Cold Hard Code

Much of my work to date with Cold Hard Code has been for relatively large applications.  These big, complex applications can quickly overwhelm so a lot of time is spent keeping things simple.  Our most recent project, Codepeek, gave me a chance to make something less intense.

The logo came together very fast.  Hoefler & Frere-Jone's Tungsten is CHC's corporate font so it's use was predetermined.  I had it in my head to create something playful, classy and more pop than my usual work.

From jump I knew that I wanted to set the text on an arc. After a few attempts I finally found what I wanted with a negative leading. This gave it a presence that reminded me of an announcer crowing to the crowd: Codepeek has arrived!

The two-tone effect is intentional, providing some clarification for the words.  The name is inspired by the concept of "peeking at code".  My original idea was "peekcode" but the k and c felt like a linguistic train wreck that refused to roll off the tongue.  Codepeek worked much better but was backward from my original concept.  Placing "peek" front and center in bright white balanced the message I was trying to send.  Careful not to forget the "code" I added a strong gradient and some subtle dots that are intended to look like bubbles rising in the code.  Those embellishments can be easily removed and the logo reduced to two colors very easily, fulfilling one of the rules of logo design.

The small leaves set behind the name are decorative fleurons that provide some distinction for an otherwise wordy logo.  It's a purely subjective decoration that I have an odd affinity for.

Codepeek was a great project that Jay and I took from concept to production in just over a week.  It gave me an opportunity to create a light, playful identity that I'm very proud of.