Designer: Mandy Barrett

The Logan Wintergarden Series—aka Music at Noon—is an annual concert series presented by Penn State Erie, The Behrend College. The series’ purpose is to expose students and community members to chamber music in a comfortable, informal setting. All events are promoted by an assortment of postcards, posters, and booklets.

While not entirely displeased with the current look of her materials, on-site designer Martha Campbell would like to see each piece project a stronger identity, especially since posters placed on campus bulletin boards are in constant competition for visibility. Campbell explains, “The perfect design would be highly sophisticated yet playful, and be strong enough to command attention.”

Designer Mandy Barrett agrees. “The original pieces, while cohesive in design, lack the ability to connect to the target audiences. The poster needs to stand out … and with the monotone color of the paper and printing, nothing really pops.”

Music at Noon targets a diverse audience—from elementary schoolkids to college students and community members—so these materials must appeal to the masses. Barrett decided to concentrate on finding a way to make the series’ memorable moniker stand out. She began by choosing Copperplate for the main font because it includes square dots for the i—these help tie the text with the box-like frames outlining each picture. Next, she carefully considered how to best position the series title. Her solution was to place music vertically to stimulate immediate visual interest. The positioning “gets people to stop and look, because they cock their heads to the side.”

Adopting a bold, two-color scheme and incorporating additional photographs help the materials gain the visibility they need. The final designs maintain their initial cohesive look—but the new possibilities pack more punch by injecting a bit of vibrant personality into each piece.