die-cut element to another level and have the cut-out spaces play a role in the design, as well. So, I thought Moavero's Dino Illustration could be featured taking a big bite into my die-cut. Other panels also include various illustrations from Moavero, while keeping creative with typographic and pattern elements.

(Very) rough mockups with everything in place, just to get an idea of how the die-cut will work with all three panels it affects. With this sketched out, and with my assets together, I'm all clear to start the digital design process.

Beginning to work on the mailer, placing objects and text to get a feel for where things needed to go. At this point, the text needs a lot of reworking, and the images could be pushed some more.

Up-close visuals of Mailer so far.

Next version involves reworking the type and experimenting with using my patterns in a way that closely resembles the brand guidelines. At this point, I'm really happy with the top panel and the use of type there.

Continuing to rework the type and be a little more creative with it. In addition, I'm starting to experiment with transparencies and blend modes in order to keep his artwork intact while allowing some negative space for textual elements.

Decided to take out the pattern elements and instead push myself to use them in different ways. Here's my stopping point with these two panels, after manipulating type and blend modes to a more successful result.

Started working on the RSVP Panel, using tabs to control the spacing. Had quite a lot of trouble learning how to use the tabs, but after a considerable amount of time fiddling with it I was able to figure it out.

Began working on the outside panels! The BRM was checked and approved in class, and the addressee background was finished fairly quickly. This is my first draft of the type, which was rather plain to begin with.

Started to push this type a little bit more to be more cohesive with the rest of my headers, thinking to myself how this could catch the viewer's eye and stay on par with the rest of the mailer.

Came to a stopping point with the cover and top gate panel. Cover will definitely need more work in the future. Critique from professor indicates that it's not nearly as successful as the inside "Elio Moavero" panel.

After working with my professor some more, I finally completed my dinosaur panel, feeling really good about my type and callouts. I'm considering working with the background and experimenting a little if I have time before the due date,

Another stopping point on my Satanic spread. Type now has a little more breathing room, and the CTA—the date and event—is more prominent now.

And finally, received a long-awaited email back from Elio, himself. While it may be too late for the high resolution files at this point (I made do with files pulled from his socials), it was great to see he had taken a look at my work, and I hope he gets a chance to check out the final product!