Case Study Graphic Design

Adobe Illustrator · Graphic Design · Adobe Photoshop · BDM Logo · the88th Logo

Logo Design

A visual identity that's both professional and deeply personal — a brand built to hold a range of creative work while reflecting its author's own design philosophy.

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Role

Graphic Designer

Tools

Adobe Illustrator
Adobe Photoshop
AI

Result

3 Versions
2 Logo Marks

Goal

Visual Identity
Professional & personal

01 — The Brief

A mark that's
professional
and personal

As an independent designer, I set out to build a visual identity that could be both professional and deeply personal — a brand capable of holding together a wide range of creative work while staying true to a specific design philosophy.

02 — The BDM Mark

BDM Design

The BDM mark started with one core question: could three capital letters function as a single, unified system? B, D, and M share strong vertical strokes and complementary curves — the arc of the D echoes the shoulders of the B, while the sharp diagonals of the M create contrast. Three formally distinct versions were developed, each exploring a different balance of mass, contour, and legibility.

Variant 01

Monolithic Silhouette

All three letters merge into a single dense black silhouette. B, D, and M interlock tightly — their boundaries defined not by spacing but by thin white hairlines carved into the shared mass. It reads first as one mark, and only afterward as letters.

Variant 02

Outline

Each letter is rendered in outline only, with no fill. The stroke swings from thick to thin sharply across curves and diagonals. The spine of the B carries a deliberate rectangular notch. The diagonals of the M taper to a point in the central trough. The letters are set with generous spacing.

Variant 03

Mirrored Cascade

The B is flipped horizontally so its arcs open to the left, mirroring the arc of the D — creating a cascading sequence of concentric curves that flows through the whole composition. The letters spill past the edges of the frame. The most dynamic of the three, read as a single continuous gesture.

In Motion

BDM — All Four Marks

03 — The 88th Mark

The 88th Mark

The figure "8" is one of the most formally self-contained numerals: two stacks of oval loops joined by a shared, fully closed waist. That closure and symmetry became the starting point. A single ~15–20° italic slant runs through all three versions, giving the mark energy and forward momentum.

Variant 01

Interlocking Chain

Two figure-8s are built as linked chain segments — each formed from two rounded pill shapes stacked at the waist. The upper and lower 8 overlap at their joint, caught mid-interlock. A thick, uniform stroke with no fill; the white oval counters read clearly against the black outline.

Variant 02

Deconstructed

Each 8 is split into two parts and set apart in space. The left column is an isolated vertical main stroke. The right column is an isolated oval counterform. The anatomy of the numeral, exploded and laid out like a technical diagram of its own construction.

Variant 03

Solid Pills

All four stroke elements of "88" are rendered as solid, filled black pills, offset across two diagonal columns. The numeral no longer reads directly — it's perceived first as four parallel kinetic strokes. Built for motion, large formats, and contexts where energy matters more than literal legibility.

In Motion

The 88th — Logo Reveal

Result

Two marks, each
calibrated for its register

Three versions of the same three letters — a dense monogram, a high-contrast outline, a mirrored cascade — each calibrated for its own context: the primary mark for bold brand applications, the outline for editorial and print, the cascade for motion and large formats.

The same "8," carried from a legible interlocking mark through structural deconstruction to pure geometric abstraction. The primary mark for tactile brand use, the deconstructed version for editorial contexts, the solid pills for motion and iconography.

Logo Marks

BDM and the 88th, each developed as its own self-contained system

Versions Each

Every mark explored through three distinct formal registers

Total Variants

From a dense monogram to pure geometric abstraction

100%

Original

Every curve drawn by hand in Illustrator — no outside assets