"And the silken, sad, uncertain rustling of each purple curtain
Thrilled me—filled me with fantastic terrors never felt before."
• • • • •
The Concept
The original Baltimore Ravens identity was inspired by Edgar Allen Poe's poem "The Raven". I wanted to revisit that inspiration and bring a darker, horror tone to the identity while moving away from the 90's style. This Identity is about reflecting specifics of the poem and designing with descriptors Poe made of the ghastly raven. That, and mixing in the hard edge brand of football this team is known for. Above all, the identity needed to reflect what it means to "play like a Raven".
The Logo
The above line inspired the new logo: a shadow of a raven casted upon the B/R monogram, representing both team local and namesake. The team's purple has been altered to a truer purple (less blue) and fitting with the gothic, horror tone while contrasting well against the new Black, a softer shadow-y swatch.
"Darkness there and nothing more."
• • • • •
The Helmet
Ravens have black feathers of a purple sheen when reflecting light. This purple and black shifting illusion got me thinking of car paint, especially that of TVR. What if the helmet appeared black most of the time, but light would reveal a purple color? The color shifting paint isn’t just about doing something unique for fire emojis, the helmet and logo are suggestive of “The Raven” poem itself. With the logo being solid black with a knocked out B, the raven is revealed as purple highlights happen. The solid raven is always there, sometimes in shadow, sometimes seen in front of purple light. it is the physical manifestation of Poe’s poetry.
From a more functional branding standpoint, the logo doesn't need to be seen at all times. Especially with the Maryland flag inspired stripe, the helmet still stands out among all NFL teams.
"And his eyes have all the seeming of a demon’s that is dreaming,
And the lamp-light o’er him streaming throws his shadow on the floor;
And my soul from out that shadow that lies floating on the floor
Shall be lifted—nevermore!"
