Stress therapy was the inspiration for this chocolate line. The idea came to mind during college finals. During times of intense stress many people turn to food to help cope with the worry. My go to comfort food was chocolate. When I was stressed out over finals chocolate was my therapy, it gave me an energy boost to keep me working and it helped me concentrate during late night studying. The psychology of food being therapy is the theme of this product line. Psychology is an academic field of study of the human mind and its functions, especially those affecting behavior. Emulating the visual stylistic qualities of this field I chose to use a limited color pallet, strong close-up imagery, and using striking use of positive and negative space through out the branding.
Rorschach test inspired me for the logo design. The Rorschach test is a psychological test in which subjects' perceptions of inkblots are recorded and then analyzed to examine a person's personality characteristics and emotional functioning. I designed the company logo to be an inkblot. Having an inkblot motif gives the logo a distinct silhouette, making it instantly recognizable at a glance. The inkblot is an icon contextualized subject matter that connects to the study of thought and sophistication. The association with an academic study indicates this is a premium chocolate brand
Taking these aspects into consideration for the packaging I decided to use a chocolate drizzle on white paper that I photographed. This background image has high contrast that activates the negative space and complements the other elements of the design to tell a story. Having a close-up image of the ingredients visually shows meticulously selective observation of the quality. And paired with the chocolate swirl viewers can read what the packaging holds and what flavor it is. Each package has one accent color that connects to the flavor of chocolate. This accent color is taken from the colored image of the ingredient and is repeated in the label and along the siding of the packaging. The over all design has a striking visual rhythm.
