Last fall, around September or so, the dark, gray clouds of a coming political storm were just beginning to brew over New York's 23rd congressional district. John McHugh, the area's long-serving member of congress, had been appointed to Secretary of the Army, and what began was a political drama that captured the attention of every national media outlet. Although it was the largest district east of the Mississippi, little-known "23" would suddenly find itself to be the most talked about race in the country, even with two staggering gubernatorial upsets happening in Virginia and New Jersey.The race for NY-23 had it all, from endorsements from top-tier political figures to a down-to-the-wire finish. In the end, Bill Owens would become the first democrat to win the seat in over 100 years.
At the heart of much of the local grassroots activism was The Upstate New York Tea Party, or UNYTEA. I was invited to attend a healthcare forum at which the three prospective candidates were invited to speak, and as I read my invitation I had gotten in the mail, my brain couldn't get past the fact that their early mail-outs had no unifying, cohesive look. For a graphic designer, this is a maddening thing.
A few days later, the unytea logo was born. A carefully crafted silhouette of New York State in red (echoing the organization's more republican leanings) encircled on its top by exactly thirteen blue stars (the number of original US colonies), with a small white star marking the general vicinity of "upstate". The fonts used (Myriad Condensed Pro for the wordmark, Adobe Caslon in the logo itself) offered a well-balanced combination of clean, modern aesthetic while maintaining a classic feel.
Shortly afterward, I met with the group's chairman, Mark Barie, who enlisted me to design a complete identity package including business cards, a letterhead, envelopes, and a complete redesign of their website, with elements of the original logo tying everything together.
