Yaaway.com: Jesus without the dogma

UPDATE: We just learned that this brand identity project has been accepted into the upcoming Communication Arts Design Annual. Woot woot!

We recently worked on a fascinating branding and interactive design project for an online video sharing social network community about the non-religious aspects of Jesus. Yup, Jesus without the dogma. With a jaded Jew, a crappy Christian and a bunch of misfits on our team with various religious backgrounds and beliefs, we tucked into this challenge intent on setting aside our own biases and assumptions in pursuit of the best possible solution.

With the help of designer Nancy Wu, we developed a logo design that emphasizes an exchange of ideas and communication within a like-minded community using visual language of quotation marks that symbolize talking heads as well as the four books of the Bible chronicling Jesus’ life. In a nod to classic Christian iconography, there’s even a subtle cross hidden in the negative space between the quote elements implying the underlying focus of this dialogue, while the colour palette progresses from cool blue to warm red suggesting a journey from discovery to acceptance. Can you see the cross? There it is!

After some intense analysis of the goals and content of their website, we developed a a strategic plan and developed a killer interface design using the new brand elements. The development team is hard at work bringing this complex website to life.

We’re proud of the final result and feel it nicely tells the story of this unique brand quite well. Though a brand new identity, it has already started to get some attention from the design community, such as this feature on Icorgada’s Galeria.

Congratulations and very good luck to our friends at Yaaway.com as they launch the beta version of the website, begin promotion efforts and start building the community that will drive this unique social network. It’s still in a development form and being updated weekly as they integrate new features and design improvements, but we encourage you to check it out at www.yaaway.com.