Couch Jams
Volunteer graphic design for BIPOC music collective
Overview
Due to unexpected circumstances and a short turnaround time, I created two punchy Instagram posts for Couch Jams when they were starting out.
Couch Jams is a local BIPOC artist collective that amplifies racialized voices in Vancouver.
My Role: Graphic Designer
Tools: Figma, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Photoshop
Timeline: 2 weeks
Project Process
Challenge
As a last-minute replacement designer, I needed to deliver event posts for Couch Jams while navigating undefined brand preferences and guidelines.
Goal
Create two socials posts that incorporate Couch Jams' logo, couch motif, vibrant colors, and event details.
For Post #1, I had just one day to design.
Post #1
Identiying the vibe
Without detailed direction, I looked to their previous posts to understand their style.
Their aesthetic showed vintage inspiration with heavy image treatments.
Design Process
Without time for much experimentation, so I had a general idea, and ran with it. I used Figma for quick iterations, Photoshop for image treatments, and Illustrator for final touches.
After getting approval, I finalized the design and delivered it.
Post #2
(Re)Identiying the vibe
By the time they needed a second post, their grid had evolved. I noticed more warm tones and softer elements overall, so I wanted this new post to fit that updated look.
First Iterations
For this post, I initially wanted to use a soft photo of a couch in the background, with funky blurred borders and a pop of colour in the middle logo.
The design wasn't approved - they needed brighter colors.
Second Iterations
Keeping the fun borders from the previous iteration, I bumped up the colours, added in a new couch, and applied a dot texture all over.
I created several versions for the founder to pick from.
My Reflection
I really enjoyed helping this organization. The challenge was that the brief felt simple at first, but working together revealed design preferences they hadn't known to express upfront.
This situation taught me a lot about client communication. Initial meetings a very important to get clarity on the stakeholders' vision to align on vision before diving into design.
