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iDENtity GUiDEliNEs

Akin FamiliesFINDING FOREVER FAMILIES FOR OLDER CHILDREN

iDENtity GUiDEliNEs

“Home is where one starts from.” — T.S. Eliot, Poet

Copyright © 2011 Joy Ohler

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All rights reserved.

Academy of Art University

MFA Graphic Design

No part of this publication may be

reproduced, stored in a retrieval

system or transmitted, in any form

or by any means, electronic,

mechanical,photocopying, recording

or otherwise, without permission.

First Edition: November 2011

For more information,

call 415.370.2844

or e-mail info@akinfamilies.com

www.akinfamilies.com

About Akin Families

Attributes

Our Name and Symbol

Alternative Signatures

Clear Space

Minimum Size

Color Palette

Color Variations

Unacceptable

Signature Renderings

Typography

Language

Photography

Graphic Elements

Sample Applications

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Akin Families

Akin Families creates awareness and stimulates action to counter the current

adoption disparity and give every child, regardless of age, an opportunity for

future success.

Our goal is to correct the misconceptions about adopting an older child.

We also would like to emphasize the benefits of having a loving and

caring home for a child and the rewards of being a parent of an older child.

Akin Families provides accessible information for prospective parents and

adoptive parents about older child adoption. Akin Families’ web site hosts

an online community where members help each other by sharing their life

experiences and stories about their adoption.

iDENtit y GUiDEl iNEs AbOUt AkiN FAMil iEs 9

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Our attributes are the core of Akin Families. they sum up our values

and what we would like to achieve for adoptees, adoptive parents and

their families. Everything that bears the Akin Families name should

represent these attributes.

Attributes

3x

x

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iDENtit y GUiDEl iNEs OUr NAME AND syMbOl 13

From the root word kin, akin means related or connected. it gives a sense

of belongingness to an individual, a child who needs a parent or a parent

who needs a child. in the Filipino dialect—tagalog, akin means mine or

my own. With the assistance of Akin Families, a parent will find a child

of his own and a child will belong to a family that he can call his own.

the symbol illustrates a parent and a child that complete each other just

like the children and parents that Akin Families connect and help build

their own family. Our signatures are significant expressions of who

we are and what our goal is. that’s why it is important to use it correctly

and consistently.

Our Name and Symbol

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We refer to the horizontal configuration of our symbol and name lock up

as our primary signature, and we prefer to use it if possible. However,

our signature must also accommodate a wide range of uses, from business

cards to outdoor advertisements. to meet all these needs, we have created

a secondary signature configuration. Occasionally, the symbol can also be

used as a stand-alone graphic mark.

Alternative Signatures

sECONDAry siGNAtUrE stAND-AlONE syMbOl

iDENtit y GUiDEl iNEs AltErNAtiVE siGNAtUrEs 17

ClEAr spACE = X ArOUND tHE siGNAtUrE

xx

xx

x

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At times, we collaborate with other organizations and agencies and our

signature needs to be placed next to another logo or graphic mark. When

used with other visual elements, clear space or the minimum “breathing

room” must be maintained around our signature. As defined earlier, x is

equal to the size of an adult head in our symbol. the clear space should

be kept free of tex and other graphics. the clear space also defines the

distance of the signature from the edge of a page or screen. When placed

next to a partner logo or symbol, we prefer that our signature is placed on

the left or middle instead of the right and above or on top instead of being

at the bottom.

Clear Space

iDENtit y GUiDEl iNEs ClEAr spACE 19

.75” .50” .1875”

AltErNAtiVE

siGNAtUrE

stAND-AlONE

syMbOl

priMAry

siGNAtUrE

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to ensure a clear representation of Akin Families. We have set minimum

sizes at where our signatures and symbol may be used. the minimum size is

defined by the width of each graphic mark.

When scaling our signatures or symbols either up or down, please make

sure that it is scaled proportionally and it is not being distorted in any way.

Minimum Size

iDENtit y GUiDEl iNEs MiNiMUM sizE 21

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Our color palette show our spirit and promote our attributes. the colors

are youthful and joyful just like how the children and their parents should

be. We highly encourage the use of these colors in any of the pieces that

are associated with Akin Families.

Color Palette

iDENtit y GUiDEl iNEs COlOr pAlEt tE 23

nAme PAntone C m Y k R G B

primary

brilliant berry pantone 000 100 000 000 235 000 130

rhodamine red U

inspiring Orange pantone 717 U 000 055 100 000 245 140 030

Hope Green pantone 369 U 040 010 90 000 100 175 090

lively blue pantone 298 U 070 005 000 000 000 185 235

secondary

Jolly red pantone red 032 U 015 090 085 000 240 065 055

sunshine yellow pantone 110 U 005 010 065 000 245 220 120

Growth Green pantone 432 U 090 050 075 020 030 095 080

Comfort blue pantone 2757 U 100 080 000 030 005 005 125

neutral

Concrete Gray pantone 432 U 025 000 000 075 070 085 095

Calm Gray pantone 000 000 000 040 175 175 175

Cool Gray 7 U

Warm Gray pantone 000 005 010 030 190 180 175

Warm Gray 6 U

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Our primary signature consists of two colors; inspiring Orange is youthful,

inspiring, energetic and cheerful while Concrete Gray gives the feeling of

warmth, devotion, security and stability. there might be times when gray

scale or only one color must be used. When using a gray scale or one color

signature, please make sure that there is enough contrast between our

signature and the background.

