Hudson River Park Friends: Brand Strategy & Design

My vision for the 550 Fund was beyond an outline of where the donations are used but a visual system that would encapsulate the spirit of nature in the park over seasons. A system that would leverage the incredible image library of the park’s natural wonders. Applying the definition of “acre” from the tagline, I picked a square frame as the key visual element, layered and interacting with the natural details of the park’s photos, creating an opportunity for endless creations.

After the success of the 550 Fund project, HRPK returned with a greater opportunity: to establish the Business Council. I worked with the Friends team and the founding members of the Council to define and design the Business Council under the HRPK brand.

As a new initiative of HRPK, we only had a one-sheet the team had put together. It was a starting point but it had no soul. I went back to square one to seek the true values and spirit of the council to tease out the key concepts. To accommodate the founding members’ volunteer time, I designed a new version of my creative workshops that could be completed online on their own time. The invaluable information gleaned from the results of the workshop defined the mission and vision of the Council and directly informed the copywriting and design choices in defining the brand.

The mission of the Business Council is to enhance economic growth, strengthen the community, and connect invited businesses of all sizes with engaged audiences through meaningful activations and offerings.