Newsletter 039
We're excited to share the new brand identity we've created for GatherGive! This incredible organization is a resource hub dedicated to fostering a stronger, more connected community in Grant County. We wanted to capture their mission of bringing people together and building a brighter future through their brand.
Through a collaborative and iterative process of design thinking, we worked closely with GatherGive to develop a name and visual system for their organization that serves as a platform to share their story with the community. The interconnected hands in the logo symbolize the power of collaboration and the spirit of giving. We can't wait to see the positive impact GatherGive will have on the community!
Wendy will be taking the main stage at the 2024 UCDA Interchange Conference on Friday, September 27th at the JW Marriott in Indianapolis. The Marion Design Co. story will be the introduction to the presentation, Presence Changes Perception. Designers, educators, and students will learn principles for leveraging their power to recognize assets inside impossible problems in order to design for good. Learn more and register at https://www.ucda.com/events/151/
We’re so excited to have Jacob join our team as a Graphic Designer! He studied at Indiana Wesleyan University and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts and a minor in business administration. Jacob’s undergraduate coursework in design and business have equipped him with a comprehensive understanding artistic and strategic aspects our industry.
Coming from a retired military family, Jacob has been exposed to a variety of different cultures as he has been relocated to cities in Florida, Texas, Virginia, and Indiana. Despite spending the majority of his life as a resident of Porter County, Jacob has grown fond of the intentional communities found in Marion. Over the weekends, maintaining the connections in his life by calling his friends and family over the phone is a major priority. On his free time, Jacob loves to watch anime and play video games with his brothers – the nerdy things in life.
On July 18th, we had the pleasure of hosting our second Marion on the Move event during Picnic on the Patio with Los Amores.
Marion on the Move was created to be a space for small businesses and organizations to gather and discuss how to bring more traffic to Downtown Marion. During our first meeting, we shared our intentions, goals, and purpose for being in this small square over a light lunch. Our conclusion was that communication and transparency must be at the forefront, building trust and unification among each other to make Marion the best it can be. We all left very encouraged and ecstatic for our next meeting.
The second meeting was just as special as the first. To support our local businesses and attract more people to attend our event, Picnic on the Patio, we invited Los Amores to join us in sharing food and intentional conversations. We immediately kicked off by updating each other on recent news and began brainstorming ways to bring more traffic to the downtown area. After an engaging conversation, we decided that all of us would have a unified vision through a small, medium, and large idea.
Our vision starts with focusing on beautification. For our small idea, we concluded that attracting others to downtown should first start with taking care of these mundane, everyday tasks: picking up trash, pulling weeds outside our businesses, making sure the front of our store is arranged aesthetically, etc. Though it seems small, it creates a difference, the kind of difference we want to create.
Our medium idea is focused on Design Standards for our buildings and downtown area. This would bring in accountability for our empty storefronts and the ability to create a unified downtown. Lastly, our large idea is to host pop-up stores/events in our vacant buildings to promote our spaces and bring more people in.
From our observations and conversations, our downtown is well loved and adored by our business owners and organizations. We hope that as we continue to have these conversations, that we will be able to create movement and slowly make our downtown a hot spot for people to come by and visit.
If you’re interested in attending our Marion on the Move meetings, our next one will be on August 1, 2024, 12PM to 1:30PM, at the Kennedy Art Center in Downtown Marion. Our next steps are to begin launching our small idea, Tidy Tuesdays, and continue our conversations on how we can better our community. To stay updated on when we are hosting Marion on the Move, follow us on Instagram at @mariondesignco. If you won’t be able to attend, but want to contribute, send us a message on our Instagram or shoot us an email at hello@mariondesign.co.
We hope to see you there!
Kennedy Art Center recently connected with the Quilter’s Hall of Fame - during which they expressed an interest in a joint quilt exhibit at our gallery for their annual celebration. We jumped at the idea, and just a few months later, Celebrate SAQA Indiana has come to fruition!
This show, spurred on by Quilter’s Hall of Fame and in collaboration with SAQA, Studio Art Quilt Associates, displays the intersection of quilting as both a historic craft and a fine art. The quilts range from abstract to pictorial, and implement a variety of techniques such as hand dyeing fabric, appliqué, photo printing, and more. Quilting as a studio art is a completely unique, immersive, and innovative experience, and we hope you come out to see it before the show packs up September 13th!
Looking ahead, KAC will be hosting the 1st Annual MAC Gala: A Night of Art and Elegance this September, Friday the 20th. This event aims to elevate the arts in Marion and make future celebration of the arts possible within our community. This event will feature a silent auction for art, live music, hors d’oeuvres, and a cash bar. We encourage those interested to look into sponsoring the event or purchasing a ticket to attend. Tickets run at $50 and will be up for purchase soon.
Rent out our kitchen for your summer events! With the cool air inside while the garage door keeps the outdoors accessible, it’s an ideal place to have your family event or office gathering!
The current show, Celebrate SAQA Indiana, will only be on exhibit until September 13th! Art sales are available until the exhibit closes.
For more information, contact us at hello@mariondesign.co
https://www.mariondesign.co/
