SOUL - Save Our Underwater Life
Shallow water animals that breathe air, like turtles, manatees, dugongs, and whales are often hit by boats and caught in fishing gear. Species such as turtles that lay their eggs on land often loose their nurseries due to coastal development. The dying coral reefs all over the world produce a large amount of oxygen that benefits humans. Just as the Amazon has been named the ‘lungs of the world’, coral reefs are known as the ‘rainforests of the sea’.
Although a lot of corrective measures have been implemented in various coastal regions of the world, marine conservation organizations and reserves are not given the amount of credit they should be.
SOUL was my final year project at LASALLE College of the Arts in Singapore. The project creates awareness through educational visuals which spread awareness about marine conservation initiatives around the world.
Service
Art Direction & Interaction Design
Year
2013
OBjECTIVE
The aim of SOUL was to draw attention to the need for marine conservation. It provides a platform for a younger audience (8-15 years) to engage in conservation efforts by getting clarity on how they can protect our marine ecosystem.
The task was to make conservation engaging for a younger audience. The art direction style of this project - a mix of hand drawn illustrations and water colour painting, was curated to draw their attention to the cause.
OUTCOME
The core message of this research project was visualized through handwritten typography, illustration, art direction and interaction design.
The postcards aims to create awareness about endangered marine animals by educating the target audience in a playful yet powerful manner. The series of illustrated advertisements direct the viewers to an interactive website that aims to promote awareness of the work of marine conservation organizations around the world.
Handwritten Type
This typeface was created using calligrams to highlight the danger to marine species due to human encroachment. The aim was to use the typeface as a tool to spread awareness. This was done by implementing them in an educational catalogue and as collectable postcards.
Postcards
A user testing exercise was conducted to see the impact of postcards on the target group. They were immediately attracted to the intricate, vibrant illustrations. It was observed that they chose postcards based on their initial to read first.
Eliminate One, Eliminate All
This illustrated series of advertisements draws attention to the fact that all life within the ocean is inter-connected. With 70 % of the Earth’s surface covered by water, the underwater world is as vast as it is unexplored. Each of the countless marine species is co-dependent on the other as they are all at different levels in the food chain. An important fact that very few people are aware of is that coral reefs produce more oxygen than the rainforests do. By destroying them, we will ultimately be killing ourselves.
Can You Spot Me?
These 3 ads led the final outcome, an interactive website promoting the work of existing organizations around the world. Keeping the art direction similar to the typeface and series of ads, the idea for the website was to make a world map highlighting the oceans as main focus instead of the landmasses.
The map of the oceans consists of a maze of illustrated marine animals, and the task for the user was to find the 8 endangered animals hidden amongst them. When the user hovers their mouse over the animal that is endangered, it turns blue. Each of those endangered animals are linked to conservation centers that focus on their species, so that the user can read into how they can contribute to the cause.
Publication
The map was also used as a poster in an eight-fold publication that talks about each of the endangered underwater animals in detail. This publication could be implemented as an add-on for wildlife conservation magazines to promote concerned readers to understand more about marine life.
SOUL was featured on The 4 Moose blog and on Behance: Graphic Design Gallery in 2013.
