‘18 github Universe

GitHub has a variety of conferences throughout the year but Universe is it’s flagship. The event provides an opportunity for GitHub to connect with the community through keynote announcements, workshops, brand activations and more.

The theme changes annually, in 2018 it was “Build the Future”, held at the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco. My role was to art direct all of the brand activations below.

Octocat Generator Lounge

“Building the Future” starts with building your own octocat. This on-site activation gave conference-goers a chance to build their own octocat in person. The lounge debuted the MyOctocat experience which was simultaneously released online. I played more than an art director on this one. I designed (with Haley Carroll’s support) the lounge, project managed production, and helped develop the app.

Tentacle Towers

Yes, 22’ inflatable tentacle towers. We thought it was important to tie the upper and lower level, as well as both ends of the conference, through large colorful tentacles. They aligned with our overall brand and color palette for the event, and even had a light animation to keep things interesting. I was lead designer on this project with Haley Carroll.

Shadowboxes

The entryway into the GitHub Shop was flanked with 4 backlit shadowboxes on each side of the entrance. We used the space to promote our Octocat Generator Lounge. The shop was located on the exact opposite side of the venue, connected by a long walkway dubbed “Broadway”. We promoted the lounge to peak attendee’s interest and direct confererence goers. All designs were created by our animator, Haley Carroll. My role was art direction.

Broadway Mural

This long walkway gave us ample opportunity to brand the wall space as the attendees made their way from one end of the venue to the other. Our in house artist João Ribeiro designed a mural built on that same future leaning narrative. He showed contrast in color, subject matter, and even a chronological timeline from one side of the piece to the other. He leveraged our mascots, shape language and brand story to broadcast our message. All designs were created by our senior artist, João Ribeiro. My role was art direction.