COC in the classroom

Client: COC Twente-Achterhoek
Subject: Designing and illustrating the poster for COC in the classroom

For the COC Twente-Achterhoek, a poster has been designed that can be put up in the classroom after the presentation by the COC. After consultation, the idea emerged to make a poster that represents sexual orientation and gender identity in a fun and recognizable way, in the form of a group of different people who all have their own literal “label”.

A group of LGBTQ young people sitting together on a picknick table
The illustration on the poster

Some wear their label with pride, others may prefer to hide it, another person else has multiple labels. You can’t tell in real life which label they wear, but what if you could?

Design process

The COC delivered a biography for each character. After sketches were made to determine the appearance of the characters, a concept was made for the illustration itself. I first came up with a setup where the characters were next to each other like a group photo. This wasn’t ‘the one’, there was zero link with school. There was not enough interaction and it was rather static.

teenagers standing next to eachother
First setup
sketch of teenagers sitting on picknick bench
Second setup

Let’s do some digging… what did you do during recess at school? I see picnic tables outside, if you were fast enough you could get a nice spot. A school bag next to it, maybe discussing homework, or complain about the German teacher. The second setup was a lot better. OK, great. Next step: Add color to the concept and continue with the design of the poster itself.

First concept of the poster with the yellow post-it on top
Concept version 1
Second concept of the poster with a multiple choice on top
Concept version 2 (chosen)

Concept version 2 reads best from top to bottom. By placing the bag and Anouk’s boot over the blue surface you create a little more playfulness and depth. In addition, the yellow post-it does not dominate the image like in the concept of version 1. Final step: Process the feedback and finalize the illustration and the poster.

Finalised poster of COC in the Classroom with young people sitting on a picknickbench, with a call to action underneath it,
The finalised poster

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