This year I got to return to an old job for a week, and create the posters for the annual Madison & Ruby Valley Conservation Districts Banquet. When I lived in Ennis this was an event that I looked forward to all year–picture 200 ranchers & natural resource people all together in one big historic building, with a bar and a great band. Everyone in their best cowboy boots & western gear, dancing the night away.
When I worked for Madison Conservation District, I helped organize the event. My task was putting together all the advertising, and I really loved this part of my job. It meant a little window of complete creativity.
Last year’s poster:
So when they asked me to do the posters again this year, I was thrilled! They initially wanted to use the same design from last year, but I convinced them to refresh it with a new look.
One of the core elements of the banquet is that the ranchers attending almost all raise Black Angus beef. They worship cows, and beef is always the center of the dinner. So, naturally, I centered the design around a cow. It was pretty fun to say, okay, how can I make a cow look hip and cool? The design I eventually went with was inspired by this tutorial on Spoon Graphics.
Other color options I presented (they chose the blue):
If I had my way, there wouldn’t be so many logos at the bottom, and the poster could be a lot cleaner. But the event is a fundraiser, after all.
