Branding Guide
“Wake Up, Sleeper...” Awake is a community of abuse survivors, their loved ones, and ordinary Catholics coming together for a shared mission of awakening, transformation, and healing. Our community was founded in 2019 by a group of Catholics gathered in a tiny living room in Milwaukee, and we have been growing rapidly ever since. As a grassroots nonprofit organization, we are not sponsored by any particular parish or diocese; we seek to work in collaboration with the entire Church to serve the people of God in the United States and beyond. As we continue to expand beyond our Milwaukee-roots into the national sphere, we looked to Jacob Popcak Art & Design for a full rebrand that would better reflect our values, vibe, and mission-centered aspirations.
Moodboard This moodboard was established to guide the aesthetics of our brand. As evidenced here, ours is the bright and welcoming mood of a coffee shop where you can gather safely with friends for support and fellowship. Our color palette features sunrise hues and our imagery is candid and authentic. Our illustrative details and rough edges emphasize our accessibility.
Logo Process Our new logo utilizes the imagery of the rising sun to simultaneously communicate our message of hope and our desire to “wake up” the sleeping faithful to the problem of abuse within our faith communities. The high peak of the sun’s rays form the interior point of the capital A at the center of our name “Awake,” appearing as though it is illuminating the rest of the word with its rising. The crooked angle of the bar in the A further mirrors the angle of the sun’s rays while also, in classic iconographic language, implying that we do things “a little differently”.
“Sun and Shield” Four versions of the final mark were developed for applications in different formats. First, the primary logo in “sunrise lavender” depicts the sun in the negative space; it is to be used on light-colored backgrounds so that the sun is always the lightest element in the logo form. In this same vein, a white version of the logo was created for applications on dark backgrounds. In this version, the sun is in the positive space and the letter forms are in the negative space, again allowing for the sun to be the brightest element. For applications on social media profile pictures, official seals, or sponsorship lineups, the sub-logos featuring the isolated letter A should be used. Here too, the “sunrise lavender” version is to be used on light-colored backgrounds and the white version is to be used on dark-colored backgrounds. The “sunrise lavender” versions should always be given priority as the primary version of the logo, whenever possible.
Ministry Sub-Logos The various outreaches offered by AWAKE are represented by a series of logos which utilize the same visual language of the primary logo and which follow the same design rules: SURVIVOR CIRCLES These monthly gatherings welcome adults who have experienced sexual abuse by a person in leadership in the Catholic Church, allowing for safe connection, support, and fellowship. THE WELL An online community forum and message board for survivors. PRAYING WITH AWAKE Offers participants the opportunity to find God in silence, with music, scripture, poetry, and personal reflection time. COURAGEOUS CONVERSATIONS An ongoing speaker series hosted by Awake to build community, deepen understanding, encourage conversation, and inspire action in response to the complex issue of sexual abuse in the Catholic Church. BRIDGE DIALOGUES Brings priests and survivors together for conversation and healing.
“In His Image” When choosing illustrative or photographic elements, certain factors should take priority. For photography, candid shots are always preferable. This means real images (NOT stock photos) of group members engaging in various activities or moments of connection with one another. Likewise, professional shots should be -whenever possible - candid images in which the subject is not looking directly at the camera. This prevents the images from looking false or static, while also emphasizing our approachability and authenticity. Furthermore, rough edges should be applied to the photos whenever possible, and a mixture of color and black-and-white imagery can be patterned back and forth to diversify the type of imagery being used. Illustratively, hand-done doodles depicting imagery reminiscent of the morning, including alarm clocks and church bells, can be used to add a quirky effect. Note how the images and doodles overlap one another, as though someone carelessly drew over the page; this too leans into the informality of the brand, maximizing the impression of approachability.
Boundaries In order for the logo and the brand to maintain their integrity, it's very important that certain rules are always obeyed: first. effects (like drop shadow, glow, bevel, etc.) should never be applied to the logo. It must remain in its flat and simple form. Similarly, the logo's color should not be changed from the “sunrise lavender” and white variants featured in this branding guide. The logo should also NEVER be squashed or stretched to fit in a certain area or confine. If the primary logo doesn't fit in the available space, said space should either be redesigned or the use should shift to the isolated secondary logo. Likewise, the primary logo should never be turned from its horizontal orientation, nor shrunk to the point where the text is no longer clearly legible. If the logo must be reduced to that point, the sub logo should be used instead.
Sunrise Lavender #75576a
Mossy Sage #909683
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Color Palette The color palette for the brand are borrowed from the Milwaukee sunrise itself. The two primary shades are “Sunrise Lavender” and “Mossy Sage,” both of which represent the early morning without dipping into the predictably garish golden hues. That said, four additional colors are offered to supplement the two primary ones, and these are shades which more commonly are associated with the sunrise and early morning. They can be applied to patterns, text, illustrations, and color blocks. Again, however, they should be used sparingly. As for fonts, headings should be rendered in Hillstone, which mirrors the illustrative doodles central to the brand’s imagery, while text bodies should be rendered in Trebuchet MS.
is the go-to for simple or
brief headings, whereas Trebuchet MS is optimal for body copy
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