IHK
Branding

Year
2023

Client
Illuminating Humankindness
(IHK)

Brief
Logo Design
& Branding

Brief

Illuminating Humankindness (IHK) is a nonprofit educational think tank based in Seattle, WA. Executive director Michelle Sherman and her team work closely with groups and individuals looking to realize their full potential in both their professional and personal lives. I worked closely with the IHK team to come up with an identity that suited their mission, which is to create “Dazzling outcomes through Kindhearted Power, Imagination, and Wonder.” They wanted their logo to embody warmth, power, and playfulness while maintaining a professional and trustworthy image.

Process

The beginning stages involved brainstorming how to visually represent the kindhearted power, warmth, imagination and wonder. The challenge was to create something soft and approachable, yet polished and impactful. The visuals had to communicate both the spiritual power of “human kindness” as well as the decades of professional experience behind IHK.

After this iterative state, I presented the client with three preliminary logos and visual directions before selecting and polishing the final heart shaped logo with the “i” and “h”.

We also selected a warm palette and decided to use a yellow to reddish-orange gradient to communicate the desired illumination effect in the logo.