This project was brought to my team by Internal Comms in March 2020, and I took the rough idea to create a Nasdaq Covid-19 themed coloring book and ran with it, producing a finished product by May 2020. The goal was to create a book that would entertain children (and parents!) of clients and employees alike.
And what better way to do that than highlighting what they couldn't do at the moment — Travel!!
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To produce the illustrations within the book, I put together a project plan for, hired, and art directed a team of six amazingly talented illustrators. These illustrators are local to New York yet from diverse backgrounds, and we highlighted each one in social campaigns and on our tower in Times Square throughout the summer to support local businesses and artists.
The cover, colorful dividing page illustrations, and layout of the book are all components I designed.
I researched and wrote the copy in the entire book itself, including the facts for each of the cities that are featured.
The user of the book has the opportunity to make any character they want to take on their adventure with them.
Each accessory correlates to a city; and the facts on the page inform which accessory belongs with each city. This forms an additional activity in the book.
Ten cities are featured within the book, each home to a different Nasdaq Office! The goal is to find each hidden Nasdaq "N" within each illustration. Some are more difficult to find than others!
This was initially created to keep children (suddenly at home all the time) occupied during the pandemic. However, we quickly realized it is a product that is evergreen. For example, once Nasdaq begins having in-person bell ceremonies and IPOS again, it could be handed out to kids who have accompanied parents to the ceremony to keep them engaged.
We wanted this to be accessible in digital form to everyone, so please find the link to download here. The PDF contains background and bios on all of the illustrators involved as well. Check out their portfolios; they are truly amazing!
