WINNER OF THE 08 ORIKDESIGNS BRAND IDENTITY PRO BONO MAKEOVER : CLINGANS KOREAN KARATE ACADEMY !
We were looking to push two components with this piece. Firstly to give the historical northern Californian based martial arts studio a modern, fresh, eye catching face lift ( to reflect it’s decade long transition into mixed martial arts ); and secondly, and perhaps more importantly, to sell the man behind the art, 8th degree black belt GrandMaster William D. Clingan. There’s an old saying that goes “it’s not what style you receive a black belt in, but what school you receive it from that counts” which ultimately reflects the teacher, which in this case speaks volumes. The image of a young ( I believe 23 at the time ) virtuoso breaking through 4 concrete tiles with his finger tips ( let me repeat that for you, his finger tips! ) paved the way for the concept. The man did things physically at that age ( harnessing internal energy ) that were unnatural, he was, and still is ahead of his time, as a practitioner and teacher. I felt it was essential to transcend this massage in the brand re-design at both a marketing and business standpoint, which I believe we achieved by leveraging the iconic image and mock signature ( bringing focus to the teacher not the art, touching upon his legacy and stoic past ) and yet still tapping into the modern application and applicability of the art through the overall look and feel. I was pleased with the results, and hope this will bring a much deserved interest to the studio and the man behind it for the past 37 years.
