Challenge
Open Quote Creative
Role
Creative Director
Category
Brand Identity
Year
2024
Timeline
16 weeks
Context
Liberty University Graphic Design Program
Award
Gold, 2024 Indigo Design Award, Brand Identity & Services
Open Quote Creative
Open Quote Creative
Launching a Student Agency where Design Speaks Louder
Open Quote Creative was a student-led design agency that didn't yet exist. Before it could launch publicly, the identity had to clear five levels of institutional review. Twenty-one students were split into three teams and tasked with building the agency's visual identity while taking on real client work in parallel. I was Creative Director. The identity had to hold its own against agencies with years behind them, not read like something built inside a classroom.
Challenge
Launching a Student Agency where Design Speaks Louder
Open Quote Creative was a student-led design agency in prelaunch, operating under Liberty University's Graphic Design program. It had a documented vision and a clear mission: provide real creative services to real clients while giving students hands-on experience. What it didn't have was a name, a visual identity, or university approval to launch.
Launching a Student Agency where Design Speaks Louder
Open Quote Creative was a student-led design agency in prelaunch, operating under Liberty University's Graphic Design program. It had a documented vision and a clear mission: provide real creative services to real clients while giving students hands-on experience. What it didn't have was a name, a visual identity, or university approval to launch.
Challenge
Open Quote Creative was a student-led design agency in prelaunch, operating under Liberty University's Graphic Design program. It had a documented vision and a clear mission: provide real creative services to real clients while giving students hands-on experience. What it didn't have was a name, a visual identity, or university approval to launch.
Before the agency could exist publicly, it needed approval from the marketing department, legal department, the school chair, the school dean, and the provost. Twenty-one students were selected and placed into three teams, which ran in parallel with the task of gaining approval to officially launch and establishing legitimacy through real client work.
Identity
The identity balances professionalism with approachability. An interlocking submark and a distinct color palette give the brand clarity and presence. The mark combines O, Q, and C into a single form, carrying forward the core argument of the name: that design begins with a conversation.
The tagline, "Where Design Speaks Louder," followed the same logic. Make an argument about what the work does, not who made it. The identity system was built to function inside a university context without reading like one: clean enough for institutional sign-off, specific enough to hold its own as a real agency brand.
Application
The system was built to scale from day one. Primary logo and variations, a full color palette, defined typefaces, and collateral, all delivered across print and web formats. Every asset needed to clear university marketing and legal review, which meant the system couldn't rely on design quirks that wouldn't survive the process intact.
The identity held. The logo family was approved by every stage of university review without structural revision.
Outcome
Open Quote Creative launched and is in active use. The identity system my team produced went through the full chain of institutional approval, from department chair to university provost, and came out the other side unchanged.
It won the 2024 Indigo Design Award Gold in Brand Identity and Services, Student Category.
Challenge
Challenge
Challenge
Identity
Before the agency could exist publicly, it needed approval from the marketing department, legal department, the school chair, the school dean, and the provost. Twenty-one students were selected and placed into three teams, which ran in parallel with the task of gaining approval to officially launch and establishing legitimacy through real client work.
The identity balances professionalism with approachability. An interlocking submark and a distinct color palette give the brand clarity and presence. The mark combines O, Q, and C into a single form, carrying forward the core argument of the name: that design begins with a conversation.
The tagline, "Where Design Speaks Louder," followed the same logic. Make an argument about what the work does, not who made it. The identity system was built to function inside a university context without reading like one: clean enough for institutional sign-off, specific enough to hold its own as a real agency brand.
Challenge
Application
Challenge
Outcome
The system was built to scale from day one. Primary logo and variations, a full color palette, defined typefaces, and collateral, all delivered across print and web formats. Every asset needed to clear university marketing and legal review, which meant the system couldn't rely on design quirks that wouldn't survive the process intact.
The identity held. The logo family was approved by every stage of university review without structural revision.
Open Quote Creative launched and is in active use. The identity system my team produced went through the full chain of institutional approval, from department chair to university provost, and came out the other side unchanged.
It won the 2024 Indigo Design Award Gold in Brand Identity and Services, Student Category.
Challenge
Outcome
Challenge
Open Quote Creative launched and is in active use. The identity system my team produced went through the full chain of institutional approval, from department chair to university provost, and came out the other side unchanged.
It won the 2024 Indigo Design Award Gold in Brand Identity and Services, Student Category.