The Badlands Research Paper

Creating a large format banner design was the first assignment given to us students in Communication Design 1. The objectives for this assignment was to create a portable pop-up banner stand design for a client of our choosing. The banner would either have to be for a product or service provided by the client. Although original imagery was allowed, the concept had to be type dominate. Meaning any form of imagery had to be a secondary element, and not the main focus.

When it came to picking our clients, I decided to choose Astralwerks. An american record label that mainly focuses on electronic and dance music. and represent the latest album under their label, Badlands.

Badlands is the debut studio and concept album from New Jersey native, Ashley Frangipane known by her stage name, Halsey. While writing the album, Halsey came up the the concept of Badlands, “The Badlands are a post-apocalyptic society and it’s supposed to be metaphoric of a mental state. Recovering after a mental apocalypse and the decision to leave a wasteland is what it represents to me.”

While doing some research and being a fan myself, I narrowed the target market down to teenagers and young adults, varying from 16 to 22 years old.

Although most of Halsey’s fans are female, there are still a lot of male fans as well. So there are no gender barriers when it comes to the target market. That also has to do with Halsey and her incredible support for the LGBTQ community. With Halsey being Bisexual herself, it’s important for her to stand up and make sure that every fan feels excepted and is apart of one big family. Which does play a huge role in her fan

base.

So keeping all the in mind, I had to come up with an original solution for my design. While trying to come up with a concept for this banner, I didn’t want stray too far away from Halsey’s idea of Badlands. It already has such a strong concept and look, so it was difficult to come up with something original, while still trying to stay true to Halsey’s vision. After a few different ideas, I narrowed it down to two ideas. Both have the headline, “Welcome To Badlands.” But then one continues on to say, “Proceed with Caution,” while the other says, “Send Help.”

The first concept deals with Badlands, and the place itself. While trying to communicate this through type, I thought a lot about placement and if anything should be emphasized. After playing around for a bit and getting some feedback, the final piece resulted with emphasizing caution. The first thing the viewer will read is, “Welcome To Badlands,” followed by, “Proceed With Caution.” With Caution bolded and a few points bigger in size. Instantly telling the audience that this isn’t a place you want to be in. As for the background I decided to treat it as a old travel poster that would have either been thrown away or found on the ground somewhere, with a simplified illustration of a mountain that could be found in a desert on the bottom. Which is what the Badlands are surrounded by, so no one can get in, and nobody can get out. When deciding on the colour palette, I ended up going with pink and blue tying the whole thing together with the album artwork.

The second concept deals with the mental state side of badlands. I thought the best way to show that would be to hand render a message, that has a panicked feel to it. To maybe show that it’s a cry for help. The finished piece ended up featuring a faint sketch of Halsey in the background, with the type over her eyes. Signifying that she wants out of these badlands, and can’t un-see the things she did. Using the same colour palette as well.

When it came down to choosing which one would be the final piece, I decided to go with the second concept. I felt that it conveyed a much stronger message, and the drawing didn’t take away from the type.