Client
Count
Services
Illustration
Art Direction
Industry
Software Development
Helping product teams make better decisions with data.
Count is a collaborative data platform that brings teams
together around data, focusing on action over outputs, and making decisions with confidence.
I was commissioned by Fiasco Design Agency to come up with
a bundle of illustrations that could convey the usability of the product and fit seamlessly within the new brand direction. The scenes had to express different scenarios around the topic of people and tech.
Project Insights
Using different examples from previous work I had done and following initial discussions with the Fiasco Design team we decided on a direction.
Since they had already included some shapes to represent data visualisation in their branding treatment, we decided to also incorporate those into the illustrations in an organic way.
Our goal was to make them playful while still stressing the serious ideas behind each illustration.
Boring tech illustrations
Moodboard provided by client
Another important aspect that we wanted to capture is showing diversity and basing our illustrations on real people. I don’t think I’m alone in thinking it’s always good practice to look up references when coming up with characters for an illustration style. It gives some authenticity and it’s always helpful to have a reference no matter the subject you’re drawing.
I use Unsplash a lot for looking up people, it’s a really good source for photos in general.
Sketching and concepts
Once we were clear on the goals we move to concept sketches. Arguably everyone’s favourite part of the process! Coming up with characters is always tricky because sometimes you want them to be more expressive sometimes the exact opposite.
For Count we landed on minimal facial expressions which in the end was a good idea since we wanted to also have shapes and lines
that inevitably pumped more pizazz into the illustrations overall look.
Sketch and concept samples
Last stretch
We went with a more muted color palette to deviate a bit from the main colors scheme. Using the blue in it’s full intensity made the final illustrations pop without being too loud and competing with the surrounding graphic elements. Black lines and shapes make use of empty space and create dynamic scenes.
We also added a light touch of grainy texture that you might have spotted in the upper side version.
Final looks!
Spot illustrations use case samples