Brand Development: Avalon
Website
Wayfinding
Collateral
Avalon Nature Preserve
A brand to celebrate a growing landscape
Avalon Park and Preserve is a much-loved oasis for walking and hiking on Long Island. After 23 years, they expanded the preserve and embarked on a Master Plan for its restoration and management. How could they use this expansion to rehabilitate both the new land and an outdated brand?
By embracing a number of design and editorial choices, we created a brand system for preserve wayfinding, their website, and and their collateral that bridges the virtual and physical environment.
1
DISCOVERY
Our three-day kick off session with Avalon and the landscape architect teams revealed some pain points. Visitors often thought of Avalon as a public park, expecting staff to clean up after them; minor vandalism and feeding of wildlife were a problem; and people often got lost on existing trails.
2
THE LOGO
A lighter touch
We made a subtle, but significant change to the name: Avalon Park & Preserve became Avalon Nature Preserve, emphasizing conservation and downplaying the “public park” perception.
The new logo references the hilltop meadow loved by visitors,; its delicate lines imply a “lighter” human footprint on the landscape.
3
ICONOGRAPHY AND COLOR
The logo established and iconography for both the website and the wayfinding destination icons and also created a jumping off point for creating logos for Avalon’s many programs and initiatives. The colors used throughout the physical and virtual site are rich, but muted, so as to be visible on the trail signs, but not intrusive.
4
THE WEBSITE
Leading with conservation
Restore. Protect. Inspire. Avalon’s new tagline captures their mission and engages visitors in Avalon’s ethic. Education about landscapes and wildlife are woven through the website and the sign systems. An interactive website map lets the virtual visitor discover favorite destinations in the preserve and learn about the seasonal flora and fauna found there.-
5
WAYFINDING AND EDUCATION
Exploring the landscape
Kiosks throughout the preserve educate visitors about the animals and plants in each of Avalon’s five habitat areas. Simple icons, illustrations, and consistent colors carry the brand style throughout the sign system.
