The main concepts I was able to draw from the word "Asaawa" was from the adinkra symbol of the same name which represented sweet berries. The fact that the business also prides themselves off being authentically Ghanaian meant that I needed to choose a logo which a person could immediately tell what it is trying to represent, hence why I chose the iconic black star which Ghana is named after.
For the wordmark logo I wanted to make the style similar to hand-drawn paintings and artworks which can be found in Kumasi in the Ashanti Region of Ghana but still with the professional look of a start up brand so I ended up with the base font of " Noodletee " and combining it with a miniature version of the Ghana flag to drive the message of what Asaawa is about even more if the viewer couldn't recognize from the logo at first.
The font I wanted to use to represent Asaawa had to blend between the simplicity of the service and food they provide but has extra context and depth if you look close enough and so after narrowing my options between several sans serif fonts like Poppins and Inter I ended up picking the font Archivo because of the similarities it has to the word mark minus the hand made feel as this is meant to be used for more official purposes.
Lastly was the primary pattern that would be used to represent Asaawa, I wanted the pattern to represent one of the most famous collection of patterns in the world, being the kente cloth and their designs. So I took time to research the different forms and shapes that the patterns of the kente mean and symbolize and ended on this one.
With Asaawa's main focus being a Ghanaian-made brand it was only natural that I decided to incorporate two main elements into the choice of palette, the Ghana flag and the main types of colours in the Akan culture. With the Ghana flag I incorporated multiple varieties of the red, green, yellow and black and for the Akan colours I used 3 concepts of K)k)) / Memen. Fitaa / Fufuw, and Tuntum.
Fitaa / Fufuw is described as Sraman ( lightening or sparking ) and Nsonso ( ash or grey ) meaning colours like white, grey, sky blue, light brown, and colours that can be used to represent purity. From these I picked a brownish white colour.
K)k)) / Memen is described as Mogya ( blood ), Nhyiren ( florid or glowing ), and Sika K)k)) / Akok) Serade ( golden or sparkling objects ) meaning colours like red, crimson, maroon etc to represent the blood. Orange, light red, ,honeybrown etc to represent florid and citrusy colours. I decided to pick a lighter orange to help match with the golden and sparkling theme of Sika K)k)) and also represent the yellow of the Ghana flag.
Tuntum is described as Wusidae ( soot ), Ahabanmon ( green leaves ), Ahatawfun ( dead leaves ) and Wi ( dark skies ) meaning darker and smokier colours to represent Wusidae, Dark greens and greens to represent Ahabanmon, Dark blues to represent Wi and browns to represent Ahatawfun. In order to represent Asaawa i picked a light green and a dark ground to represent Ahabanmon and Ahatawfun respectfully.
Additionally I wanted to add reference of the environment that Asaawa is located in with the perspective of the target audience, to most Ghanaians England is a colder and harsher environment than back home but at the same time there are more of opportunities for greener pastures so I decided to use a bluer colour to represent the cold but at the same time lighter and brighter with optimism of the new challenge ahead of you.
The main concept I wanted to expand on for the various photoshoots during the projects was all about capturing the aesthetic & vibe of how I want people who go to Asaawa to feel, a darker scene illuminated by small scarce orange, blue, and green lights creating a unique atmosphere to attract multiple kinds of restaurant goers but still keep it relevant enough with the colours of the lights and the textures of the materials that you are still in a space highly influenced by Ghana, both cultures from the past and new cultures from the present which especially I hope will help the younger immigrant population feel more connected to Asaawa by bringing modern methods but not lose the feel of tradition within the brand.
Model : @deinstiny