Color Variations

iDENtit y GUiDEl iNEs COlOr VAriAt iONs 25

GrAy sCAlE

black: 100%

CMyk: 000 000 000 100

rGb: 000 000 000

ONE COlOr

A solid approved color can be

used with our signature if needed.

refer back to the color palette

for the list of approved colors.

FUll COlOr

inspiring Orange

Concrete Gray

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When using our signature, it is important not to alter any element of

it. Doing so may weaken our image as unique and distinguishable. Our

signature must always be easy to read. As much as possible, avoid

placing our signature on a photographic or patterned background.

if unavoidable, there must always be enough contrast between our

signature and its background.

Our name, Akin Families is written as two words. Do not put any hyphen

or other typographic symbols in between them. When used in text,

the name Akin Families should always be treated as a proper name,

with initial capital letters on both words.

Unacceptable Signature Renderings

iDENtit y GUiDEl iNEs UNACCEptAblE siGNAtUrE rENDEriNGs 27

Never use our signatures or symbol as an

outlined graphic.

Do not use color variations or color combinations

that are not approved.

Do not add new elements, such as shadows to

any of the signatures or symbols.

be careful when placing any of our signature,

make sure that it is not cropped in any way.

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keep clear space in mind. Make sure the

signature or symbol does not overlap with any

graphic element or text.

Do not place the signature on a busy or

low contrasting background.

Never use a signature or the symbol as a pattern,

graphic element or background.

Only use approved signature configurations

and never change the scale or move any of the

elements of a signature.

Do not create a “read-through” text with

the signature.

Never rotate the orientation of any of the

elements or any of the signatures as a whole.

Do not add any graphic style, such as embossed

effect to any of the signatures or symbols

Never apply any type of gradient effect on any

of the elements of the signatures or symbol.

iDENtit y GUiDEl iNEs UNACCEptAblE siGNAtUrE rENDEriNGs 29

frut iger

Frutiger is our preferred sans serif typeface. it is

named after it’s designer Adrian Frutiger. Frutiger

is organic, casual and warm but also clean and

legible. the ascenders and descenders are prominent

and are wide, which makes every character easy

to distinguish from each other. it is also available

in a wide variety of weights.

Typography

Aa

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47 light

Condensed

57 Condensed

67 bold

Condensed

77 black

Condensed

45 light

46 light italic

55 roman

56 italic

65 bold

66 bold italic

75 black

76 black italic

iDENtit y GUiDEl iNEs t ypOGrApHy 31

ser ifa

serifa is another type designed by Adrian Frutiger.

the slab serifs epitomize stability. Usually, slab serif

types are blocky and difficult to read in text, but

serifa has more humanistic forms that are highly

readable. the implied energy in these features

also helps give the font an energetic and youthful

vibe. And serifa can look quite classic as well

especially when set appropriately as display text.

Note that Frutiger and serifa are NOt the typefaces

used in our signature. Never try to recreate our

signature. if you need the art of our signature,

you can request the approved signature art from

partners@akinfamilies.com.

Aa

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45 light

46 light italic

55 roman

56 italic

65 bold

75 black

iDENtit y GUiDEl iNEs t ypOGrApHy 33

“It is not the flesh and blood but the heart that makes us family.”

— Johann Schiller, Poet

our voice

Adoption is a serious and dear matter. We would like to reach you and

our audience in a personal way. that’s why we communicate using the first

person voice.

quotes

When appropriate, we encourage the use of quotes with topics that are

related to families, bonding, belongingness and such. these words of

wisdom often help set the emotion and provide thoughts that are easy

to remember.

Language

iDENtit y GUiDEl iNEs lANGUAGE 35

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Ever since i decided to do my thesis on older child adoption, i knew that

emotion would be the key in setting the tone and sending the message.

Although images of hurt children and their dire conditions can be visually

powerful, i did not think that would send the right impression. i wanted

my thesis to be uplifting and at the same time emotionally touching inspired

by the success stories.

cheerful and l ively

We encourage showing photographs of happy and active children and

parents, alone or together all the time. these photographs highlight the

benefits and rewards of adopting an older child and belonging to a family.

Photography

iDENtit y GUiDEl iNEs pHOtOGrApHy 37

a sp i r i ng

When appropriate, images of hope, love and other images that evoke

emotional response and can touch the viewers can also be used. please do

not to show images that signify violence or abuse, such as children with

bruises, as it may trigger negative memories and responses from the viewers.

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iDENtit y GUiDEl iNEs pHOtOGrApHy 39

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iDENtit y GUiDEl iNEs GrApHiC ElEMENts 41

s i lhoue t tes

these graphic elements are used because they are memorable and the do

not easily get lost in the visual clutter especially when placed on a page

with different images of children. these silhouettes are simple but bright

which makes them memorable. the bright colors evoke hope, happiness

and growth. When type is placed inside the silhouette, the solid color helps

the viewer to focus on the message of the text and not the image. these

silhouettes help avoid the viewer from having a pre-conceived notion

regarding older children—it lets the viewer imagine how the person who

is delivering the statement look like.

Graphic Elements

Sample Applications

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stAtiONEry systEMstAtiONEry systEM

WEb sitE

iDENtit y GUiDEl iNEs sAMplE Appl iCAtiONs 43

priNt ADVErtisiNG

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WEb bANNEr

iDENtit y GUiDEl iNEs sAMplE Appl iCAtiONs 45

prOMOtiONAl MAtEriAls

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ADOptiON plANNEr

iDENtit y GUiDEl iNEs sAMplE Appl iCAtiONs 47

415.370.2844 | partners@akinfamilies.com | www.akinfamilies.com