NAMI Dane County is a local non-profit organization in Madison, Wisconsin that provides support to families and individuals affected by mental illness. They are a part of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) and are dedicated to providing education, support, and advocacy for those affected by mental illness.

For this Multimedia Design (J411) project, I was tasked with creating a new logo for NAMI Dane County. The current logo for NAMI Dane County is their simple, navy blue "grassroots" emblem with the acroymn "NAMI", along with their affiliate name "Dane County" written in the same color. I chose to redesign the logo to be more modern, colorful, and to better reflect the organization's mission and values.

The Process

In class, we had weekly assignments to help us practice our skills and learn new tools, such as Adobe Illustrator and InDesign.

I began by researching the organization and its mission. I then created a list of keywords that I wanted to the logo to reflect. I then drafted a few potential logos that I wanted to use as inspiration for the final logo. We also created vision boards to help us brainstorm ideas for our projects and had peer reviews to help us improve our work.

Once I had a few drafts in place, I used Procreate to draw the final logo. I then used Adobe Illustrator and InDesign to vectorize the logo and add the final touches.

The Final Logo

My final logo was inspired by NAMI's origin story, which began with grassroots efforts to advocate for better mental health resources and support for those affected by mental illness. Each blade of colorful grass, symbolizes growth and community resilience, along with the hands of those who united to form NAMI and continue its mission. Blues and greens represent healing and renewal, while yellow and orange evoke hope and energy.

Download the PDF document here.