Bridging the gap to industry for all emerging creatives
The Arena
My side project
The Arena is a platform pushing for positive change across the creative industry. There’s a drastic jump from education to industry and I work collectively with collaborators to bridge this gap.
In 2020, when support was needed more than ever, I started The Arena. Sharing advice, stories and resources with my team, we’ve grown a loyal community and run a UK-wide mentoring programme.
SERVICES
Strategy
Branding
Copywriting
Content strategy
Website design
Campaign rollout
As well as creating the full brand identity and visual system for The Arena, I am also the founder and editor of the platform. I started this side project with Ben and Lauren, who make up the rest of the team, to support emerging creatives stepping into industry.
The thinking behind the identity system was to make sure we captured the tone and energy of our mission and audience, whilst never overshadowing the featured guests and stories being told.
Our primary typeface Tusker, carries the weight and impact we look to make. Whilst a simple and paired back approach to layout design frames images of real people and their work.
The Arena website is the core environment where readers can dive into resources and immerse themselves into the stories and journeys of industry leaders. Designed and later built in Squarespace with custom code, the website has a strong editorial feel, with the ambition of making online reading feel closer to the experience of reading a hardback book.
A huge part of The Arena’s offering is our mentoring programme. Each new initiative is an evolution of the original brand identity, bringing concepts and ideas to life with illustrations and motion design that matches the core brand.
This particular design was born out of a collaboration with two fantastic creatives, Ryan Robinson who created spot illustrations and Rosa Kennedy who brought them to life with motion. I lead the sub-identity as art director, initially briefing in the creative idea, managing the project and later rolling it out into a wider system used across socials and assets for the programme.
