Serious Little Squid: A Visual Identity Design by Youjia Gu

Creating a Harbor for Urban Office Workers

In this unique design, Serious Little Squid creates a strong and lively visual identity that pretends to be serious but exudes a sense of liveliness. The designers aim to establish a brand tone that embodies "sunshine, positive energy, and self-empowerment." By capturing the popular trend of "mourning" in today's society, they amplify the positive and optimistic feelings associated with it.

The brand's mascot, "A Zheng," is a vivid and lovable squid image that personifies the urban life worker. With added details such as neckties and headscarves, A Zheng aligns with the brand's positioning while maintaining a personalized, vivid, and popular appeal.

The design draws inspiration from black-and-white silent films, known for their humor and irony. By extracting an inverted expression, the design presents a seemingly silent and less positive state that actually conveys a sunny attitude. This unique approach adds depth and layers to the brand's visual identity.

Through simple and interesting comics and copywriting, Serious Little Squid presents the life scenes and lifestyle of this generation of struggling young people in big cities. The concept of the "inner theater" is used to showcase these scenes one at a time, arousing resonance and awakening the love for life and the pursuit of ideals hidden in their hearts.

The Serious Little Squid project started in February 2019 and was completed in September 2019 in Xiamen. The design team, consisting of Youjia Gu, Yun Liu, Yuchen Wang, Siyu Xu, Yuting Wang, and Xin Wei, overcame creative, technical, and research challenges to create a fun and interactive emotional dining experience. The space itself serves as a carrier of the brand, accurately conveying the brand concept to consumers.

This exceptional design by Youjia Gu has been recognized with the Bronze A' Design Award in the Graphics, Illustration, and Visual Communication Design category in 2020. The award acknowledges the outstanding creativity and ingenuity of the design, which incorporates best practices in art, science, design, and technology. It contributes to improving the quality of life and making the world a better place.