Dearly Departed
Nestled into the basement of one of the infamous Olinger Mortuary buildings in the LoHi neighborhood of Denver, Dearly Departed is a new bar concept that pays homage to the building's history while offering a forward-focused take on cocktails and food.
As a concept that is independent yet connected to Teocalli Cocina, the award-winning Mexican restaurant on the building's first floor, Dearly Departed required a logotype that distinguished itself as a separate entity while allowing the two concepts to live in synchronicity.
Services
Brand Identity | Custom Logotype | Typeface Selection
Process
Research
Research is the foundation of any design process, regardless of scope. We identified three direct competitors for Dearly Departed in the Denver area and analyzed the design decisions and applications used by each of those establishments. This also lead to a gathering of inspiration, resulting in three mood boards for us to discuss the general desired direction of for the tone of Dearly Departed's brand identity.
Typeface Selection
10 selective typeface options were chosen and discussed based on the selected mood board. We narrowed to a final three and began iterating on design changes to transform the base typeface into a truly unique, custom logotype.
Custom Typeface Design
Using Estonia as a base typeface, three rounds of refinement worked us into a fully custom, unique logotype that defines the tone and tells the beginning of the story for Dearly Departed.
The unique serifs on the bottom of the letter forms compliment the up-turned serifs in Teocalli's logo. The script letterforms nod at a salutation of a hand-written letter, as if someone is writing "Dear Departed, ..." The stacked lock up hints at the experience taking a step downwards, as if descending into the basement bar. The thin lettering, relative to Teocalli's bold letter forms, signify Dearly Departed's speakeasy inspired, understated presence.
Many minor design decisions complete the full experience of this logotype. Seeing it come to life on the signage, and hearing the owner's excitement and satisfaction with the outcome are the most rewarding parts of the experience.
