Great Lakes Brewing hires artist Darren Booth for brand refresh

You might not know the name, but Darren Booth sports some impressive credentials. He’s worked with brands like Coca-Cola, AOL, Target, Disney, McDonald’s and The New York Times. He’s also created work for high-profile clients Steve Martin and Willie Nelson, plus he has that cool, aloof, I’m-a-brooding-artist look that we here at CBB just eat up.

Well, Great Lakes Brewing Co. (GLBC) announced in December that it plans to refresh its brand in 2015. In addition to the logo, the brand will be refreshing each GLBC label. Booth was selected to tell the stories essential to every GLBC brew. Booth reigns from Ontario in the Great Lakes region and is known for his work creating detailed paintings with collage elements. Among other accolades, Booth is recognized by design organizations such as American Illustration, Communication Arts and the Society of Publication Designers.

“As an illustrator, part of my job is to help tell the story. I’m excited that every brush stroke, every piece of collage, and every layer of paint is enhanced by the rich narratives behind the GLBC beers,” Booth said. “I’m honored to have been chosen to reinterpret them because we share a mutual love for story, and for craft.”

The search for Booth began last year, when GLBC turned to its long-time agency partner, Brokaw Inc., to find an artist that could retain the essential equity of the GLBC brand while allowing for a creative and refreshed continuation of its narrative.

One of the original craft breweries, GLBC has a unique story and distinct heritage that the company plans to bring to the forefront in 2015. The new logo (above), created by Cleveland advertising agency Brokaw Inc., is not a vast departure from its predecessor. “Est. 1988,” a new addition to the logo, speaks to GLBC’s rich craft brewing history. Gold acts as a complementary color in a single wave and a hop graphic signifying GLBC’s commitment to sustainability and brewing quality, award-winning beers with only the finest ingredients.

“The responsibility of refreshing a brand so engrained in Cleveland’s history is huge and getting it right was important to us,” said Steve McKeown, Creative Director at Brokaw. “Darren’s unique style allowed so much of GLBC’s detailed story to be told visually —with a sophisticated, contemporary, and still timeless approach. From that standpoint, selecting him was an obvious choice to us.”

The refreshed look will be introduced around Memorial Day, starting with GLBC’s five year-round brands: Dortmunder Gold Lager, Eliot Ness Amber Lager, Burning River Pale Ale, Commodore Perry IPA, and Edmund Fitzgerald Porter. GLBC plans to preview the new labels in February.